Quote-to-install conversion is the part of marketing that happens after the phone rings. For heat pumps it's often where the most money is lost, because decisions are long, rebates create uncertainty, and follow-up is the first thing a busy office drops in January.
Why heat-pump quotes stall
Answer first: most stalled heat-pump quotes are waiting on an answer the homeowner never asked out loud.
The usual silent questions:
- "Will I actually get the rebate, and when?"
- "Will this keep my house warm in February?"
- "Is the higher quote worth it compared with the other one?"
- "Do I have to decide before the program changes?"
A quote that answers these on paper closes more often than one that lists equipment model numbers and a total. A follow-up call that addresses them closes more still.
What's included
Intake that sorts enquiries early
A short script for whoever answers your phone, texts or email, designed to find out within three minutes:
- current heating fuel and system age
- home type and whether it has ducts
- which program the caller has heard about, and whether they've checked eligibility
- timeline: "my furnace just failed" versus "planning for next year"
The answers decide who gets a home visit this week, who gets a phone consultation, and who gets an explainer and a follow-up date. Your technicians stop driving to homes that were never going to buy this season.
Quotes that show net cost honestly
A quote layout your team can reuse:
- equipment and scope in plain words, with the reason each item is there
- price before incentives
- programs the customer may be eligible for, each with its administrator, its status and the date your team last checked
- estimated net cost, clearly marked as depending on the homeowner's own approval
- what happens if the rebate doesn't come through
That last line costs nothing and builds a lot of trust.
Follow-up timed to the decision
A schedule tied to the homeowner's situation rather than a generic "check in after a week":
| Situation | Follow-up |
|---|---|
| Emergency replacement | Same day, then next morning |
| Waiting on rebate eligibility | When their pre-approval or evaluation step is expected, per the program's published process |
| Comparing quotes | Within 48 hours, with an answer to the most likely objection |
| Planning for next season | A dated reminder before your busy season, by the channel they chose |
Every follow-up goes only to people who contacted you, by the method they used. That respects Canada's anti-spam rules and keeps the message welcome.
Missed-call recovery
Heat-pump enquiries often come in during evenings and weekends, when homeowners have time to research. We help you set up a fast response to missed calls and after-hours texts, using tools you control.
Who this service suits
- companies receiving a healthy number of heat-pump enquiries but closing a small share
- businesses whose quotes are accurate but hard for a homeowner to read
- offices where follow-up depends on one busy person remembering
Timeline
- Weeks 1–2: review of 20 to 30 recent heat-pump enquiries and quotes, from first contact to outcome; interviews with whoever answers the phone and whoever quotes
- Weeks 3–4: intake script, quote template and follow-up schedule drafted and agreed
- Weeks 5–8: team walk-through, live use, weekly check-ins on how it's working
- Month 3 onward: monthly review of close rates and stalled quotes
How we measure it
The core measure is simple: installs divided by enquiries, tracked monthly. Under it:
- share of enquiries that receive a quote
- share of quotes accepted, and average time to decision
- share of quotes lost to price versus to silence
- average accepted job value
To see why small changes matter, take a business with 40 heat-pump enquiries a month, quoting 30 and closing 9, at an average job value of $14,000. If better intake and follow-up lift closes from 9 to 12, that's $42,000 more revenue a month from the same marketing spend. Your own figures will differ; our guide to heat-pump job maths shows how to run them.
Mistakes to avoid
- Quoting the rebate as a discount. It isn't yours to give, and if approval fails, the homeowner blames you.
- One follow-up and done. Rebate-driven decisions often take weeks.
- Sending everyone a home visit. Qualify first; your technicians' time is your scarcest resource.
- No reason recorded for lost quotes. Without it you can't fix anything.
Conversion work makes every other service more valuable. Once more quotes close, rebate campaigns and heat-pump search pay back faster. See the services overview or the pricing page for how to combine them.
Frequently asked questions
Is this sales training?
Partly. We write intake scripts, quote templates and follow-up sequences and walk your team through them. We don't run your sales calls or visit homes, and we never present ourselves to homeowners as your company.
What tools do we need?
Something that records every enquiry and its stage. A CRM is ideal, but a well-kept spreadsheet works to start. What matters is that each quote has a date, a value, a status and a next step.
How do you handle rebate questions on quotes?
We help you show the price before incentives, the program the customer may qualify for with its date and source, and the estimated net cost clearly labelled as depending on approval. The homeowner sees what is certain and what is not.
How soon will we see a change?
Intake and follow-up changes affect quotes already in your pipeline, so the first measurable movement often appears within the first one or two months.