Question for you PC repair business owners

[Vdubchaos]

Originally Posted by thestrangebrew1

This will be my biggest challenge I think. Our town is so small. I'm not originally from here, but my wife is and knows just about everyone. I'll have to really maintain the line between business and friends.

You will lose those "friends" quickly as well.

[techs]

Originally Posted by thestrangebrew1

Thanks I actually just posted a question about software in the software for Windows forum. I'll look into getting my hands on an older version. But I'm running w8 right now. Might have to install 7 if I can't find anything compatible.

I have always found it necessary to run every OS that I am working on at the time.
Right now I have XP, Vista, Win7 and Win8. I dropped Windows 2000 a while ago.
Its just very helpful to have a running version of an OS to compare to damaged computers.

btw you can run QuickBooks Pro 2007 on Windows 7 32bit as it is what I am using.

[thestrangebrew1]

Originally Posted by exdeath

Ill flip burgers for $9 an hour before I work on computers for $3 an hour. In the end its 3x the income and thats really all that matters; the income and lifestyle it affords you is the whole point of doing anything to begin with.

That's true but that's what my 9-5 is for. This is just a hobby that I decided I might as well attempt to make some money on if people are willing to pay. Which is why I'm basing my expectations so low. Obviously I'd like to make more, but I'm not not expecting clients to be banging on the door, and I definitely don't want to over extend myself. But I'd still like it to be professional and legit and not just some CL dude off the streets. The initial investment is cheap, so I don't see that part a big deal. But your thoughts on time spent does bring up a good point that I'll have to evaluate.

[techs]

Pssst. Here's a secret. Once you get going you will be working on multiple computers at the same time. Hourly rate x2. And sometimes three. Hourly rate x3.

[Puppies04]

Originally Posted by techs

Pssst. Here's a secret. Once you get going you will be working on multiple computers at the same time. Hourly rate x2. And sometimes three. Hourly rate x3.

Exactly what I was going to say, claiming that a reinstall of windows, optimization + moving a few personal files from a HDD takes 2-3 hours is fine but you can easily be working on other machines for 1.5 hours of that. I tend to fix 4 or 5 machines a month for friends but I always try to wait until I have 2 or 3 to do at once before I get them dropped off. That way it is 10+ hours billable work for 4-5 hours actual work including eating a takeaway that they are paying for, whilst chatting to my buddys on vent.

[exdeath]

You will be overwhelmed at $3.75 an hour. You'll have more work than you'll know what to do with and you will not be able to afford to sustain it.

[techs]

I charge 75 an hour because that's what Staples charges.
Though everything I do costs way less than Staples.

[RelaxTheMind]

post it notes, multi-port kvm, professional invoices (freshbooks). get recurring fees by offering "maintenance"; like 20% will ever even call to get it honored. small fees are easier to swallow when new computers are ~$200-300

[Legios]

One way to maximize money/time, is if you have to be Onsite it is an hourly rate you can live with. Otherwise it is a flat rate if the work is done offsite. The key is make onsite high enough that they want it done "in your shop" on your own time. Yes it can take hours to transfer data but you just need to be there at most for 15 mins then you can be doing other things. It got to the point your onsite service just became a huge hassle since I could only work on 1 client at a time.

[thestrangebrew1]

Originally Posted by Legios

One way to maximize money/time, is if you have to be Onsite it is an hourly rate you can live with. Otherwise it is a flat rate if the work is done offsite. The key is make onsite high enough that they want it done "in your shop" on your own time. Yes it can take hours to transfer data but you just need to be there at most for 15 mins then you can be doing other things. It got to the point your onsite service just became a huge hassle since I could only work on 1 client at a time.

Good strategy. I'll look into the pricing again at the competitors site and make some adjustments. I really appreciate everyone's input so far. You guys have been a great help.

[OBLAMA2009]

Originally Posted by thestrangebrew1

I'm getting my little PC repair business going and I'm trying to hammer down pricing etc. Do you guys charge for a diagnosis? Then if they want you to work on the machine for them, move to an hourly? How do you guys do your pricing scheme? I'll be calling the only "local" shop around my area to see what they're process is like, just curious what you guys do too.

ive never had a pc repair business but that sounds like the type of thing that there would be a lot of. have you considered opening a cell phone repair shop instead. ive noticed a lot of these popping up around the bay area and they seem to have a lot of business