The folks in Gen Z — defined as people born between 1997 and 2012 — are a prime audience for influencers. People in that age group are developing career skills and looking for direction, or are sometimes in the early stages of work life without being settled into a career just yet. 

“Attracting Gen Z to the HVACR industry is essential to replacing a rapidly retiring workforce and addressing a growing skills gap,” said Bannister, a technician at Cam Cool Refrigeration Inc. in the Vancouver, Canada, area. Bannister is also the co-chair of Women in HVACR Canada. 

“As experienced technicians leave the trade, decades of hands-on knowledge are at risk of being lost, creating service delays, higher costs, and added strain on remaining workers,” she added. (The Job Bank of Canada forecasts an annual shortage of HVACR technicians in that country through 2031.) 

“Experienced technicians are aging out faster than new ones are coming in, and that gap continues to widen every year,” said Finley, who services commercial HVAC, refrigeration, and cooking equipment in the Indianapolis, Indiana, area for General Parts Group. “At the same time, demand isn’t slowing down — it’s increasing.” 

UPLIFTING THE TRADES: Ben Poole, an HVAC contractor and the founder of the HVAC Tactical influencer project, speaking at a Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors conference in 2023. (Staff photo)

Poole runs Crafted Comfort, a contracting firm he founded in Austin, Texas, but spends much of his time on his influencer project, @hvactactical, which includes a presence on major social media platforms, HVAC Tactical magazine, and the annual HVAC Tactical Awards, held the opening night of AHR Expo. 

“Attracting members of Gen Z to the trades is important because they’re at a stage in life where starting or pivoting into a career is still very accessible,” Poole said. But, he added, “Our focus is on attracting all generations. The trades have more than enough opportunities to go around, and great minds and capable hands come in every shape, size, and age.” 

HVACR influencers use social media to illustrate the variety of jobs and challenges technicians encounter, the importance of HVACR work, and the skills, benefits, and opportunities that come with an HVACR career. 

Finley said he highlights the job’s variety and quick pace, and the satisfaction that comes with hands-on mechanical work. 

“One day you’re troubleshooting refrigeration, the next you’re working on cooking equipment, HVAC, or controls,” said Finley (@commercial_kitchen_chronicles). “You’re in different environments, meeting different people, and solving real problems that matter.” 

“I create entertaining, short-form TikToks and reels that show the real day-to-day of HVACR work, break stereotypes, and highlight that these are essential, AI-proof, highly skilled careers that will always be in demand,” said Bannister, who posts as @hvacjess. 

Poole said HVAC Tactical offers “culture-driven moments that pull the next generation toward the trades,” and that it’s focused on attraction rather than recruitment. 

“When you build unique platforms and experiences, people don’t need to be convinced — they want in,” he said. 

The rewards of a career as an HVACR technician, such as pay, job security, portable skills, and opportunities for advancement, are especially appealing to Gen Z, Finley and Bannister said. 

“Gen Z is very aware of the cost of living, student debt, and long-term stability. This industry offers solid pay, strong job security, and the ability to earn while you learn, without taking on massive college debt,” Finley said. 

Finley said Instagram is the best place for him to reach a younger audience, particularly those in Gen Z.  

“The short-form, visual nature of the platform makes it easy to showcase real, day-to-day work in the trades, and that seems to resonate well with younger viewers who value authenticity and quick, engaging content,” he said. 

“My engagement patterns — comments, messages, and conversations — clearly show that Instagram is where I connect most consistently with Gen Z,” he added. YouTube, he said, reaches a wide age demographic and is effective for longer content, such as training videos and in-depth conversations. 

Instagram is the primary platform for HVAC Tactical, Poole said, and content posted there is automatically shared to Facebook (Meta is the parent company of both). Demographic data, he said, shows that Gen Z makes up between 35% and 40% of the HVAC Tactical audience. 

Bannister said TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube are her go-to platforms. 

“TikTok tends to have the highest concentration of Gen Z viewers,” she said. “Instagram has a more mixed demographic, with a solid portion of Gen Z but also a lot of Millennials, while YouTube skews a bit older overall but still captures younger viewers who are looking for deeper educational or day-in-the-life content.”