This HVAC Company Books 40% More Jobs With AI Answering

The Summer From Hell

Mike runs Elite Heating & Cooling, a 6-person HVAC company serving the Greater Toronto Area. Business was good—until the first heat wave hit in June.

"We got 47 calls on the first day of the heat wave," Mike remembers. "I answered maybe 12 of them. My dispatcher answered 8. The rest went to voicemail."

And here's what happens when desperate homeowners with broken AC can't reach you: they call the next HVAC company on Google. And the next. Until someone answers.

Elite Heating & Cooling was losing thousands in potential revenue every single day of summer rush.

The Real Cost of Missed Calls in HVAC

HVAC has some of the highest average ticket values in home services:

• AC repair: $300-800
• AC replacement: $3,000-7,000
• Furnace repair: $200-600
• Furnace replacement: $2,500-5,000
• Maintenance contracts: $200-400/year per customer

Every missed call isn't just a lost job—it's potentially a lost lifetime customer worth thousands in repeat business and referrals.

"I did the math after that first heat wave. If we missed 27 calls and just 10 of them were AC repairs averaging $500, that's $5,000 in one day. Over a summer? We're talking $50,000-100,000 in lost revenue."

Why Hiring More Staff Didn't Work

Mike tried the obvious solution first: hiring another dispatcher. He brought on Sarah, a part-time employee to handle overflow calls.

It helped... for about two weeks.

Then the real problems started:

• Sarah could only work 9-5. After-hours calls (when AC breaks down) still went to voicemail
• Training took 3 weeks. Sarah quit after 6 weeks for a better-paying job
• The cost: $18/hour × 25 hours/week = $1,800/month + payroll taxes = ~$2,200/month
• Sarah still couldn't answer every call during peak times—she'd be on one line while 3 others rang

"Hiring wasn't the answer. We needed something that could answer unlimited calls, 24/7, never call in sick, and never quit."

Enter AI Phone Answering

We built Elite Heating & Cooling a custom AI answering system that handles their specific needs:

Emergency Call Detection

The AI asks qualifying questions to identify true emergencies (no heat in winter, no AC during extreme heat) and escalates those immediately to Mike's cell. Non-urgent calls get scheduled for next available appointment.

Smart Scheduling

The AI integrates with Elite's booking calendar and can schedule appointments directly. It knows:

• Which tech is available in which areas
• How long different jobs typically take
• When to leave buffer time between appointments
• When to offer next-day vs. same-day service

Qualification That Actually Works

The AI captures all the info Mike's techs need:

• Type of system (central AC, heat pump, furnace, etc.)
• Age of equipment
• Symptoms and error codes
• Address and contact info
• Preferred appointment times

When a tech arrives, they have everything they need. No more "I'll have to check and call you back."

The Results: 40% More Booked Jobs

After 90 days with AI answering, Elite Heating & Cooling's numbers told the story:

📞 100% Call Answer Rate

Every call gets answered, even when 5 come in simultaneously. The AI handles unlimited concurrent calls.

📈 40% Increase in Booked Appointments

More answered calls = more booked jobs. Simple math. Elite went from booking ~15 jobs/day during peak season to 21+ jobs/day.

⏰ 24/7 Coverage

Late night AC breakdown? Weekend furnace failure? The AI handles it all and books the next available appointment.

💰 $847,000 Projected Annual Revenue Increase

At an average ticket of $650 and 6 additional jobs per day over a 7-month HVAC season: that's serious money.

💵 Cost Savings: $2,200/month

The AI replaced the need for a part-time dispatcher. Mike pays $297/month instead of $2,200/month.

The Surprise Benefit: Better Customer Experience

Mike expected the AI to be a "good enough" solution for overflow calls. He didn't expect customers to prefer it.

"I had a customer tell me she loved booking with the AI. It was fast, she didn't have to wait on hold, and she got an immediate confirmation text with her appointment time. She said she wished every company worked like this."

Turns out, customers don't care who (or what) answers the phone. They care about:

• Getting through immediately (not voicemail)
• Getting their problem solved quickly
• Getting a confirmed appointment time

The AI delivers all three, every single time.

The Winter Test

When the first cold snap hit in November, Mike wasn't worried. He'd already seen what the AI could do.

Day 1 of the cold snap: 83 calls. The AI answered all 83. Booked 31 furnace repairs and 12 no-heat emergencies.

Mike's team focused on what they do best—fixing HVAC systems—while the AI handled the chaos of scheduling.

Is AI Answering Right for Your HVAC Business?

Ask yourself:

• Do you miss calls during busy periods?
• Do customers complain about not being able to reach you?
• Are you turning down jobs because you can't handle the call volume?
• Are you tired of the hiring/firing cycle with dispatchers?

If you answered yes to any of these, AI answering could transform your business like it did for Elite Heating & Cooling.