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Peaden Air Conditioning, Heating & Plumbing

Panama City, Florida
$8 million revenue (Up 300%)
12,000 Service Agreements (Up 500%)
30,000 Customers (Up 200%)
ACCA 2005 Contractor of the Year

Service Agreements: The Business of EVERYTHING

Presenters:
Robert Wilkos, VP/Business Leader
Tim Welch, Sales Manager

Robert Wilkos, business leader/VP for Peaden Air Conditioning, Heating & Plumbing, jokes that it’s tough to remember back 10 long years ago at his “senior age” (his words, not ours), but he sure doesn’t forget the impressive growth numbers his company has posted during that time.

In the last 10 years, Peaden, which serves the Florida panhandle region, has grown its revenues from around $2 million to about $8 million annually.

The company has spiked its service plans from about 2,000 to about 12,000 and has beefed up its customer base from around 10,000 to about 30,000.

So we’re not buying the whole “senior age” bit. In fact, Wilkos has led the Peaden team down this successful path with some cutting edge techniques designed to keep up with the times, while staying true to time-tested business principles.

Sure, sales are important to a company, he points out, but it’s equally important for a contractor to remain focused on what the company is selling.

“Sales are essential to any organization,” he says, “but cash is king. In whatever manner you market your goods and services, make sure it’s profitable. If not, change what you are doing.”

In business for 40 years, Peaden has a long history of sticking to the basics of HVACR contracting, including offering the type of customer service that’s worthy of marketing efforts. “Go back to basics,” he says. “Service plan sales are critical as they continue to feed our revenue stream and fuel our growth. Remain committed to excellence [in order to] attract new customers and retain existing ones.”

And like the other Marketing & Sales Forum panelists, Wilkos has a simple message to deliver to attendees about how to handle the wet towel that’s weighing down the economy. “Market and advertise like there isn’t a recession,” he asserts.