Adapting to Change: the Secret to Staying Competitive

Living through a pandemic, and keeping HVACR business going throughout, has made one lesson crystal clear: adapting to change is critical for long-term success. 

Why adapting to change in business is more important than ever

Risk and uncertainty have become the new normal, Harvard Business Review reports. That requires business owners and managers to keep an ear to the ground and think on their feet. With so much change happening, from technology to global health, we need to be ready to adapt so we can continue to provide the experiences our customers want and need from us.

If we don’t effectively adapt to change, our businesses will eventually become irrelevant.

Forbes said it perfectly: “Companies don’t fail because of changes in the environment, they fail because their leaders are either unwilling or incapable of dealing with said change.” 

Here are 5 key areas where the ability to adapt and change can help your business not only survive but thrive during difficult times. 

5 recommendations for adapting to change in our industry

1. Shift the makeup of your workforce

It’s no secret: our experienced, knowledgeable technicians are getting older and retiring in droves. Since the pandemic, people are retiring earlier. Yet many companies are not preparing for the inevitable consequences of this situation: loss of expertise and a shrinking workforce. 

What can we do? Grow our future workforce by attracting new talent to the industry. And having the current generation of technicians capture their knowledge by training younger workers.

Even if you’re not desperately in need of more technicians right now, it’s smart to seed your future workforce by hiring and training young technicians now.

Learn more: 

Hiring HVAC Technicians: Optimizing the Workforce

2. Expand your products & services

We are fortunate to be in an industry where just about everyone wants and needs what we offer. However, during the pandemic, many businesses learned that we can’t always rely on that fact. When 30 percent of your customer base goes out of business, they no longer need HVAC or Refrigeration. 

What can we do? Adapt to changes in customer demand by expanding our product and service offerings to boost revenue. For example, many HVAC service providers took advantage of the sudden demand for improved indoor air quality and air purification, offering air quality consultation and testing services, as well as a range of IAQ solutions. This was a natural shift since our customers already trusted us to take care of their indoor air.

Learn more:

Expand Your Services With Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Testing

Indoor Air Quality Solutions Your Customers Want and Need

3. Adopt new tools and technologies

Staying on top of the latest tools and technologies gives you a competitive edge for a number of reasons. Here are just a few ideas.

• New tools can save time and help your technicians diagnose problems faster. That allows you to complete more repair jobs on a given day. Here’s just one example: thermal imagers.
• Offering the latest in HVAC and Refrigeration equipment technology to your customers helps you boost revenue and build a reputation as a leader in the industry. 
• Technology can also allow you to offer new services, such as remote system monitoring and energy management consultations. 

4. Embrace modern marketing 

Offering new technologies and services requires you to think differently about marketing as well. In the past, companies could get away with relying on word of mouth and not doing much marketing. That’s changing fast, and HVACR businesses need to adapt. 

To stay competitive, you need to think carefully about who you want to sell to, and embrace new ways to reach your target markets. That might mean learning to do new things you’ve never tried before, like customer newsletters and social media marketing.

Learn more:

Customer Newsletters for HVACR Business: Why & How

HVAC Social Media Marketing: Tips to Grow Your Business

5. Hone your sales practices

Marketing is not the only area where many HVACR businesses have avoided adopting more modern practices. Many companies in our industry don’t have a dedicated salesforce or a deliberate selling process. And, even the larger companies tend to lack the helpful tools that can drive bigger and better sales results, such as a Customer Relationship Management system, or CRM.

Getting more organized and efficient with processes and tools can make a huge difference in your bottom line.

Learn more:

HVACR Business: Tips to Improve Your Selling Process

HVAC Sales: Benefits of a CRM to Grow Your Business

More advice to help you manage and grow your business

We hope you found this article helpful and inspiring. And we have lots more to offer. Check out our collection of advice for HVACR business owners and managers.

HVACR Career Connect NY was created to promote the exceptional quality-of-life benefits of a career in HVAC and Refrigeration service, and also to provide a clear path for getting started in the profession. In doing so, we serve as a resource for employers in the New York City metro area to find and hire smart and capable new technicians. We also serve as an educational resource to support business growth and to help service technicians succeed in their chosen profession.