Can Doug sell maintenance plans?

He explains your plan from your own material, answers what's included, and books the first tune-up. Signing someone up for a recurring plan is still done by your team.

Does Doug answer HVAC emergency calls?

No. He doesn't answer phones. On your website he spots the emergency words you choose and gives the customer your emergency number right away.

Can Doug give a price for a new AC system?

Only the ranges you give him. Most HVAC companies share a range and book a free in-home estimate, and Doug does the same.

Does Doug speak Spanish?

Yes. He answers in whatever language the customer writes or speaks in.

AI chatbot for HVAC companies

Doug answers HVAC customers on your website and in ChatGPT when your office can't, which in July means most evenings. He takes the equipment details and books repair calls, tune-ups and replacement estimates with a Stripe deposit. He doesn't take phone calls, and he never tries to troubleshoot a gas furnace in chat. Plans start at $49 a month.

Updated September 28, 2026

What happens to your website on the first hot week?

The first 95 degree week of summer and the first hard freeze each bury your office in a few days. Everyone wants someone today, the phones are full, and website questions sit until morning. By then a good share of those people have booked the shop that answered. Then spring and fall go quiet, and you're trying to sell tune-ups and maintenance plans to fill the schedule.

Doug doesn't get busy. On a peak day he answers every website question at once, separates the no-cool calls from the 'quote on a new system' shoppers, and fills the slots you've opened. In the shoulder months he books tune-ups and replacement estimates, the work that keeps techs on the road.

The questions that come in after 8pm

Most of them are some version of 'is it broken, and what will it cost me to find out':

My AC is running but blowing warm air. Can someone come today?
What's your diagnostic fee, and does it go toward the repair?
Do you work on heat pumps? Mini splits? My brand is Trane, Carrier, Lennox.
How much is a new system, roughly, and do you offer financing?
Do you have a maintenance plan, and what's included?
Do you service my town?

What Doug collects so the right tech goes out

He answers from your own website, price sheet and the Q&A pairs you write, so the diagnostic fee and the brands you service come from you. Then he asks what a good CSR would: the address, the equipment type (gas furnace, heat pump, mini split, package unit), its age if they know it, and what it's doing. 'Short cycling, 14-year-old Carrier, upstairs unit' tells your dispatcher far more than 'AC broken, call me'.

He offers real open times from your Google or Microsoft calendar or the hours you set, books one, and takes a deposit through Stripe. Many shops set the deposit to the diagnostic fee and take it off the repair. Replacement estimates often go without a deposit, since you want as many of those in the door as you can get. You set it per service.

Gas smells and no-heat calls go to a person

You decide which words skip the booking flow. A gas smell, a carbon monoxide alarm, or an elderly customer in a house with no heat in January should get your emergency line right away, and that's what Doug gives them. He doesn't walk anyone through relighting a pilot or resetting a limit switch.

How do HVAC companies get into Maps and AI answers?

HVAC searches are local and urgent: 'AC repair near me', 'furnace not turning on Cedar Park', 'heat pump installer'. The Maps pack takes most of those clicks, and ChatGPT and Gemini now answer the same question in a sentence with two or three company names.

Doug runs those searches for you once a week, on Google Maps and in ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini, and writes down where you land. He publishes pages for the work you want more of: AC repair, furnace repair, heat pump installs, mini splits, system replacement, maintenance plans and indoor air quality. The cooling pages should be live by April and the heating pages by October, before the searches spike. He also keeps your Google profile hours and service area right, including holiday hours, which people check first when the heat goes out on a Sunday. Our guide to getting recommended by ChatGPT covers what those assistants look for.

Which reviews and dealer listings count?

Google reviews first. Then Yelp, Angi, HomeAdvisor, Nextdoor and the BBB. If you're a dealer for Trane, Carrier, Lennox or another brand, keep your entry in that manufacturer's dealer locator current, since owners of that brand search there.

Doug asks each customer for a review after a booking, replies to reviews in your voice, and flags listings where your phone, hours or service area disagree with your Google profile.

Where Doug fits next to your dispatcher

If your summer problem is the phone, Doug won't fix it. Keep your dispatcher or answering service on the calls. Put Doug on the website and in ChatGPT, where the after-hours traffic and the replacement shoppers come from, and let him keep the calendar full in March and October.

The free ChatGPT visibility check is a quick first look. It shows whether ChatGPT names your company when someone in your town asks who to call for AC repair.

Questions

Can Doug sell maintenance plans?: He explains your plan from your own material, answers what's included, and books the first tune-up. Signing someone up for a recurring plan is still done by your team.
Does Doug answer HVAC emergency calls?: No. He doesn't answer phones. On your website he spots the emergency words you choose and gives the customer your emergency number right away.
Can Doug give a price for a new AC system?: Only the ranges you give him. Most HVAC companies share a range and book a free in-home estimate, and Doug does the same.
Does Doug speak Spanish?: Yes. He answers in whatever language the customer writes or speaks in.