Marketing playbook

This doc is the marketing operating plan for Sun Valley Mechanical LLC in Phoenix, AZ. Run the three 'now' plays first and get them to routine before adding anything else. Revisit the full plan quarterly to move 'next' plays into rotation as capacity allows.

Trade context. Phoenix HVAC customers find contractors two ways: emergency search when the unit dies at 9 PM in July, and planned research when they know a system is aging and want to get ahead of it. Both paths run through Google first. Referrals from neighbors, property managers, and adjacent trades (plumbers, electricians, roofers) are the second-largest source and carry the highest close rate. That means your first marketing dollars and hours go to being findable on Google and being visible at every job site, not to broad advertising.

• Every completed job is a marketing asset. Take a photo of the finished equipment with the Sun Valley Mechanical truck in the background before you leave the driveway.
• Track where every lead came from. Ask on the first call: 'How did you hear about us?' Record it in your CRM (Decision Built or your current platform) so you know which channels are producing booked jobs, not just calls.
• Phoenix summers are a sprint. Build your pipeline in February and March so you are not scrambling for installs in June when every competitor is also scrambling.
• Light commercial is a real differentiator in this market. The residential-only shops turn it away. Make sure every referral partner and every GBP category reflects that you take those calls.
• Marcus answering his own phone is a marketing advantage right now. Use it. Mention it in your positioning and in your referral scripts. It is a real, verifiable claim that the big shops cannot match.
• A review from a happy customer in Chandler helps you rank in Chandler. Spread your review asks across every zip code in your service radius, not just the ones closest to home base.

Sun Valley Mechanical installs and services Carrier and Mitsubishi systems for Phoenix homes and small businesses, and Marcus answers when you call.

Who you serve

Homeowners and light commercial property owners within 25 miles of Phoenix who need HVAC installation, repair, or maintenance and want a licensed contractor who will actually show up when promised. Both residential and light commercial accounts.

What you sell

Air conditioning and heating installation, repair, and tune-ups for homes and small commercial buildings, including heat pumps and mini-split systems. Maintenance plans that keep equipment running through Phoenix summers.

Why you win

Sun Valley Mechanical installs Carrier and Mitsubishi equipment only, which means Marcus knows those systems cold and stands behind the work. During peak season, service calls get scheduled the same week, not three weeks out like the big shops. Light commercial jobs that residential-only contractors turn away are a core part of the business. And for the first year, Marcus answers his own phone, so the person who picks up is the person who does the work.

Proof points

• Licensed HVAC contractor in Arizona
• Carrier and Mitsubishi authorized installer
• Same-week scheduling for service calls during peak season
• Light commercial work accepted (strip malls, small offices, warehouses)
• Owner answers calls directly
• Written flat-rate quotes before any work begins

Priority: Run now

When a Phoenix homeowner's AC dies at 10 PM in August, the first thing they do is search 'AC repair near me.' GBP is the single highest-intent surface in HVAC and it is free to maintain. Without a verified, complete profile, Sun Valley Mechanical does not exist to that customer.

Setup

1. Claim or create the Google Business Profile at business.google.com using the Sun Valley Mechanical LLC legal name.
2. Verify the listing via postcard or phone. Do not skip verification; an unverified profile does not rank.
3. Set primary category to 'HVAC Contractor.' Add secondary categories: 'Air Conditioning Contractor,' 'Heating Contractor,' 'Heat Pump Supplier.'
4. Write the business description using the one-liner and the proof points. Include 'Carrier,' 'Mitsubishi,' 'heat pump,' 'mini-split,' and 'light commercial' as natural phrases, not a keyword list.
5. Upload at least 10 photos at launch: truck with logo, equipment installs (Carrier and Mitsubishi units), a mini-split job, a light commercial job if available, and Marcus on-site.
6. Set service area to cover all zip codes within the 25-mile radius. List every city and zip you will actually serve.
7. Enable messaging and set up a short auto-reply so after-hours inquiries get a response time expectation.
8. See the GBP Optimization SOP (a separate CrewPlaybook doc) for the full photo plan, attribute checklist, and monthly maintenance routine.

Weekly motion

• Post one job update per week using the 'Add Update' feature. Two sentences: what the job was, where (city only, not address), and what equipment was installed.
• Respond to every new review within 48 hours. Thank the reviewer by first name and mention the service type.
• Check the Q&A section once a week and answer any new questions. Seed it early with your own common questions ('Do you service light commercial?' 'Do you install mini-splits?').

