Ford & Doonan vs Solaire Connect

Summary

Our Solaire Connect review found that they are a reputable company, established in 2000, providing services and features common to some of the top 5 Perth-based air conditioning installation companies. They offer affordable and cost effective pricing as well as weekend availability for installation services only. Other features include an in-house formal finance option and great promotions. They are refreshingly customer and not sales driven. They are ranked just outside of our top 5 installation companies for the Perth region.

Rated first in our top 5, Ford & Doonan began with only 2 people in 1985 and have since expanded over the years to 150 employees. They have eight branches in Perth and ten across Western Australia, where fast response times and excellent service are standard. 

Price

Solaire Connect offers affordable pricing on their air conditioning brands and service, with our review team scoring them 4 out of 5. Ford & Doonan were found to be slightly more expensive to the other companies in our top five and were rated 3 out of 5. This may be due to the lack of discounts on offer by the Ford & Doonan team.

Ford & Doonan do not offer volume discounts for customers who install multiple units throughout their home. Unlike other competitors Ford & Doonan does not offer price matching for their customers and they charge for travel to rural areas. They will consider special project prices for huge apartment blocks.

Not only is Solaire Connect’s pricing competitive and generally on par with standard market prices but they also advertise special offers and promotions on their website, via the Monthly Special tab. Like Ford & Doonan, Solaire Connect do not offer volume discounts or outright price match competitors’ quotes. In Solaire Connect’s case this is due to their already low pricing and standardised installation fee. Any price matching will only be considered on like for like quotes, at the discretion of Solaire Connect’s management.

Customer Service

Our Solaire Connect Review rated this Perth-based air conditioning installation company highly on their level of customer service, scoring Solaire Connect 7 out of 10 for their customer service by phone and 6 out of 10 for their response to customer email inquiries. They are friendly and polite, providing genuine and informative responses to questions, even on an initial phone enquiry. Unfortunately our Solaire Connect Review found that the Perth-based company were slow in their email responses, taking generally more than 4 days to respond to an initial email inquiry and also more than 4 days to respond back with a written quote.

Due partly to fast response times our Ford & Doonan Review rated the Perth-based company a rating of 8 out of 10 for strong customer service delivered when responding to enquiries over the phone, and an impressive result of 9 out of 10 for customer service shown via email correspondence. These scores rank Ford & Doonan in equal first place for customer service performance through phone communication and first place for customer service delivered by email.

Solaire Connect does not have any in house formal financing solutions, like some other Perth-based air conditioning companies. Customers are required to pay in full by the day of installation. They do however sometimes have promotions offering interest free finance on certain brands. Ford & Doonan offers financing options with up to 36-months interest free and has a second financing option available should customers not qualify for the first one.

Both companies travel to rural areas and locations outside of the metropolitan area, with additional costs incurred due to travel and time. Solaire Connect provides installation services on the weekend, specifically Saturday mornings whereas Ford & Doonan only operate on weekdays.

Expertise

Solaire Connect’s company director has over 20 years’ experience in the air conditioning industry. The company does not, however, offer all types of heating and cooling solutions, like hydronic and steam boiler systems. They only offer installation of ducted and split system air conditioners and can also offer solar panel installation. 

Ford & Doonan has been in the industry for over 30 years, with highly qualified technicians. They try where possible to tailor solutions for the home and requirements of the customer. Our review team positioned Ford & Doonan as a current leader in installing air conditioning in Perth.

The industry standard ARC tick of approval covers both Solaire Connect and Ford & Doonan.

Solaire Connect has some impressive features including great customer service/sales style, which revolves around being non-pushy and non-sales driven. This assists in putting customers at ease so they can ask questions and take their time to think about options without feeling rushed into a decision. They would be a great choice of instillation company for the Perth area.