How You Can Become a Nest Certified Professional (and Why You Would Want To).
Some of the high performance HVAC, home performance, and solar contractors we work with across the country are Nest Certified Professionals. We think becoming a Nest Pro is a pretty smooth move.
Why Would a Contractor Want to be a Nest Certified Professional?
1) It's easy. Compared to most of the work that you do, installing a thermostat is a piece of cake, and getting certified isn't a huge investment (either in money or time).
2) It's good marketing. Think of all the people out there searching for Nest thermostats and Nest thermostat installers. If you're a certified pro (and be sure to write a blog post or a service page on your website explaining what that means), you could rank for that search term in your area, and catch all that business.
3) Upsell opportunities. You may not get rich doing Google Nest installations, but think of it this way: you're a home energy professional, invited into someone's home to do some work. Why not use this as an opportunity to discuss the benefits of making larger upgrades, or at least scheduling a home energy audit or other diagnostic process to help the homeowner better understand their house? We've heard stories where a home performance pro got called to do a Nest installation, and ended up with a several-thousand-dollar job as a direct result of that call.
Keep in mind, too, the demographics of people purchasing and installing Nest thermostats: they're likely to have some extra income, to be interested in energy consumption and home comfort, and they're probably interested in geeky stuff like energy data... in other words, they're probably right up your alley in terms of target demographics.
4) The sexy factor. People like sexy stuff, and, sadly, most of the things that fall under the home performance umbrella aren't that sexy: attic insulation, crawlspace encapsulation, air sealing, etc. Jumping on the Nest bandwagon and becoming a Nest Pro installer is a great, low-cost, easy way to add something sexy to your resume. Obviously, you don't need to change your entire business model, but it's good to have a little flair in your tool box.
How Do I Sign Up?
Simply go to the Nest Certified Program website and follow the instructions. Once you fill out an application, you'll be contacted by a Nest representative who will guide you through the process. Then, once you become a Certified technician, you'll have access to training materials, sales and marketing materials, and a whole slew of resources to help you get started.
How Being a Nest Professional Helps Differentiate Your Business
You've heard us say it before, and we're going to keep it saying: quality contractors need to do a better job of standing out in the market. Even if you are doing better work, homeowners can't always tell the difference between you and your competitor when they are searching online for services.
One way of differentiating your company is by adding services your customers might be interested in. No homeowner wants to find different contractors for every home energy efficiency or electrification upgrade they make. They want to find one contractor that does it all—and does it well—and stick with them. Becoming a Nest Pro is just one example of the type of add-on services you can offer that help customers find your business.