Cost

GBP is free. The cost is time: roughly 30 minutes per week once the profile is set up. The only dollar cost is if you hire someone to manage it, which is not necessary in year one.

What to measure

• Calls from GBP (visible in the GBP dashboard under 'Calls')
• Direction requests per month (a proxy for local search visibility)
• Search impressions (how many times the profile appeared in results)
• Number of reviews and average star rating, tracked weekly

Common mistakes

• Leaving the service area blank or set to a single address, which limits local pack visibility.
• Uploading stock photos instead of real job-site photos. Google and customers both notice.
• Not responding to negative reviews. One unanswered one-star review in Phoenix summer is visible to every future customer who searches you.
• Setting the category to 'Air Conditioning Repair' only and missing searches for installation, heat pumps, and commercial HVAC.

Priority: Run now

LSA puts Sun Valley Mechanical above organic results and above regular paid search for high-intent queries like 'AC repair Phoenix' and 'HVAC install Chandler.' You pay per lead, not per click, and the Google Guaranteed badge does real work in a market where customers are choosing between five licensed contractors. This is already in the customer acquisition plan.

Setup

1. Go to ads.google.com/local-services-ads and start the HVAC contractor application.
2. Complete the background check and license verification. Arizona requires an ROC license; have the number ready.
3. Upload proof of general liability insurance and workers' comp (or owner-exclusion form if sole operator).
4. Set your service area by zip code. Cover every zip within the 25-mile radius you will actually serve.
5. Set your weekly budget. Start conservatively, in the range of $300-$600 per week, and adjust based on lead volume and job close rate. Do not set a budget you cannot service if the leads come in.
6. Select job types carefully: AC repair, AC installation, heating repair, heating installation, mini-split installation. Add 'commercial HVAC' if the platform offers it in your category.
7. Set your hours to match when Marcus can actually answer the phone. Leads that go to voicemail during listed hours count against your ranking.

Weekly motion

• Mark every lead as 'booked,' 'not booked,' or 'invalid' within 24 hours. This directly affects your LSA ranking.
• Dispute invalid leads (wrong service area, wrong trade, hang-ups) through the LSA dashboard within 30 days.
• Check your weekly spend and lead count every Monday. Calculate booked jobs from LSA that week divided by LSA spend to get your cost per booked job. Adjust budget up or down based on whether you can handle the volume.

Cost

LSA charges per lead, not per click. Lead costs in HVAC vary widely by market and season. Phoenix is a competitive market; expect lead costs to be higher in June-August than in January. Your real number is: total LSA spend that month divided by jobs booked from LSA leads. Do not use any published benchmark as your planning number. Start with a weekly cap you can afford to lose while you calibrate.

What to measure

• Leads received per week from LSA
• Booked jobs from LSA leads per week
• Cost per booked job (total LSA spend divided by booked jobs from LSA)
• Lead dispute rate (high dispute rate signals a targeting or category problem)

Common mistakes

• Setting the budget and ignoring lead disposition. Unmarked leads hurt your ranking and you cannot dispute them after 30 days.
• Listing hours when Marcus is not available to answer. Missed calls during listed hours tank the ranking.
• Running LSA before the GBP is verified and has at least five reviews. The two are linked and reviews affect LSA ranking.
• Expanding the service area beyond what you can actually serve in the same week. A lead from 40 miles out that you cannot schedule is a wasted spend.

Priority: Run now

In Phoenix residential neighborhoods, neighbors watch what is happening on the street. A Sun Valley Mechanical truck in a driveway with a yard sign is a passive ad to 40 households who already know someone on their block had HVAC work done. This is the lowest-cost lead source available and it compounds over time as the brand becomes familiar in specific neighborhoods.

Setup

1. Order 18x24 corrugated yard signs with the Sun Valley Mechanical name, phone number, and one-liner. Order at least 50 to start. Cost is typically $2-$5 per sign at a local print shop or online.
2. Design a door hanger with: Sun Valley Mechanical name and number, 'Your neighbor just had their [system type] installed/serviced by us,' a specific offer or call to action (maintenance plan, free second opinion, or simply 'call us when you need HVAC'), and the Carrier and Mitsubishi logos if licensing allows.
3. Print 500-1,000 door hangers to start. Cost is typically $0.10-$0.30 each in quantity.
4. Establish a job-site protocol: yard sign goes in the ground when the truck arrives, comes down when the truck leaves.
5. Map the 20 houses on each side of every job address before you leave the site.

