Interview with Chris Mellon of ARS on LPBC Radio Show
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“We have 70 locations and over 5500 employees all over the country. In fact, we’re the largest plumbing/HVAC company in the United States”, Mellon stated. “The thing that has really made us successful throughout the years has been looking for companies who have a great reputation in their market place and great customer service. We don’t want to change that in any way, we want to build upon that when we purchase a company.” In response to Park’s question, “One, you have the brand loyalty with that approach, but I’ve got to imagine on the marketing side there are challenges in having to keep up with each of these brands and marketing them individually, correct?” Mellon responded, “There are challenges to the fact that we are a nationwide company with this American Residential Services umbrella. But these legacy brands, as we call them in these markets, are extremely important to us and more important to the local community.”
“We have recently installed a training system called PROS, which stands for Professional Responsive On-Time Specialists. The goal of PROS is to standardize exceptional customer service across the nation.” Mellon continued, “With most customers, their past experience with home service companies probably hasn’t been that great… Our goal is to bring peace of mind to those customers when we show up at the door. They should know they are dealing with a professional company that is locally based but has standards backed by a national company”, continued Mellon.
“When you talk about minimizing the wait time, being able to show customers exactly what you’re doing, pricing, and walk them through the educational side (which is really important), you can leverage that technology base which takes customer service a whole new step forward,” Parks stated. Mellon responded, “Technology is a really critical piece for us…We continue working on ways to refine that experience for the customer and give them more control over what it is they need from us and communicating to them throughout the process. No one is ever happy when they’re calling us about a HVAC or plumbing problem. We’re really trying to take that situation and turn it around for them. We want to get them back to life as usual as quickly as possible.”
“You (ARS) are very well known for giving back not only here in the Mid-South, but all around the nation in each of these branch territories… Give us a background into why it’s so important for ARS to invest in your community and give back,” says Park. “We’ve had a long standing relationship with Tim Tebow. There are employees in our organization who have known him since he was a kid and they’ve watched him grow up. We saw an opportunity get involved with his foundation (Tim Tebow Foundation),” Mellon states. As a Tim Tebow Foundation partner, ARS sponsors the Tim Tebow Foundation Celebrity Gala & Golf Classic and volunteers at the unforgettable prom night for people of special needs, called Night to Shine. Mellon elaborate's on Night to Shine, “A lot of people with special needs have never been to prom. This is an opportunity for them to be in the spotlight for a night. It’s an amazing night for the guests who typically tend to not get that kind of recognition and treatment. We’ve had a lot of our employees volunteer and participate in this event and they seem to get more out of it than the participants do. They rave about how fun and great the experience was.” After nationwide participation in Night to Shine, the company was inspired to hold a Dress Drive and many locations participated. The dresses collected were donated to various organizations and non- profits that hold proms and pageants similar to Night to Shine. “There was a need for these dresses; we saw that after our participation with Night to Shine… It was a great way for us to give back to our community in a way that many companies don’t think of”, Mellon explained.
“Talk about how the TV show Home Free relates to ARS” Park requested. “Home Free was a great opportunity for us. It’s a TV show that airs on FOX, Thursday's at 8 o'clock central time, all summer long. It’s a mix between Survivor and Extreme Home Makeover.” Tebow is a co-host with Mike Holmes for the FOX TV-show, Home Free. FOX approached ARS/ Rescue Rooter to install the plumbing and HVAC systems for eleven houses built on the show. “It was an ordeal to put together and took a lot of effort. Our team did such a phenomenal job coordinating all of the work that went into helping build eleven houses in such a short time frame. This opportunity is very rewarding and we’re excited watching the show, knowing we were a part of it.”
In response to Park’s statement, “I love the heart of what you guys do… Give me one or two more non- profits/organizations that are near and dear to your heart”, Mellon responds, “Here in Memphis, we’re involved with Shelby Farms Park Conservancy, Fed-Ex St. Jude Classic, the Liberty Bowl, and the Germantown Charity Horse Show. There’s quite a few that we’ve been involved in for a very long time and I believe it stems from our leadership having a heart to give back, and flows down through the rest of the organization.”
To listen to this episode on the Lipscomb Pitts Breakfast Club Radio Show, click here. Call ARS®/Rescue Rooter® at 1-800-277-9400 for your HVAC and plumbing needs! Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!
About The LPBC Radio Show: The LPBC Radio Show airs each Saturday from 5-6 PM and Sunday from 9-10 AM on partner station, News Radio 600 WREC. The show is focused on positives and features interviews with a mix of business and community leaders who discuss important trends, efforts, and ways to get engaged and make an impact in the Mid-South.
