Preventive-maintenance and service agreements are the steadiest revenue a commercial mechanical firm can have. They keep technicians busy in slow construction months, they produce repair and retrofit work, and they make the business worth more when an owner eventually sells. This service markets those agreements to the people who sign them.
What the service is
In short: a planned programme to win new PM agreements, convert installation customers at handover, and keep renewals from slipping.
It works on three sources:
- Turnover customers. The owner whose building you just commissioned already trusts your work. A clear offer at handover, with a scope and price ready, is the cheapest agreement you'll ever sign.
- Lapsed and one-off service customers. Anyone who called for a repair in the last two years is a candidate, if you have consent to contact them.
- New buildings. Property management firms, institutional facilities and multi-unit residential buildings in your service radius.
Each source needs different handling. Turnover customers need an offer prepared before the final walk-through, so the PM isn't improvising. Lapsed customers need a reason to hear from you, such as a seasonal inspection reminder for their equipment type. New buildings need patience: a property manager with an existing provider may only switch at renewal, so the job is to be the obvious second choice when that date comes.
Who it's for
Firms with a service department that's under-used, or where service is under a fifth of revenue. It also suits construction-heavy firms that want to smooth cash flow, and owners thinking about succession; buyers usually put more weight on recurring revenue than on a backlog of one-off projects.
What's included
- A review of your current agreements: count, value, renewal dates, churn and reasons
- Agreement packaging: tiers described in plain language, with what's included and what's billed separately
- A turnover kit for PMs: a one-page offer, a sample scope with placeholders for [Building] and [Equipment list], and a follow-up schedule
- Service pages on your site by building type and system
- Outreach to property managers and facility managers, run within CASL consent rules
- A renewal calendar with contact 90 and 30 days before each renewal date
- Monthly reporting on new, renewed and lost agreements
Timeline
| Period | Work |
|---|---|
| Weeks 1–3 | Agreement review; interview your service manager |
| Weeks 4–6 | Packaging, turnover kit, service pages |
| Month 2–3 | First outreach wave; turnover offers on every closing job |
| Ongoing | Renewal calendar; quarterly campaign to one building type |
How results are measured
The main number is annual recurring agreement value, tracked monthly. Under it: new agreements signed, renewal rate, average agreement value, and turnover conversion rate (agreements signed ÷ projects closed).
Here's a hypothetical book. A firm has 40 agreements averaging $6,000 a year, so $240,000 in recurring value, and renews 80% of them. If it converts 6 of 20 closed projects a year at turnover and wins 6 more from outreach, it adds 12 agreements, about $72,000, while losing 8 to churn (about $48,000). Lift renewals to 90% and it loses 4 instead, so the book grows by about $48,000 a year instead of $24,000. The PM book guide walks through this with your own figures.
What owners compare
When a property manager compares two agreements, the price is only one line. They also look at the response time you commit to in writing, whether the same technicians attend each visit, how reports are delivered, and how repairs found during inspections are quoted. Spell those out and you compete on more than the monthly fee.
Mistakes to avoid
- No offer at handover. The window when the owner thinks of you as "their" mechanical contractor is short.
- Vague scopes. "Quarterly maintenance" invites disputes; list tasks and frequencies.
- Selling only on price. Owners value response time, documentation and continuity of technicians.
- Forgetting renewals. An agreement that lapses quietly is often lost to whoever calls first.
We market your service agreements; we don't perform maintenance, and we're not a contractor. To talk it through, call, text or email, or check plan costs on the pricing page.
Frequently asked questions
Who actually buys PM agreements?
Usually property managers, facility managers, building operators and owners of commercial, institutional and multi-unit buildings. In larger organisations, procurement may run a formal request for the service contract.
Should we offer an agreement on every building we install?
Offering one at turnover is sensible on almost every job, because you know the equipment and the owner knows you. Whether they sign depends on price, scope and whether they already have a service provider.
Do you set our PM pricing?
No. Pricing, scope and service levels are decisions for your service manager. We help package and present them clearly, and we market them.
How long until the PM book grows?
Agreements often renew on fixed dates, so expect the first signings within one or two quarters and the real effect over 12 to 24 months.