Weekly motion

• After every completed job, walk door hangers to the 20 closest houses on each side of the street. This takes 15-20 minutes and covers the highest-probability prospects.
• On multi-day installs, leave the yard sign up for the full duration of the job.
• Log the neighborhood and street in your CRM so you can track which areas are generating callbacks from hangers.

Cost

Signs and hangers are a one-time print cost, typically $200-$600 for an initial run of both. The ongoing cost is Marcus's time (15-20 minutes per job) and reprint costs as inventory depletes. This is the lowest dollar-per-lead channel available to a new HVAC business.

What to measure

• Calls or texts that mention 'I saw your sign' or 'I got a flyer' - ask on every inbound call and log it
• Jobs booked per 100 door hangers distributed (track by neighborhood to find which areas convert)
• Number of jobs completed in a given zip code versus inbound leads from that zip code over time

Common mistakes

• Skipping the door hangers when the job runs long. The 15 minutes is worth it every time.
• Using a generic hanger that does not mention the neighbor connection. 'Your neighbor on [Street Name] just had their AC replaced' outperforms a generic ad.
• Leaving yard signs up after the job is done and the truck is gone. An abandoned sign looks unprofessional.
• Not tracking which neighborhoods generate callbacks, so you cannot double down on the areas that work.

Priority: Up next

Plumbers, electricians, roofers, and general contractors in Phoenix regularly get asked by their customers for an HVAC referral. Property managers with light commercial portfolios need a reliable HVAC contractor they can call without babysitting the job. Both are warm referrals with a higher close rate than any paid channel. Sun Valley Mechanical's light commercial capability is a specific hook that most residential shops cannot offer.

Setup

1. List 10-15 target referral partners: licensed plumbers, electricians, roofers, and general contractors who work in your service area. Start with anyone Marcus already knows.
2. Identify 5-10 property management companies in Phoenix that manage strip malls, small office buildings, or light industrial. These are the light commercial accounts.
3. Prepare a one-page leave-behind: Sun Valley Mechanical name, Marcus's direct number, services offered (including light commercial), equipment brands, and a simple referral offer (see Referral Program section).
4. Make in-person introductions. Show up at their office or job site. A phone call is fine for follow-up; the first contact should be face-to-face.
5. Join the Arizona Registrar of Contractors licensee network events and any local trade association meetings where these contractors gather.

Weekly motion

• Follow up with one new potential referral partner per week by phone or in person.
• When a referral partner sends a job, call them after the job is complete to close the loop. This is what makes partners keep sending work.
• Send a short text or email to your active referral partners once a month with a reminder that you are taking new clients and have capacity for light commercial.

Cost

The cost is time and the referral incentive you choose to offer (see Referral Program section). No ad spend required. The leave-behind print cost is minimal, typically $50-$150 for a professional one-pager.

What to measure

• Number of active referral partners (partners who have sent at least one lead in the last 90 days)
• Jobs booked from referral partner leads per month
• Revenue from light commercial accounts sourced through property manager relationships

Common mistakes

• Treating referral partners as a one-time ask. The relationship requires ongoing contact or the referrals stop.
• Not closing the loop after a referred job. Partners stop referring when they never hear what happened.
• Ignoring property managers because they feel harder to reach. A property manager with 10 commercial units is worth more than 10 individual homeowners over a year.

Priority: Up next

Phoenix-area neighborhoods have active Nextdoor communities and Facebook groups (Chandler Moms, Gilbert AZ Community, Ahwatukee Foothills Neighbors, etc.) where residents ask for contractor recommendations weekly. Being present and responsive in these groups is free and builds neighborhood-level name recognition that paid ads cannot replicate.

Setup

1. Create a Nextdoor business profile for Sun Valley Mechanical at business.nextdoor.com. Verify the service area.
2. Search Facebook for the 5-10 most active neighborhood and community groups in your service area. Join as Marcus Rivera personally, not as the business page, since most groups prohibit business-only accounts.
3. Read each group's rules before posting. Most allow contractor recommendations when asked but prohibit unsolicited ads.
4. Create a Facebook business page for Sun Valley Mechanical. Keep it updated with job photos so when someone clicks your name in a group, they see a real business.
5. Set a Google alert for 'HVAC Phoenix,' 'AC repair [city],' and similar terms so you can monitor when people post questions outside the groups you are in.

