With most of the country locked in a glorious, continual heat wave, air conditioning contractors are enjoying record sales. It’s easy to make money in triple digit temperatures. A bigger question is, how do you make money in the off-season and during mild weather? Come to Comfortech and find out. If you haven’t already, it’s time to make plans to attend HVAC Comfortech 2011 in Indianapolis. It’s an investment in your business and in yourself. It’s a way to learn from top contractors and industry consultants. It’s a way to meet and connect with senior manufacturing executives.
In terms of HVAC business education, a Comfortech registration is like a Group On or Living Social special offer. Nowhere else can you get so much for so little.
The value proposition for HVAC Comfortech is like a three legged stool. One leg is the seminars. The second is the Comfortech Show. The third is community of contractors.
Seminars
Comfortech works very hard each year to bring contractors a diverse offering of industry best practices. This can be a challenge because some of the best contractors are reluctant to stand in front of a room of their peers to share what works for their company. To ensure Comfortech attendees receive the best, latest, and greatest HVAC business practices, the show staff works with reluctant speakers, sometimes pairing them with industry consultants.
Speakers are rated by contractors, which is the primary criterion used to determine who gets invited back. Speakers who shill don’t repeat. Speakers who bore don’t repeat. Speakers who don’t deliver messages contractor value don’t repeat.
The fact that contractors rate speakers is not unique. The fact that the HVAC Comfortech staff pays attention is different. It sets Comfortech apart from other industry conferences, which going back a couple of decades, are largely unchanged in terms of speakers and content. In short, Comfortech delivers more.
Show
The Comfortech Show has gradually emerged as the industry’s best residential and light commercial trade show. Oh sure, AHR is the largest, but the focus of Comfortech is the residential and light commercial service and replacement contractor. It’s not manufacturer reps. It’s not distributors. It’s not other manufacturers. It’s you, the contractor. This is fundamentally different from other national/international shows.
While Comfortech is significant in size, it remains intimate enough for contractors to interact with exhibitor senior management. Although not every significant industry player exhibits at Comfortech, those who do are very, very focused on contractors. They want to talk with you, do business with you, and are often willing to make special offers to you during the show (e.g., 80% introductory savings from some companies).
Community of Contractors
Talk to a contractor who attended a past Comfortech and he or she, is likely to proclaim that the best part of Comfortech is the interaction with other contractors. The staff at Comfortech works hard to facilitate this. Comfortech arranges for hospitality functions every night, which are supplemented by private functions like the Service Roundtable’s “Best Hospitality Party at Comfortech.”
In addition to the evening functions, Comfortech presents numerous opportunities for interaction. These include talking with contractors before and after seminars and during breaks. There are also groups that form ad hoc to experience the local nightlife. All of the coffee and bar talk inevitably results in the acquisition of knowledge that will improve your business as you avoid reinventing the wheel.
Personally, I’ve attended every Comfortech. Nevertheless, I still learn something significant each year. I can’t say that for industry conferences and trade shows. Comfortech is not an expense. It’s an investment that pays for itself.
Matt Michel is CEO of the Service Roundtable, which offers the guaranteed lowest price to attend HVAC Comfortech. If you want to save hundreds off the standard Comfortech rate, contact the Service Roundtable at 877.262.3341.