The Pre-Freeze Schedule System
Client identity withheld.
Results
$58K
Booked and signed revenue in 90 days, at the shop's own prices
74
Tune-ups and service calls booked from past customers before the freeze
61% → 84%
October schedule capacity filled
2 of 21
Stalled system quotes signed, worth $26K
16% → <2%
Local Services calls left with no response
80% → 89%
Maintenance plan renewal rate
Company Profile
Company
Residential heating and cooling shop focused on furnaces and boilers. ~$1.3M revenue, 5 service techs, 1 installer, the owner selling replacements, and 1 CSR. ~2,200 past customers and ~240 maintenance plan members.
Stack
Field-service management software, Google Local Services Ads, website form, payment processor with cards on file.
Operating Need
Fill the gap between the end of AC season and the first hard freeze, without discounting or extra ad spend.
The Challenge
The weeks between Labor Day and the first freeze were the leanest of the year. Techs stayed on payroll while the board sat about 60% full. Then the first cold snap brought more no-heat calls than six techs could reach, many from customers whose furnaces hadn't been checked in years. The owner knew a pre-season push would help, but with one CSR covering phones and scheduling, nobody had time to contact 2,200 customers.
The Audit
We ran the Open-Quote Audit and the Local Services Missed-Call Check, and reviewed October schedule capacity for the past two years.
Patterns Found
- October capacity averaged about 61% over the past two years
- About 900 customers were overdue for a furnace tune-up, many with systems over 12 years old
- 21 unsigned system quotes from the past 12 months, totaling $269K
- 16% of Local Services calls went unanswered, mostly at lunch and after 5pm
- About 1 in 5 members lapsed each year, often after an expired card
- The first freeze week each year produced more no-heat calls than the shop could book
The slow weeks and the freeze-week overload were the same problem. Customers who should have been seen in October were calling in November with no heat.
The Architecture
Built on our Revenue Recovery System, configured for the weeks before the first hard freeze. Six parts, timed to fill October.
Revenue Leak Audit
Ranked all 21 open quotes, mapped missed Local Services calls, and flagged customers overdue for a furnace check.
Past-Customer Wake-Up
Cleaned 2,200 customers to 1,900 reachable numbers and prioritized overdue furnace tune-ups and older systems, in batches sized to October's open slots.
Quote Closer
Three follow-ups from the owner's name within 14 days, then automatic enrollment of every new quote.
Call Handling
An AI assistant in backup mode that picks up after 3 rings and after hours, identifies itself as virtual, pages the on-call tech for no-heat emergencies under the owner's rules, and books routine work.
Plan Renewals
Renewal reminders, instant card-update links and one plan offer to every non-member tune-up customer.
Monday Recovered Revenue Report
One page every Monday with bookings, signed quotes and running totals.
How the System Operates
The system fills the schedule and follows up. The owner approves every message and sets every price.
- Texts go out only in batches the open schedule can absorb
- Nothing goes out until the owner approves it in writing, and STOP replies are removed permanently
- Price and discount questions always go to the owner; the system never discounts
How It Flows
- 1Open slots for the next two weeks are checked
- 2The right customer group is texted, sized to those slots
- 3Replies are booked into open slots, and tricky questions go to the office
- 4Every booking and signed quote is logged on the Monday report
Tricky replies go to the office, which responds within 2 business hours.
Implementation
| Stage | Focus | Key Results |
|---|---|---|
| Stage 1 | Revenue Leak Audit | $269K in unsigned quotes ranked; October capacity gaps mapped week by week |
| Stage 2 | Setup and approval | 2,200 customers cleaned to 1,900 reachable numbers; furnace-focused messages approved; texting number registered with carriers |
| Stage 3 | Launch | Wake-up batches matched to October openings; all 21 quotes followed up within 14 days; Call Handling live |
| Stage 4 | Always-on | New quotes auto-enrolled; Plan Renewals live; Monday reports every week |
Ownership
The shop now has a repeatable pre-freeze plan, built on its own customers and prices.
A cleaned customer list sorted by furnace age and last visit
An approved pre-season message set to run every fall
A ranked open-quote list and a Local Services missed-call analysis
Every Monday report and call summary
Operational Impact
October is no longer the quiet month. Techs spend the weeks before the freeze on tune-ups and repairs from customers who already know the shop, and many furnaces that would have failed in November get fixed in October. When the first cold snap hits, more customers are already covered, and the on-call tech handles true emergencies instead of preventable ones.