From Sales to Install: Maximize Efficiency with Tags, Alerts, Zaps, and Forms

Efficiency is everything in the home services industry. From the first customer interaction to the final installation, every step needs to be streamlined for maximum productivity and profitability. 

In a recent episode of the Mastering ServiceTitan podcast, Joseph Gee, CEO atGee Heating and Air, shares how he streamlines HVAC sales and installations with ServiceTitan, highlighting the power of speed, efficiency, and automation in a competitive market.

From using tags, alerts, forms, and Zapier (Zaps) for real-time visibility to optimizing communication and inventory management, Gee breaks down the systems that keep his team ahead.

The episode covers:

• How to use tags for better sales management

• Setting up alerts to keep everyone informed

• Using Zaps for efficiency and simplicity

Speed Drives Sales Philosophy

Before diving into ServiceTitan, podcast host Josh Lu asked Gee to share his philosophy on the sales-to-install process. 

Based in Georgia where the weather is often hot and humid, Gee says his business has to compete with hundreds of companies all selling the same products and services. He says the differentiator for Gee Heating and Air comes down to speed.

“One of the biggest reasons we've been able to grow so fast is because of our speed,” Gee says. “Because a lot of times, other companies, they'll tell you it's going to be two or three weeks, or it's going to be a month, or it's going to be two to three days, when we're like, 'Hey, we can come this afternoon.’

“By the time the customer signs the paperwork and fills out the financing, we're pretty much already on site, ready to start installing the unit,” he adds.

Gee’s speed to lead can largely be attributed to the following ServiceTitan features.

Tags Spotlight Jobs with the Most Potential

Within ServiceTitan, tags are customizable labels you can apply to customers, jobs, or equipment to categorize and quickly identify important details. Businesses use tags to track jobs, enhance customer service, and ensure technicians and office staff can quickly recognize key details about a job or customer.

Gee says his company uses tags to prioritize jobs, notably by the age of a customer’s system. His call center staff ask extensive questions about the age of a system when customers call in, and apply a special tag for any system that is five years or older, which Gee refers to as the “strike zone,” as these jobs offer replacement opportunities and the highest revenue potential. 

“When they see their board full of opportunities with five-plus-year-old units, they know their tickets are going to be higher. They know their conversion rates are going to be higher. They’d rather run those calls,” Gee says.

The tags are visible to his entire team, so his dispatchers can assign jobs based on opportunity and a manager can prepare behind the scenes to help the technician move the job from sales to install. 

“We don't book for location; we assign based on profit. We're going to send the best tech who's the best flipper along with the best supervisor behind them to flip that system,” Gee says. “And because we're able to see it in real time on our board, we've already got the supervisor waiting in the cul-de-sac before the service tech even shows up.

“So, we're able to flip and sell the unit right there. Because we already knew about this call. We saw it way ahead, and we already had everybody set up,” he adds.

Gee jokes that you can never have enough tags in ServiceTitan, but you can also have way too many. As far as what’s visible on the dispatch board, Gee suggests keeping it clean, limiting tags to the age of equipment and replacement opportunity. 

“I've taught everybody that if it doesn't help me sell the unit, it's not a really important tag,” Gee says.

When it comes to the customer profile, Gee says you can use as many tags as necessary. 

Gee suggests scheduling tune-ups and maintenance calls during the day and leaving the afternoon hours open for on-demand emergencies, which often turn into system replacements.  

Alerts Provide Real-Time Updates

ServiceTitan Alerts notify users by text or email of important updates or conditions related to jobs, customers, or business operations. Alerts can inform technicians of specific job requirements or customer preferences, as well as notify office staff about urgent job status updates, cancellations, or high-priority customer requests.

Gee suggests setting up alerts for every time you sell a new unit or every time you need to reorder parts. 

“Whenever we sell something, it automatically triggers an alert and sends it to our install coordinator, warehouse coordinator, sales coordinator, and sales manager,” he says. “Everybody starts getting those alerts.”

Gee says he set up a trigger in ServiceTitan to alert his warehouse manager whenever a part is sold. The manager then receives an order form, ensures the part is in stock, and then places it in a bin for the technician to pick up.  

“For 99% of our installs and service work, our technicians haven't had to go to a supply house in over two years. We have everything waiting for them here,” Gee says. “That's one of the reasons we exponentially grew so fast in such a short amount of time, because we just automated everything as much as we could.”

Zaps Route Key Information and Ensure Accountability

Zapier is an automation tool that connects different apps and services to streamline workflows without requiring coding knowledge. Zapier supports thousands of apps like Google Sheets, Slack, Salesforce, Mailchimp, and ServiceTitan. A “Zap” is an automated workflow consisting of a trigger and pre-specified action.

In Gee’s case, he uses Zaps for just about everything. 

“Every time an alert comes in on ServiceTitan, it's going to come to Slack in the right department. And that department head and myself and my brother and everybody, we can all see it,” Gee says. “We’ll say, ‘Are they going to respond to this? Did she use a thumbs up emoji that she saw the order? Did she green arrow it that it got booked?’ 

“We even Zap all of our Google reviews and all of our Better Business Bureau reviews,” he adds. “Every time we get a one-star review, it gets Zapped into Slack and notifies all of our managers and they're like, ‘I'm on it. I'll take care of it.’”

Gee says his process of using tags, alerts, and Zaps is really about keeping everyone accountable.

“Every time a unit gets sold, every time a part gets sold, a duct cleaning gets scheduled, or we have a customer service issue, you can do an alert and Zap it to Slack. So, you literally have full accountability and visibility of your company,” Gee says.

Gee says ServiceTitan communicates very well with his customers but recommends using a tool like Teams or Slack for inter-company communication.

When it comes to the most important tags and alerts, Gee says you should keep it simple and focus on what makes money. For tags, he suggests using “replacement opportunity” and “age of system.” For alerts, he suggests “unit sold” and “part sold.”

“Then you can Zap it into whatever communication system you're using," Gee says. “If it's getting Zapped into that central communication tool, then it increases visibility and accountability, and they know we're watching it.”

Gee advises businesses not get bogged down in processes and focus on what matters.

“You book them, you assign them, you sell them, you install it, and you collect it,” Gee says. “That's what we do every day. Just figure out how to do that faster than everybody.

“If it's not helping you book it, it's not helping you assign it, it's not helping you sell it, it's not helping you install it, it's not helping you collect it, then don't do it. A lot of times we create a lot of entropy and a lot of self-harm and problems because we try to overcommunicate, we try to overcomplicate everything,” he adds.

You can find this interview and many more by subscribing to Mastering ServiceTitan on Apple Podcasts, on Spotify, or here.

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