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PC Repair Business???
Howard_Casto:
--- Quote from: atomikbohm on January 02, 2012, 03:32:34 pm ---As many of the people on this board, I've been fixing friends and family members PCs for years. Recently I've been approached by a friend who has offered to "help" me make a business out of it. I used the quotes because I'm not expecting much if any assistance but, the idea got my interest enough to take a look at the possibilities.
I guess I wanted to get an idea of if I'm remotely qualified to even consider this type of undertaking. So here are the questions...
1) What skill set does one need in this line of work? (Microsoft certificates, Hardware vendor repair training ect)
2) What kind of equipment should I have?
3) What do PC repair shops charge? Hourly and/or by the task.
I know small businesses are risky at the best of financial times but as a side line business I thought it might be fun.
Any info or suggestions are welcome.
--- End quote ---
1.) You need to know what you are doing... it's as simple as that. Certifications are worthless to the average customer. You would only need those if you want to become a "liscensed ____ repairman" or what have you. That being said, having a uncertified person work on a particular piece of equipment might void the warranty. But if it was still under warranty they wouldn't be coming to you. ;)
2.) Best Tools:
A can of air
A set of minature screwdrivers
A set of standard screwdrivers
A working laptop you can take with you
A usb harddrive adaptor, preferably one that will handle IDE and SATA
A thumbdrive that has all of your favorite spyware/malware removal tools on it.
A network cable
A spare power supply.
3.)Anywhere from 20 to 50 bucks an hour. Generally on a sliding scale depending upon the type of work you need to do and if it is a house call or not.
I work on pcs constantly and I was actually trained to do this sort of thing. I just can't quite get into the idea of doing it for a living based on my experiences working on people's pcs. Here are a few reasons why:
1. As the others have said, it is almost always a virus. Removing viri is hard, time consuming and wears you down physically. Also they sometimes make a pc unrecoverable software-wise. In that cause you have a very pissed customer. On top of that there is always the slight chance that you can get the virus on your own pcs by fixing theirs. So yeah it's really good money, if you like crap work. I think removing viri is right up their with being a proctologist.
2. Like working on cars, sometimes the problem can't be fixed. I would feel really guilty working on a persons computer for a couple of hours only to find out that the hardware has failed and it isn't worth fixing. That means they are out the cost of yoru services AND the cost of a new pc. I'm too soft-hearted... I would end up not charging cases like these.
3. People don't understand computers, so when you give them bad news or tell them they need to buy something, they always think you are trying to rip them off.
4. Your customers don't listen to you, because they assume that they know better. You tell them to use anti-virus and which one to use and even go so far as to install it for them. You are called back a week or two later because they either turned it off, or installed a "better" anti-virus that screwed up their pc. A customer asks how to install a piece of software on their pc, you tell them "that won't work on your pc" and they promptly say you don't know what you are talking about. "It says it's for PC on the box! It has to work on my 10 year old pc!"
Also in terms of a storefront, the overhead will kill ya. House calls are the way to go.
I'm not saying that you shouldn't do it, I'm just saying that it won't be fun like you think it will. It will be a job and a crappy job at that. The pay can be real good, but that is about the only benefit.
SavannahLion:
I'll echo PBJ and Castro's sentiment. The work sucks, period.
I dabbled in it about fifteen years ago. Mostly sideline stuff. In CA, you can operate that type of business for one year before you're required to obtain a license. IOW, you must obtain the license before the year is up or you'll be fined if caught. For computer repair, that's unlikely. It was business thing, not specific to PC repair. of course the law might have changed since, better safe and know what's required if you're going to ignore them. ;)
But I digress, that kind of work is a PITA. There aren't enough oil changes to offset the full blown engine overhauls. I'd say most of the work entailed reinstalling a completely hose OS then trying to explain to the customer why you couldn't recover all of their porn family photos. Like Castro says, that ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- wears you out.
I had a friend that remained in the business for about six years, always offered "extra" in-home service. Didn't know a thing about PC repair other than installing Windows. I have no idea what happened to him, probably got caught with a lonely housewife.
mrhowell:
$60.00 an hour for general work (printer installs, setting up a wireless router, etc) .
$90.00 an hour for network support (Microsoft, Novell, IP printer installs).
$120.00 an hour for cabling and termination. I charge what may seem alot, but I HATE CABLING.
$100.00 Format and reload with data recovery if possible. The best fix for the average user.
wp34:
My old boss started a consulting business a few years ago. From the stories he told me Howard hit the nail on the head. He said his biggest problem is that his customers didn't understand the concept of billable hours and expected him to warranty for free.
drventure:
+1 about the billable hours comment.
Heck, many +businesses+ don't understand that.
I've contracted with places that wanted a fixed bid. I said "I don't do fixed bids because there is no way you already know exactly and completely what you need done". For yard work, sure, no problem. But with computers and esp with programming, that's just about impossible.
They either realize that's the truth and come around, or they tell me to get lost.
Either way works for me.
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