Weekly motion

• Check each group once per day (takes 5 minutes). When someone asks for an HVAC recommendation, reply with a short, direct response: who you are, what you do, and your phone number. Do not paste a sales pitch.
• Post one job photo per week on the Sun Valley Mechanical Facebook page with a two-sentence caption: what was done and where (city, not address).
• Respond to every comment or message on the Facebook page within 24 hours.

Cost

Free. The cost is 20-30 minutes per day of monitoring and responding. Nextdoor offers paid neighborhood sponsorships; defer that until the free presence is established and you have reviews to back it up.

What to measure

• Inbound calls or messages that mention Nextdoor or a specific Facebook group (ask on every call)
• Jobs booked from social group referrals per month
• Facebook page followers and post reach (secondary signals, not primary)

Common mistakes

• Posting promotional content in groups that prohibit it. One removed post or ban eliminates the channel entirely.
• Responding to recommendation requests with a long sales pitch. Short and direct wins. 'Marcus Rivera, Sun Valley Mechanical. We do AC repair and installs in [city]. Here's my number.' is enough.
• Letting the Facebook business page go dark. When someone clicks through from a group reply and sees no recent posts, the credibility is gone.
• Ignoring Nextdoor in favor of Facebook only. In Phoenix suburbs, Nextdoor recommendation threads are high-intent and convert well.

Priority: Up next

A wrapped truck driving through Phoenix neighborhoods and parked at job sites is a moving billboard in the exact geographic area where Sun Valley Mechanical wants customers. In a market where Goettl and Parker and Sons have large fleets, a single well-branded truck signals that this is a real business, not a side operation.

Setup

1. Get a professional vehicle wrap or high-quality vinyl lettering. A full wrap runs $2,000-$4,500 at a Phoenix print shop; partial wraps or lettering run $500-$1,500. Get at least three quotes.
2. Include on the truck: Sun Valley Mechanical name, phone number, website (even a simple one), 'Carrier and Mitsubishi Authorized,' and the service types in plain language ('AC Install, Repair, Maintenance').
3. Order 10-15 polo shirts or work shirts with the Sun Valley Mechanical logo embroidered. Wearing a branded shirt at every job and every supply house visit is part of the marketing motion.
4. Park the truck on the street, not in the driveway, when working a job. It is more visible to passing traffic.

Weekly motion

• Keep the truck clean. A dirty wrapped truck is worse than no wrap.
• Park strategically at supply houses, Home Depot, and anywhere else Marcus goes during the workday. The truck is working even when Marcus is inside.

Cost

Vehicle wrap is a one-time cost, typically $1,500-$4,500 depending on coverage and shop. Shirts are $20-$50 each with embroidery. This is a fixed cost that pays over the life of the vehicle, not a recurring spend.

What to measure

• Inbound calls that mention 'I saw your truck' (ask on every call and log it)
• Anecdotal neighborhood recognition over time (customers mentioning they have seen the truck around)

Common mistakes

• Putting too much text on the truck. A phone number and the business name are what drivers can read at 35 mph.
• Using a magnetic sign instead of a wrap or lettering. Magnetics fall off, look temporary, and signal a side hustle.
• Parking in the driveway instead of the street during jobs. The street is where the visibility is.

Priority: Later

A simple, fast-loading website with location-specific pages for Phoenix, Chandler, Gilbert, Scottsdale, and the other cities in the service radius helps Sun Valley Mechanical rank in organic search over time. This is a longer-term play; GBP and LSA produce leads faster in year one. But a website is the destination for every other channel, so it needs to exist and be functional from day one.

Setup

1. Build or commission a simple 5-7 page website: Home, Services (with a page or section for each major service type), About Marcus, Service Area, and Contact.
2. Write the service area page to name every city and zip code in the 25-mile radius. This is the primary local SEO lever on the site.
3. Include the Carrier and Mitsubishi authorized installer language and logos (confirm logo usage rights with each manufacturer's dealer program).
4. Make the phone number clickable on mobile. Most HVAC searches happen on phones.
5. Submit the site to Google Search Console and verify it.
6. List Sun Valley Mechanical on Yelp, Angi, and the BBB with consistent name, address, and phone number matching the GBP exactly. These citations support local search ranking.
7. Do not invest in paid SEO services in year one. The GBP and LSA will produce leads faster. Revisit paid SEO when the free channels are saturated.

