Before Angie Snow and her husband built Western Heating and Air in Orem, Utah, into an HVAC powerhouse, she earned a master’s degree in education and taught in elementary school, for seven years in second grade.
“It was a blast,” she says. “I did that up until my husband said, ‘I’d love to buy a heating and air company, would you like to be my business partner and run a business with me,’ and I said ‘Sure, I don’t know anything about HVAC, but I love you and I’ll support you in your dreams.’ And that’s where our adventure began.”
But Snow never got the urge to teach out of her system. And now that she has joined ServiceTitan as Senior Manager of Product Adoption, those teaching skills will come in handy.
Snow’s connection with the trades is a big reason Chris Hunter, ServiceTitan’s Director of Customer Experience, wanted her to join the company. She is just one of the latest additions of an industry expert to the ServiceTitan team.
Hunter, former owner of Hunter Super Techs in Ardmore, Okla., and a co-founder of the GoTime Success Group, is an industry icon. Snow, who as co-owner and Vice President of Western Heating and Air has two Utah locations, is an expert in CSR training and leadership, and recognized around the industry as well. Western has nine technicians, five install teams and is projected to do $5.5 million in business in 2020.
The two have also taught together in various capacities and serve as Advisory Board Mentors with Service Nation Alliance and Service Roundtable.
ServiceTitan recognizes that voices like those are crucial.
“I had never thought about taking a position at ServiceTitan,” Snow says. “I have been really enjoying being a contractor and enjoying growing my business—there are so many opportunities as a contractor.
“Chris Hunter reached out to me and said, ‘Angie, we need some more industry experts at ServiceTitan.’’
Specifically, ServiceTitan needs trusted voices. Snow is another voice that will resonate in the trades, and she is driven to teach.
“From the time I was only 5 years old, I wanted to be a teacher, because at that time, teachers were the most impactful people in my life,” Snow says. “They were the people I was learning from and the people turning me into the person I wanted to be.”
As she grew older, church leaders also became very impactful, and she thought about being a church leader, and she has since become one.
In the trades, a different group made an impact.
“A lot of great coaches, consultants and contractors in this industry have impacted my life,” she says. “I feel like it’s my duty, honor and privilege to be able to pay that forward.”
A lot of great coaches, consultants and contractors in this industry have impacted my life. I feel like it’s my duty, honor and privilege to be able to pay that forward.”
Another opportunity to teach
Snow says that although they are at much different stages of life, second-graders and leaders in the trades are similar in a couple of key ways.
“One reason I love second graders is they already know the basics,” Snow says. “They have the fundamentals of reading, they can tie their shoes, and they can wipe their nose.
“But they still love school. They still love their teacher and they love coming to school.”
Leaders in the trades are similar because they have a passion for the industry and for what they are doing, and they want to be the best they can be. Snow wants to help them reach that potential, using a specific teaching style.
“It needs to be engaging,” she says. “It has to be able to keep your attention.
“I hate to say it’s very elementary, but it sort of is. It starts with building a relationship and a connection to the people I’m teaching.
“People really don’t care what you have to say until they know you really care about them and you’re truly invested in their success and what they’re doing.”
Snow’s position in the trades gives her a head start.
Driving customer success at ServiceTitan
Cognizant that not every contractor is alike, Snow looks for ways to make training relevant and personal.
“One of the things I am learning more and more, is that companies are all different sizes, and they have different goals,” she says. “Some companies want to grow; some just want to be profitable. Others may want to increase their average ticket. Or they may want to develop a new side of their business, maybe the plumbing side, or add another vertical.
“Once a company determines what their goals are, let’s set up a personalized path for them to help them reach those goals.”
Once Snow knows the goals, she knows exactly how to help.
“We have all the tools they need to do it, within ServiceTitan,” she says. “We feel like once they start adopting some of these best practices that we are sharing, they’ll see how important it is to use ServiceTitan the way it was designed and developed.”
Challenges ahead
Snow is not one to back away from a challenge, from building a premier heating and air conditioning company to running marathons and competing in Spartan Trifectas.
And, of course, teaching second grade.
“What other challenging things are there?” she jokes. “I think the most successful people embrace challenges. They don’t walk away from them. I hope I can inspire contractors to not back away from a challenge.”
Sometimes, that challenge can come from ServiceTitan’s software itself.
“I know ServiceTitan can seem super overwhelming because it is such a robust system, but I would encourage contractors to look at it as a challenge and an opportunity to really take yourself to that next level,” Snow says. “As you accomplish and succeed, that momentum will get you going and you’ll start looking for the next challenge and the next one.
“It becomes a lot of fun if they can get through that initial stress of, ‘Oh my gosh, what are we doing?’
“Hang in there, I promise you’ll see results.”
Training that hits home
Those with a need to learn more about what ServiceTitan can do include Snow, she says.
“In my short two weeks as a ServiceTitan employee, I have learned more about ServiceTitan than I have in the past two years as a contractor actually using the product,” she says. “What I’m seeing gets me really excited because I know there are amazing training opportunities and resources available, if we can just help contractors know about them.”
One of her first duties is to work on that awareness, to help contractors utilize the software better and improve their Titan Score.
That’s important, because ServiceTitan data show companies with higher Titan scores and higher feature adoption rates see significantly better results.
So, what is Western Heating and Air’s Titan Score?
“Right now my Titan Score is a 62,” Snow says, “which leaves room for improvement ... ”
But through ServiceTitan’s new employee training, she already is taking action to raise that score.
Because it’s never too late to learn.
ServiceTitan is a comprehensive home and commercial services business software solution built specifically to help companies streamline their operations, boost revenue, and achieve growth. Our award-winning, cloud-based platform is trusted by more than 100,000 contractors across the country.
Ready to learn more about what ServiceTitan can do for your business? Contact our team to schedule a demo today.
