Gardiner Routes 99% of Sales Leads Through XOi—Driving Efficiency and Field Engagement

Gardiner is a leading commercial HVAC provider serving thousands of customers across Ohio. With a large field team and a strong focus on service-driven growth, Gardiner captures a high volume of sales opportunities directly from the field. To maximize that momentum, they set out to streamline how technician-qualified leads are captured, tracked, and followed up—ensuring no opportunity slips through the cracks.

The Challenge

Initially, only 40% of Gardiner’s technician-generated sales leads were being submitted through XOi, the company’s preferred workflow platform. The rest came in through email, text, or informal handoffs—making it difficult to:

• Track submissions
• Ensure follow-up
• Accurately manage incentives

This lack of structure led to missed opportunities and limited visibility into what was actually working in the field.

The Solution

Gardiner launched a Conditional Quote Workflow in XOi that made lead capture fast, structured, and trackable:

• Techs were prompted and required to enter key info during their normal job workflow
• Sales leadership received instant notifications for routing follow-up
• Techs got a confirmation email each time they submitted a lead—reinforcing accountability and incentive eligibility

Within 90 days, Gardiner required all sales leads to flow through XOi, establishing a single, standardized process for capturing technician-driven opportunities.

The Strategy: Aligning Behavior with Business Goals

Gardiner’s Service Operations Leader and Director of Sales partnered to roll out a phased incentive strategy that made lead generation a natural part of the job—driven by clear goals, consistent process, and technician buy-in.

1. Build the habit
   Technicians were first incentivized for any lead submission—focusing on behavior over outcomes to build consistency.
2. Raise the bar
   Once lead submission became routine, incentives shifted to focus only on leads that closed and met minimum dollar thresholds.
3. Reward the right work
   Incentives were tailored based on the complexity of the work—higher-value upgrades or large repairs earned greater rewards.

To support the rollout, Gardiner added email confirmations for each submission—creating transparency and helping techs track their contributions.

By making the process simple, visible, and rewarding, Gardiner turned lead generation from an add-on into a habit—without disrupting the flow of field work.

The Results

• Total tech generated lead volume increased 15.5% in just 90 days
• 99% of all technician leads now come through XOi (up from 40%)
• Tech engagement surged, as the workflow made it easier to submit leads and get credit

Why It Matters

Gardiner’s leadership team had a clear, focused vision—and it paid off. Today, 99% of leads come through XOi, a shift that goes far beyond process improvement. It’s given the business the visibility and consistency needed to make faster, smarter decisions.

With centralized data and a repeatable process in place, Gardiner can now:

• Analyze lead quality and trends across service teams
• Identify which types of opportunities techs are best at capturing
• Fine-tune incentive programs based on field performance

Increase collaboration between service and sales with faster, more informed follow-up