The Trust leak: 53% of visits, a 35-point gap, two decisions.
A company can have a healthy average close rate and still be leaking its single biggest lever. This one was. The Sales Plays report showed it in one screen; the fix was a routing rule and three weeks of ride-alongs.
Case study
Performance › Reports › Sales PlaysThe company
A residential HVAC company in the Sun Belt running replacement estimates, repair calls and tune-ups out of one location, on ServiceTitan, with five technicians and comfort advisors counted in close rate. Sales Plays had been on long enough for the report to fill: 508 briefed sales visits had run in the 90-day window, 238 had sold.
What the report showed
Emergency was the best play at 62%. Nearly everyone was decent at it. Research carried the biggest tickets — about $14,200, roughly twice the company average — because those customers had already decided to buy something and wanted to buy the right thing.
Trust was 53% of all briefs and closed at 41% — the single biggest lever in the business, even though it wasn't the worst number on the page. Reading down the Trust column: two techs closed 46–52% and two closed 13–15%. Same play, same market, a 35-point gap.
| Play | Share of visits | Close rate | Avg ticket | Best closers | Needs a ride-along |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trust | 53% | 41% | $6,800 | Brandon 52% · Josh 46% | Jourdan 15% · Ronnie 13% |
| Emergency | 22% | 62% | — | Brandon 67% · Josh 64% | — |
| Research | 9% | — | $14,200 | Robert 71% · Josh 58% | Ronnie 40% |
| Comfort | 8% | — | — | Josh 51% · Brandon 48% | Jourdan 36% |
| Value / Family | 8% | too few | — | Brandon 62% (Value) | Too few visits to judge |
Names changed. Dashes are cells the company didn't act on; faint cells had too few visits to judge.
Two decisions came out of one screen
Route Trust to the techs who win it
New rule on the Dispatch board: when the play says Trust and either Josh or Brandon can take it, they take it — even if it means Jourdan drives ten minutes further to a repair. Job type still ranks first; the play breaks the tie.
Ride-alongs for the techs who don't
Jourdan and Ronnie ride with Josh on their next three Trust visits. The lesson is the first two minutes: prove before you propose — photo first, number last. Their Trust close rate was written down at the one-on-one, to be revisited a month later.
Protect Research for closers
The biggest-ticket play stopped going to whoever was nearest. Robert and Josh take Research visits when free.
What it's worth
Moving Trust from 41% to 50% on the same visits — no new leads, no new trucks — is about 20 more sales a month at the company's Trust average ticket: about $130,000 a month. For scale, one point of overall close rate at this company is 5 more sales, $37,000 a month.
The report will show whether it happened by the next monthly review. That's the point of measuring it the strict way: the same 90-day pill, the same techs, the same job types, and a number that only moves when a tech stands in a home and something happens.
What you can take from it
Every account's spread is different. The method isn't.
Which play is most of my business, and how does it close?
That's your biggest lever, even if it isn't your worst number.
For that play, who's at the top and who's at the bottom?
The top tells you who to route to. The bottom tells you who to coach — and the top tech is usually the best coach.
Which play has the biggest tickets?
Make sure those visits go to closers, not to whoever is nearest.
Questions people ask
Is this a real company?
Yes. The numbers come from the company's own Performance and Sales Plays reports. Names of technicians and identifying details are changed.
Why was Trust the biggest lever if Emergency closed better?
Because Trust was 53% of visits. A play that's half your business moving nine points is worth more than your best play moving at all. Which play is most of your business is always the first question.
How long did the ride-alongs take to show up in the report?
The Morning Brief's slow lane flags a move after two to three weeks; the number on the play means something at the next monthly one-on-one. The company wrote the Trust close rate down at the one-on-one and revisited it a month later.
Keep reading
See a Scout Brief built on a real appointment from your schedule.
A 30-minute walkthrough. We pick a recent sales visit, build the brief and the audio, and walk through Today's Play as if your tech were about to knock. You decide if it changes the call.