Weekly motion

• Add one completed job photo to the website gallery once a month. This is low-effort and keeps the site from looking stale.
• Check Google Search Console once a month for crawl errors or manual actions.

Cost

A basic website built on Squarespace, Wix, or WordPress costs $15-$40 per month in platform fees plus a domain ($10-$20 per year). A professionally built site runs $1,500-$5,000 depending on the contractor. In year one, a clean DIY site is sufficient. Do not spend on SEO agencies until the free channels are producing consistent leads.

What to measure

• Organic search clicks and impressions from Google Search Console
• Calls or form fills attributed to the website (ask on every inbound call)
• Website ranking for '[city] HVAC contractor' and '[city] AC repair' over time

Common mistakes

• Building a website with no location-specific content. A generic 'Phoenix HVAC' page does not rank for Chandler or Gilbert searches.
• Spending $5,000+ on SEO in year one before GBP and LSA are producing consistent leads. The ROI timeline on SEO is 6-12 months minimum.
• Not making the phone number clickable on mobile. This is the most common conversion failure on HVAC sites.

In Phoenix HVAC, customers choosing between five licensed contractors will pick the one with the most visible proof that other people trusted them and were not disappointed. Reviews, job-site photos, and neighborhood visibility do more work than any ad because they answer the question the customer is actually asking: 'Has anyone around here used this company and did it go well?' Building that proof systematically from the first job is the highest-return activity in year one.

Before-and-after job photos

Before touching any equipment, take two photos: the existing unit and the work area. After the job is complete and cleaned up, take two more: the new equipment and the full installation. Include the Sun Valley Mechanical truck in at least one shot. Store photos by job in your CRM and use them for GBP posts, the website gallery, and Facebook. A Carrier split system install in Chandler with a clean photo is more persuasive than any ad copy.

Review velocity by zip code

Ask for a Google review at the end of every completed job. The timing, the exact ask, and the follow-up text are in the Review Request Scripts doc (a separate CrewPlaybook doc). The goal is to build reviews across every zip code in the service radius, not just the ones closest to home base, because reviews from Chandler help rank in Chandler searches. Track your review count and average rating weekly in a simple spreadsheet.

Yard signs during active jobs

Place a Sun Valley Mechanical yard sign at the street edge of every job site when the truck arrives. Remove it when the truck leaves. On multi-day installs, the sign stays up for the full job. The sign should have the phone number in large type and nothing else except the business name. Neighbors who see the sign and are curious will search the name; make sure the GBP is live and has reviews before the first sign goes in the ground.

Neighbor introductions on multi-day jobs

On any job that runs two or more days, Marcus should introduce himself to the immediate neighbors on each side and across the street. Keep it short: 'Hey, I'm Marcus from Sun Valley Mechanical. We're doing an AC install next door. If you have any questions or need anything HVAC-related, here's my card.' This is not a sales pitch. It is a human introduction that makes the business memorable when those neighbors need HVAC work.

Finished-job walkthrough documentation

Before leaving every job, walk the customer through what was done, what was installed, and what to expect. Take a short 30-60 second video of the finished installation while explaining it. This video can be used on the Facebook page and GBP with the customer's permission. It also demonstrates the quality of the work in a way a photo cannot.

Referrals in HVAC close at a higher rate than any paid lead because the customer already trusts the person who sent them. A referral program does not need to be complicated to work; it needs to be easy to remember and easy to act on. The biggest reason referral programs fail in trades is that the contractor never actually asks.

Structure

The structure is simple: any existing customer who refers a new customer who books a job gets a $50 Visa gift card or account credit toward their next service, delivered within two weeks of the referred job being completed. The new customer gets a $25 discount on their first service call or a free first-year maintenance plan add-on, whichever fits the job type. Track referrals by asking every new customer 'Who referred you?' on the first call and logging it in your CRM. Sanity-check the math against your average job value: if your average residential service call is $300-$500 and your average install is $8,000-$15,000, a $50 referral incentive is a small fraction of the revenue and a reasonable cost of acquisition. Adjust the incentive amount based on your actual average job value, not a benchmark.

