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The Short Version

Run one fast channel and one slow one at the same time. Local Services or Search ads bring calls this week, and your Business Profile, reviews and service pages bring cheaper calls over the next year. Work out what a lead is worth to you before you pay for one, and answer the phone, because missed calls now cost money on Local Services.

What Changed

Local Services charges per valid lead, and Google decides what counts.
From October 1, 2026, some missed calls during business hours are charged too.
Maintenance plans and referrals bring the best jobs, but in small numbers.
Shared leads go to several companies at once, so the first to call wins.
Your break even cost per lead is job profit times close rate.

The Channels and What Each One Is For

Every HVAC owner asks where the next marketing dollar should go. The honest answer depends on how fast you need calls and how much time you can give the work. Each channel trades speed for cost in a different way.

Local Services Ads. Calls this week, billed per valid lead instead of per click.
Search ads. More control over keywords and landing pages, but someone has to manage them every week.
Business Profile and local search. The cheapest calls over time, but it takes months to build.
Maintenance plans and referrals. The best jobs with the least effort, in small numbers you cannot force.
Shared lead sellers. A gap filler for slow weeks, since the same lead goes to several companies.

The shops that hold up best run two tracks at once. A paid channel brings calls now, and a local search program builds underneath it. When the paid channel gets expensive in July, the slow track keeps the phone ringing.

How Local Services Ads Bill You

Local Services Ads charge per lead, and Google decides what a valid lead is. Its help page says you are charged for each valid lead. Answered calls, voicemails, messages and booking requests can all count. Leads outside your business hours, people only asking for advice and people shopping for prices are not supposed to be credited as valid. Message leads usually cost less than calls.

There is a new rule to plan around. From October 1, 2026, Local Services charges for a missed call during business hours when the caller stays on the line more than 20 seconds. A phone nobody answers now costs ad money as well as the job. We covered it in our story on the missed call change.

Before your ads run, Google screens the business. Its help page says screening varies by category and region and may include license, insurance and background checks. Have your license and insurance papers ready, and list every HVAC service you do so Google can match you to more searches.

Set a budget you can staff. Leads you cannot answer are wasted.
Keep your business hours honest, since they decide which leads count.
Rate each lead in the feedback survey when it was poor quality.

Build the Slow Channel Underneath

Your Business Profile anchors most of what shows up when someone searches for HVAC in your area. If you have not claimed it, start with our guide to claiming a Business Profile. Then fill in every field, including services, hours and photos of real jobs.

If you go to the customer, set service areas instead of showing an address. Google allows up to 20 service areas, listed by city or ZIP code, and says the whole area should stay within about two hours of driving from your base.

Build a page on your website for each main job and each town you really work in. A page for furnace repair in your town should say something true about that town, like the age of the homes or the systems you see most. Copying one page and swapping the city name rarely ranks.

Ask for a review after every finished job, the same day, with a direct link. Google bans offering anything in exchange for a review and bans asking only happy customers. Ask everyone, and answer every review.

Expect months, not weeks, before this track brings steady bookings. It is slower than paid, but those calls arrive without a per lead bill.

Referrals, Plans and Shared Leads

Maintenance plan customers and property managers bring the highest value work. They already trust you, and the job is often approved before you arrive. Ask every new plan customer for a referral when you close out the visit, while the house is cool and they are happy.

Shared leads sit at the other end. They cost less per lead but book less often, because two or three other companies got the same name and number. Before you sign with any seller, ask how many companies get each lead and buy a small trial batch first.

Work Out What a Lead Is Worth

Decide what you can afford to pay before you look at any price. The math is short. Multiply your average profit per job by your close rate, and that is your break even cost per lead.

Here is a worked example with made up round numbers. Say a typical repair earns $300 in profit and you close one lead in four. Your break even cost per lead is $75, since four leads produce one job worth $300. Pay less than $75 a lead and the channel makes money. Pay more and it loses money, no matter how good the leads feel.

A cheap lead that never books costs more than an expensive one that does. Give each channel its own tracking number and log the source on every job, so you can see cost per booked job, not just cost per lead. Run a new channel for about three months before you cut it or grow it, since the first weeks can mislead you.

Sort the Leads and Call Back Fast

Not every lead needs the same speed. A short intake form or script lets the office sort calls instead of treating each one as an emergency. Ask for the address, the system type, the problem and how soon they need help.

Same day or no heat or no cooling calls go to the front of the line.
A clear problem with a real address is worth a call within minutes.
A price question with no address can wait for a text within the hour.

Speed is the lever you control most. In research published in Harvard Business Review, firms that tried to reach a lead within an hour were nearly seven times as likely to have a real conversation as firms that waited even an hour more. In August, an hour is long enough for the customer to book your competitor.

Call back within five minutes when you can, and text right away when you cannot.
On the call, confirm the problem and the address, offer the next open slot and book it before you hang up.
Send a booking confirmation by text, and a reminder the day before.
Take a small deposit on installs to cut no shows.
Send one follow up text the next day to anyone who did not book.

None of this needs a big budget. It needs the setup done right before more spend goes on top of it.

Sources

Every number in this story comes from one of these. If a figure is ours, the paragraph says so.

About the Daily Desk

One story a day on what changed in search, ads, AI and local marketing, and what it means for a business that lives on the phone ringing. Written by the team that runs marketing for service businesses at Clickflame. More from the desk.

Common Questions

How much do HVAC companies pay for leads?

It depends on the channel and the market. Local Services Ads charge per valid lead, and message leads usually cost less than calls. The right price for you comes from your own math, which is your average job profit times your close rate.

What is the $5000 rule for HVAC?

It is a homeowner rule of thumb for repair or replace, not an official standard. Multiply the age of the system by the repair quote. If the result is over $5,000, replacing usually makes more sense. It has nothing to do with lead budgets.

Can you make $200,000 as an HVAC technician?

Not as a typical employee. The Bureau of Labor Statistics put the median pay for HVAC mechanics and installers at $61,010 in May 2025, with the top 10 percent above $95,210. Owners of busy companies can earn more, but that is business profit, not a technician wage.

What is the highest paid HVAC position?

Owners and people who run commercial and industrial work tend to earn the most. For employees, the BLS reports the top 10 percent of HVAC mechanics and installers earned more than $95,210 in May 2025.

How fast should I call back an HVAC lead?

Within minutes if you can, and always within the hour. Research in Harvard Business Review found firms that tried within an hour were nearly seven times as likely to have a real conversation as firms that waited longer.

Are shared HVAC leads worth buying?

They can fill a slow week, but they go to several companies at once. Buy a small trial batch, track how many become jobs, and only scale if the cost per booked job beats your break even number.