What it Can do For You  |  How it Works  |  From the Customer's Perspective
Frequently Asked Questions  |  Request a Free Sample  |  How to Order

The Advantage Comfort Pricing Difference:
A Look From the Customer's Perspective

Susan Garris has a problem.  She comes home from work on a hot day in the middle of July to discover that her air conditioner is no longer working.  Having never had a problem of this nature in the past, she picks up her local yellow pages and turns to the “air conditioning repair” section.  Not knowing one company from the next, she calls the first one listed.

A technician comes to her house the next day and, after examining her equipment, decides that her compressor is no longer functional and must be replaced.  Ms.Garris’s immediate question is “how much is this going to cost,” to which the technician replies “well, it’s really hard to say.  Labor is $75 per hour, and it’ll take somewhere between 3 and 6 hours—and that’s not including parts.  Parts normally cost somewhere between $500 and $800 for a compressor replacement like this.”

After realizing this could add up to over $1200, Ms. Garris politely tells the technician that she will get a few more estimates from different contractors before committing to the job.  Being a single working mother, Ms. Garris is concerned with making her dollar go as far as possible, so she goes back to the local yellow pages and calls several different contractors in hopes of finding the best deal possible.

After making several calls, all the companies are starting to seem the same.  They all provide the same response—potentially upwards of $1200 with no guarantee on a price.    At this point, Ms. Garris has decided that the only real difference among the companies is their hourly rate, so she relates her story to yet another company and asks “how much do you charge per hour?”  This company has an answer much different from any other company that she has dealt with.  Their reply is, “We don’t have an hourly charge.” Instead of charging per hour, we base our repair costs on the job.  Each job has a predetermined cost so that there are no surprises for you.” 

Ms. Garrison provides some information and learns that it will cost her $1,003 to have her unit repaired.  She agrees to have a technician come to her home to verify the diagnosis and to retrieve the necessary information to order her correct replacement compressor.

When the technician arrives at her house, he shows her an Advantage Comfort Pricing manual and points out the compressor repair replacement that she needs.  He also shows her the quality checklist for compressor replacements that he will follow while performing the repair.  The price in the manual is the same as the one she was given over the phone.  She also sees a quoted price of $852 for the same repair titled “Preferred.”  She asks the technician how she could qualify for the cheaper price.  The technician explains that with a maintenance contract, customers receive a 15% discount on all repairs, and that even with the cost of the contract added in, she will already save money plus receive an additional maintenance visit.  She agrees to the repairs and also purchases a service contract to receive the cheaper rate.

The end result is that Ms. Garrison is soon cool and comfortable again, with nothing but praises for her newfound HVAC repair company.  The company has expanded their customer base and additionally has a new contract holder to help maintain their work supply in the moderate spring and fall seasons when work is not as plentiful.