The Friday Fix for September 11th, 2026

Contractor University has officially opened their 2027 Contractor Survey for HVAC Business Leaders.

By taking the survey, you'll join other leaders from across the country sharing industry insights, which will be compiled and released in the next Contractor Survey Report.

This report will allow you to learn what your peers in the industry are implementing in their businesses now and what they're planning for in the future.

What else is in it for you?

By completing the survey, you'll gain instant access to the current Contractor Survey Report, you'll receive the next report for free - a $400 value - and you'll be entered to win a free registration to the EPIC2027 Conference in late February of 2027, plus a two-night stay at Mandalay Bay for the event - a $1,500 value.

Take the 2027 Contractor Survey.

Many contractors already know this through their day-to-day work, but the numbers are in: heat pumps are here to stay.

For the past three years, homeowners could receive a $2,000 tax incentive on a qualifying heat pump, but that incentive ended January 1st of this year.

As reported by ACHR News, Lucas Davis from the Energy Institute at HAAS tracks AHRI shipment data and has seen no sharp decrease in equipment shipments throughout 2026.

No anticipation buying happened towards the end of 2025 either, indicating there was no rush to buy heat pumps before the tax credit expired, like in other industries such as solar when those tax credits were set to expire.

The ACHR News article provides several explanations as to why this credit didn't move the needle much, including a lack of awareness around the incentive in the first place, and other factors such as geography, climate, and electricity prices ultimately being more important in the decision-making process.

Regardless, at least for right now, it looks like all data points to heat pumps being able to stand on their own in the market without being artificially supported.

We know we sound like a broken record, but the fact is many homeowners use tools like ChatGPT to find local contractors.

How can you be sure you're showing up better in places like ChatGPT?

A recent article over at Search Engine Journal covers just that.

The bottom line is that your brand needs to show up in many places across the internet, and in a consistent way, in things such as fresh Google reviews, Reddit threads, local review sites, and more.

Think of it this way: when a homeowner asks ChatGPT to recommend the best local roofing contractor, ChatGPT doesn't just look at your website. It has the ability to search across the entire internet for information about your company, like you would manually do if you were doing your own research before ChatGPT.

If you show up in many places across the internet in positive ways, and those places have consistent, correct, and helpful info about your company, the chances of you being recommended to that homeowner increase.

At Superpath, we call this a Search Everywhere approach, and we have an article all about it.

Read about our Search Everywhere approach.

As we head into fall, now is the perfect time to put some thought into how you can transition your marketing efforts between seasons to ensure your lead flow stays as steady as it can.

As you may have already guessed, we have an article on this very website about this very topic.

The takeaway is that, like with most things in life, proactive planning is critical.

We recommend working with your marketing agency to plan your marketing three to six months ahead to give your business a head start and help you capture more opportunities as demand rises for different services at different times of the year.

Read about planning your HVAC marketing between seasons.

Lastly, a few Superpathers met with distributor Woodson & Bozeman yesterday for a day of industry connection, conversation, and to hit a few golf balls together at Topgolf.

This is just another example of how we strive to keep our finger on the pulse of the Home Services industry and how we build and strengthen connections with industry partners.

Thanks to all those that were able to attend. We had a great time, and we're thankful for the chance to connect.