Referral ask at job completion (in person)

_Channel: In person_

> Talk-points: Thank the customer for the job. Mention that most of the business comes from people like them telling neighbors and friends. Ask directly. > > Sample: 'One more thing before I head out. Most of my new customers come from people who already worked with me. If you know anyone who needs AC work, send them my way. I'll send you a $50 gift card when they book a job, and they'll get a discount on their first service. Here's an extra card with my number on it.'

Referral ask follow-up text (sent 2-3 days after job completion)

_Channel: Text_

> Hi [Customer First Name], Marcus from Sun Valley Mechanical. Hope the [system type] is running well. Quick reminder: if you know anyone who needs AC work, send them my number. I'll get you a $50 gift card when they book. Just have them mention your name when they call. Thanks again.

Adjacent trade partner referral ask (in person, first meeting)

_Channel: In person_

> Talk-points: Introduce yourself and the business. Explain the light commercial capability specifically. Make the ask mutual. > > Sample: 'I'm Marcus Rivera, Sun Valley Mechanical. I do HVAC installs and service, including light commercial, which a lot of the residential shops won't touch. I'm guessing you run into customers who need HVAC work. If you send them my way, I'll take care of them and send you a referral fee for any job that books. And if my customers need [their trade], I'll send them to you. Here's my card and a one-pager on what we do.'

Property manager outreach (email, first contact)

_Channel: Email_

> Subject: HVAC contractor for your Phoenix-area properties > > Hi [Property Manager Name], > > I'm Marcus Rivera, owner of Sun Valley Mechanical LLC. We do HVAC installation, repair, and maintenance for residential and light commercial properties in the Phoenix area, including strip malls, small offices, and multi-unit buildings. > > I know property managers need a contractor who shows up when scheduled and communicates clearly. I answer my own phone and give written quotes before any work starts. > > If you have properties that need HVAC service or are looking for a backup contractor, I'd like to introduce myself. I'm happy to meet at your office or talk by phone. > > Marcus Rivera > Sun Valley Mechanical LLC > [Phone Number] > [Website]

Q1 / January - March (pre-season ramp)

Phoenix winters are mild but this is the window when homeowners and property managers think about whether their AC will survive another summer. Demand for maintenance and system assessments is real and competition for installs is lower than it will be in May.

• Run a pre-season maintenance plan push. Contact every customer from the previous year (even if it is a short list) and offer a spring tune-up before the heat hits.
• Increase LSA budget in February and March as search volume for 'AC tune-up' and 'HVAC maintenance' rises. This is the time to book installs before the summer backlog.
• Reach out to property managers in January with a 'get your commercial units inspected before summer' message. Light commercial customers plan further ahead than homeowners.
• Attend any local trade or contractor association events in Q1 to build the referral partner network before the busy season.
• Refresh the GBP with new photos from any winter jobs and update the business description to mention spring availability.

Q2 / April - June (peak ramp and summer sprint)

April through June is when Phoenix HVAC demand accelerates fast. By June, every HVAC contractor in the market is at capacity. The goal is to be fully booked on installs by mid-May and to have a service call queue that does not require turning customers away.

• Prioritize install jobs booked in Q1. Protect the schedule from being consumed entirely by service calls at the expense of higher-value installs.
• Keep LSA running at full budget. This is the highest-return period for paid leads.
• Maintain the door hanger and yard sign discipline on every job. Neighborhoods are active in spring and neighbors are thinking about their own AC.
• Do not take on more jobs than can be scheduled within the same-week commitment. Overpromising in June is the fastest way to lose reviews.
• Ask for reviews on every completed job. Review velocity in May and June builds the ranking that carries through the rest of the year.

Q3 / July - September (peak season and emergency volume)

July and August in Phoenix are the emergency months. Units fail in 115-degree heat and customers need same-day or next-day service. This is the period where the same-week scheduling differentiator is most visible and most valuable.

• Hold the same-week scheduling commitment. If capacity is maxed, be honest about the timeline rather than overpromising. A customer who waits four days and is told upfront is less likely to leave a bad review than one who was promised two days and waited five.
• Keep LSA running. Do not pause it during peak because lead costs are higher; this is when the leads are most valuable.
• Document every emergency job with photos. A before-and-after of a failed unit replaced in August heat is a compelling GBP post in September.
• Check in with referral partners. Plumbers and electricians are also busy in summer and may be getting HVAC questions they are not equipped to answer.
• Do not neglect review asks during the sprint. It is easy to skip when the schedule is full. The reviews from summer jobs are the most credible ones.

