By Peter Pasholk (Energy Advisor II at Franklin Energy)

Do you know what your homeowners are saying about you after the job is done? Online reviews and ratings are often one of the first things a potential customer will see about your business. Fortunately, there are smart ways to go about asking for reviews and ensuring you receive good marks. It all starts with a customer follow up – reaching back out to a homeowner well after the bill has been paid to see how everything has been going with their new insulation or HVAC system. You generally want to give your customer a friendly call 30 to 90 days after the project is complete – just see how things are going. The worst-case scenario is that they have a problem with your work. Though it may feel like you’ve opened a huge can of worms, this is an opportunity to fix this issue and gain back a frustrated customer.

If there is no follow-up work to complete, it is the perfect time to ask your customer if they wouldn’t mind leaving you a review. We’ve found the best way to do this is via email. Send your customer an email with a single question, “Were you happy with our work?” Based on their answer to this question, they should then be directed to one of two places. If they were not happy with the work, direct them to a survey that gathers more information about the issues they’re having. The results of this survey should go directly to your inbox. If they were happy with your work, direct them to the review website of your choice, such as Google, Facebook, Angie’s List or Home Advisor.