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A 12-month marketing calendar for a combined plumbing and HVAC shop

A combined shop can keep both trades busy most of the year if marketing runs a few weeks ahead of the weather. This calendar shows what each trade should push, month by month, with notes for coastal, Prairie, central and Atlantic markets.

Written by Ali Sedighi, MBAPublished: Last updated:

A shop that sells plumbing and HVAC has an advantage over single-trade competitors: when one trade slows, the other usually has work. The advantage only shows up if marketing runs ahead of the weather rather than behind it. This calendar lays out a typical year for a Canadian combined shop, with what each trade should push each month, what to prepare for the next one, and notes on how to adjust for your region.

Treat it as a starting point. Your own job history, sorted by month and trade, is a better guide than any template, and our seasonal balancing service is built on it.

How to use this calendar

Each month lists three things:

  • Push: what to market now, in each trade.
  • Prepare: what to build now for the next season.
  • Past customers: the message for your existing list (with consent).

Regional notes follow the monthly plan.

January to March: deep winter

January

  • Push (HVAC): no-heat repairs, boiler and furnace emergencies. Keep campaigns live but don't overspend if the board is full.
  • Push (plumbing): frozen and burst lines, water heater failures, which rise in the same cold.
  • Prepare: spring sump and drain campaigns; review last year's April and May gaps.
  • Past customers: water heater age checks for HVAC-only households.

February

  • Push (HVAC): replacement quotes for customers whose systems struggled in January.
  • Push (plumbing): water heater replacements; repipes in older homes after freeze damage.
  • Prepare: cooling and heat pump campaigns, which need to be ready by April.
  • Past customers: "how did your system handle the cold?" check-ins with a replacement planning offer.

March

  • Push (plumbing): thaw season begins in many regions: sump pumps, backwater valves, basement water.
  • Push (HVAC): heat pump quotes for next winter, where programs support them.
  • Prepare: maintenance-plan renewals for spring.
  • Past customers: spring plumbing inspection offer to HVAC-only households.

April to June: the shoulder

This is where combined shops win or lose the year. Heating fades, cooling hasn't started, and single-trade HVAC shops go quiet.

April

  • Push (plumbing): drains, sumps, outdoor taps, water heaters.
  • Push (HVAC): air conditioning and heat pump quotes; spring maintenance visits.
  • Prepare: emergency cooling campaigns for the first heat wave.
  • Past customers: dual-trade maintenance plan offers. See cross-selling.

May

  • Push (HVAC): cooling installs before demand peaks; installers' schedules fill fast.
  • Push (plumbing): fixture upgrades, renovations, water treatment where you offer it.
  • Prepare: summer recruiting push while hiring is easier. See technician recruiting.
  • Past customers: cooling check-ups for plumbing-only households.

June

  • Push (HVAC): cooling repairs and installs; switch on emergency cooling campaigns on hot weeks.
  • Push (plumbing): planned work: repipes, water heater upgrades, tankless conversions.
  • Prepare: autumn heating campaigns.
  • Past customers: "beat the rush" heating check-up booking for September.

July to September: summer and the turn

July

  • Push (HVAC): cooling, heat pump installs.
  • Push (plumbing): planned replacements while schedules allow.
  • Prepare: first-cold-snap emergency campaigns for both trades.
  • Past customers: water heater checks for households with older units.

August

  • Push (HVAC): early heating check-ups and replacement quotes.
  • Push (plumbing): back-to-school and rental turnover work, mechanical-room clean-ups.
  • Prepare: review budgets for October to March, split by trade.
  • Past customers: heating check-up reminders to plumbing-only customers.

September

  • Push (HVAC): tune-ups, furnace and boiler replacements, heat pump servicing.
  • Push (plumbing): pre-winter inspections, exterior shut-offs, water heater replacements.
  • Prepare: emergency campaigns approved and ready to switch on.
  • Past customers: maintenance-plan renewals across both trades.

October to December: into the cold

October

  • Push (HVAC): first no-heat calls; replacements before deep cold.
  • Push (plumbing): freeze protection, water heaters, drain work before holidays.
  • Past customers: water heater age checks and drain inspections for HVAC-only households.

November

  • Push (HVAC): emergency heating; budgets follow the weather.
  • Push (plumbing): holiday-season plumbing, when kitchens and bathrooms work hardest.
  • Prepare: January water heater and repipe campaigns.

December

  • Push (both): emergencies, with clear holiday hours on your website and profile.
  • Prepare: next year's calendar from this year's job data.
  • Past customers: a short thank-you note with your after-hours instructions, sent only where you have consent.

Turning the calendar into a budget

A calendar is only useful if money follows it. A simple way to start:

  1. List your monthly ad budget for the year, by trade, as it is today.
  2. Mark each month as peak, normal or gap for each trade, using your own job history.
  3. Move 20% to 30% of a peak month's budget in the busy trade to the other trade, or to past-customer campaigns, where your schedule shows open hours.
  4. Keep a reserve for emergency campaigns in both trades, so a sudden cold snap or heat wave doesn't force you to raid the other trade.
  5. Review monthly, comparing booked hours by trade against the plan.

After one full year, you'll have your own numbers to replace these rules of thumb.

Regional adjustments

  • BC coast: milder winters; give rain-driven plumbing more weight from October to March, and shift heating pushes later. The Interior follows the Prairie pattern more closely.
  • Prairies: a longer, harder heating season and a short shoulder. Prepare emergency campaigns earlier, and keep plumbing campaigns running through the cold.
  • Ontario and Quebec: classic four-season pattern; in Quebec, heat pumps carry more of the HVAC calendar because electric heat is so common.
  • Atlantic Canada: heat pumps heat and cool, so summer is busier for HVAC than on the Prairies. Oil-to-heat-pump conversions are a year-round planning conversation.
  • The North: the summer window matters most for travel, replacements and equipment planning.

Each region page has more detail on climate, regulators and programs.

Common mistakes

  • Starting cooling marketing in July. By then, installers are booked and competitors are bidding.
  • Turning off plumbing in deep winter. That's when frozen lines and water heater failures peak.
  • Treating the shoulder as dead time. It's when combined shops can outperform single-trade rivals.
  • No plan for the past-customer list. It's the cheapest marketing you have. The cross-sell math guide shows what it's worth.

See all guides, or contact us to build a calendar from your own job data.

Frequently asked questions

Does this calendar work in BC's coastal climate?

With adjustments. On the mild, wet coast, heating demand is gentler and plumbing work tied to rain carries more of the winter. Shift heating pushes a few weeks later, and give drains and sump pumps more weight from October to March.

How far ahead should campaigns be prepared?

Four to six weeks before the season they serve. Emergency campaigns for the first cold snap should be written and approved in September, even if they don't switch on until November.

What if a heat wave or cold snap comes early?

That's why each trade's emergency campaigns should be separate and ready to go. When the weather jumps, you switch them on within a day instead of building them in a hurry.