Q4 / October - December

October through December is the slowest HVAC period in Phoenix. Demand drops sharply after the heat breaks. This is the time to build the infrastructure that makes next year easier: referral relationships, maintenance plan renewals, and the marketing assets that take time to build.

• Reduce LSA budget to match lower demand. Do not cut it entirely; some installs and heating calls still come in.
• Contact every customer from the year and offer a heating system check before winter. Phoenix winters are mild but heat strips and heat pumps do get used.
• Use the slower schedule to build the referral partner network. Make the in-person visits that are hard to fit in during summer.
• Update the website with new job photos and any new services added during the year.
• Review the full marketing plan. Which channels produced booked jobs? Which did not? Adjust the Q1 plan based on actual data from the year.

In year one, most of Sun Valley Mechanical's marketing is bought with hours, not dollars. The dollars that matter early are small and specific: a vehicle wrap, yard signs, door hangers, and LSA spend calibrated to what Marcus can actually service. Broad paid campaigns and SEO agencies are year-two decisions, made with real data from year one.

• First dollars go to truck branding (vehicle wrap or lettering, $500-$4,500 one-time) and yard signs and door hangers ($200-$600 for an initial run). These are fixed costs that pay over the life of the business.
• LSA is the first recurring paid spend. Start with a weekly budget in the range of $300-$600 and adjust based on your actual cost per booked job. Do not set a budget you cannot service if the leads come in.
• GBP, Nextdoor, and Facebook groups are free. The cost is 30-45 minutes per day of monitoring and posting. Do not pay for Nextdoor neighborhood sponsorships or Facebook ads until the free presence is established and producing leads.
• A basic website costs $15-$40 per month in platform fees. Do not spend on SEO agencies or paid content in year one. The GBP and LSA will produce leads faster.
• Defer broad paid search (Google Ads beyond LSA), direct mail campaigns, and radio or digital display advertising until the free and low-cost channels are producing consistent, tracked leads and you have the review count to back up the paid visibility.
• The trigger for adding paid spend on any new channel is: the existing channels are producing consistent leads, you have tracked the cost per booked job on each, and you have capacity to service more work. Adding spend before that point is guessing.

• Leads per week by source: Ask 'How did you hear about us?' on every inbound call. Log the answer in your CRM. At the end of each week, count leads by source (GBP, LSA, referral, door hanger, Nextdoor, etc.). This is the only way to know which channels are working.
• Cost per booked job by channel: For paid channels (LSA), divide total spend that month by jobs booked from that channel. For free channels, estimate the hours spent and assign a dollar value if useful. Review this monthly.
• Review count and weekly pace: Track total Google reviews and average star rating weekly. A target pace for year one is 2-4 new reviews per week. If the pace drops, the review ask process has broken down.
• Referral share of revenue: At the end of each month, calculate what percentage of revenue came from referrals (customer referrals plus partner referrals). A growing referral share means the trust-building is working.
• LSA lead disposition rate: What percentage of LSA leads are being marked as booked, not booked, or invalid each week. A low booking rate signals a targeting problem or a call-handling problem.
• Maintenance plan count: Track the number of active maintenance plan customers monthly. This is the recurring revenue base and the most reliable source of repeat service calls.
• Light commercial revenue as a percentage of total: Track separately from residential. This is a differentiator and a higher-value segment. If it is not growing, the referral partner outreach to property managers needs more attention.

• A 'now' play has been running consistently for 90 days and is producing tracked leads. That is the trigger to add the next 'next' play into the rotation.
• A channel produced zero booked jobs in a full quarter. Do not keep running it unchanged. Either fix the execution or reallocate the time and money.
• The service area or service mix changes. Adding a new city or a new service type (like commercial refrigeration or geothermal) requires updating GBP categories, LSA job types, and the website.
• A competitor starts dominating a channel you are not on. If Goettl or Parker and Sons launches an aggressive LSA campaign in your zip codes, that is a signal to review your own LSA setup and budget, not to panic.
• Review count stalls. If the weekly review pace drops below one per week for more than a month, the review ask process has broken down and needs to be rebuilt before anything else.
• Revenue mix shifts significantly. If light commercial grows to more than 40% of revenue, the positioning and channel mix should reflect that shift, including more targeted outreach to property managers and commercial-specific GBP content.