Best in Class

Enercare
Written by Allison Dempsey

Many companies like to boast that they’re the best at what they do, but few have the numbers to back up those claims. Enercare, however, does. As one of North America’s largest home and commercial services and energy solutions companies, Enercare is a top provider of water heaters, furnaces, air conditioners and other HVAC products, with a devoted and loyal customer base that knows and appreciates the benefits of reliable service.

“We’re unique in our ability to blend product reliability and value-added services,” says June Thomson, National Director, Builder Group Division. “In the new home construction market there’s a never ending change in product requirements based on details such as code requirements and architectural and mechanical room requirements. We provide guidance and really, at the end of the day, we provide products that meet our customer’s needs,” she says.

“People often ask what the difference is between Enercare and others in the market”, says Thomson. “We have a multi-layered approach in our team, and we’re all ambassadors when it comes to our product knowledge and depth of knowledge and support,” she says. “We classify all of our customers and our internal team members as partners.”

And ‘partners’ is a key word at Enercare, says Thomson. “Not only do we have territory managers in the field every day looking at the products, supporting our builders and our customers, but we also have a lot of territory managers who have been in the trenches,” she explains. “We have the capability to provide in-depth knowledge.”

When equipment is sold, Enercare technicians visit each of the builder sites and provide guidance while ensuring installations are templated properly and are problem-free. They also provide the technical guidance needed for code requirements, helping to ensure the products are compliant with building regulations and installed correctly throughout the site.

“Our team has more than 300 years’ combined experience,” says Thomson. “That’s a lot of depth for our customers. Our company also stands behind service guarantees. We have same-day service, and we’re rated very highly on Google reviews, at a 4.62 across over 20,000 customers.” The company has more than 2,300 technicians that are fully qualified and trained in a variety of types of equipment, providing excellent service across the board.

“We’re best in class,” adds Jeff Schwartz, Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing. “Our Google rating and Net Promoter score are important to our builder clients because they want to make sure they work with a company who has the same values and mission statement as they do. They want to make sure the purchasers buying their homes have those guarantees at the end of it,” he says.

“What does differentiate our organization and the incredible work that June and her team do, is that we have two measures of success in everything that we do,” says Schwartz. “Our outstanding Net Promoter Score is a really important thing for this organization because it’s how we measure our performance in transactions. From a builder’s perspective, they’re always striving for 100 percent excellence for their homeowners, and homeowners are making probably the most expensive decision they’ll make in their entire lives. For us to have the support of all the builders is the reason we try to do everything we can to overachieve every single day.”

Enercare is extremely proud of its Net Promoter Score of 63.7 — anything 50 and above is considered excellent — and strives to maintain it every single day. Net Promoter Score is a measure of customer satisfaction with a company’s product or service.

“We are sitting in absolutely the highest quadrant of satisfaction with our customers,” says Schwartz. “That’s what makes it incredible to be working with people like June and organizations that support our business, because we strive for excellence. Not everyone says we’re perfect, but we are best in class in what we do.”

Enercare’s plan is to expand outside of Ontario, namely across Canada as well as into the U.S. market. As of now the company has launched in western Canada, but it’s a “very foreign” business as far as customers go, says Thomson.

“Ontarians understand the rental market, but in western Canada it’s different,” says Thomson. “There really isn’t anything out there that’s like our mandate and we’ve already made great strides and have various builders who are committed to launching the Enercare rental program in western Canada.”

Of the top 100 builders in the U.S., some originate in Canada, which makes a huge difference when it comes to understanding the products and services that Enercare provides, says Thomson. Enercare understands the needs of the builders, ensuring those needs are met before launching in each geographical area. “It’s a story of growth,” says Schwartz. “It’s exciting! And we’ll continue to grow.”

The company also recently launched the Enercare Smarter Home program with its builders, featuring the HVAC Performance Monitoring service, a proactive service that helps identify equipment issues in advance and provides timely solutions that help avoid equipment breakdown or costly energy bills. “It’s easy to forget that your water heater or piece of HVAC equipment runs all year long and is the heart of your home. When it suddenly fails, that’s when you remember what’s down in your mechanical room,” says Thomson.

The proactive notifications to customers is a massive net positive for the builder market as they see it as an attractive marketing tool when it comes to selling homes. The Enercare Smarter Home essentials package includes a smart thermostat and water leak sensor, connected by a central hub. Another feature, and “one of the biggest things builders love about the Enercare Smarter Home program is that it has the ability to monitor humidity levels in the home. In new home construction, hardwood flooring and laminates must have consistent humidification, which helps reduce warping of floors.”

With more than 15,000 units scheduled to be installed in Enercare’s rental program, the builders see this as a substantial benefit, an answer to their many questions. “When it comes to making a decision about what’s best for a customer, we ask, ‘is it right for you as a company, is it right for a builder and for their purchasers?’” says Thomson. “If you can answer yes to all three, you’re making the right decision. In the long run, their customers are our customers, and we want to give five-star service and collaborate with builders in response to whatever their requirements are.”

Enercare is a highly communicative organization, she says, where everyone on every level understands what’s going on in the market and provides solutions for issues while offering crucial support.

Although market conditions and trends – including new home construction mortgage stress tests, slower construction due to sales, government programs, and government regulations – have provided obstacles as to how and when Enercare does business, the company always looks to the future, aiming to anticipate any issues and challenges. Enercare is looking forward to continued growth, providing solutions for any code changes or equipment changes that arise, while supplying energy-efficient products and equipment that builders need.

In addition to being an industry leader, Enercare is also active in the community with the Enercare Fresh Start Program, a signature corporate social responsibility program designed to help families transitioning from temporary shelters to a home of their own. The program has supported more than 175 families since launching in 2016 and partners with a number of charitable organizations across Ontario, including Yellow Brick House in York Region, Red Door Family Shelter in Toronto, Bethlehem Housing and Support Services in Niagara and most recently, Cornerstone Housing for Women in the Ottawa Region.

“Enercare Fresh Start helps families in need and we’re incredibly proud of that,” says Schwartz. “As they transition from temporary shelters to a home of their own, we provide personalized fresh start kits with basic necessities – what they need if they’re moving from homeless to a home.”

Enercare also remains committed to the environment, through its recycling program, which recycles and tracks steel, cardboard, ABS plastic, piping, batteries, mercury, circuit boards and copper. “We believe in paying it forward to our community,” says Schwartz. “It’s something we’re very proud of.”

It’s that ongoing commitment to the community and the environment that will help propel Enercare into a successful future with customers who continue to receive best in class service.

“We have well over a million recurring customers and it’s incredible to see the amount of satisfaction we get as organization from providing them top notch services and seeing them happy,” says Schwartz. “That’s what we strive to do for builders every single day and I think it’s the reason why many builders in Canada choose us. We feel very honoured we’re able to constantly win their business and win their support.”

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