Going Into Business As A PC Repairman

Soldato
Joined
13 Jan 2003
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23,627
I see this being a growing but highly competitive market:
a) is simple from a technical point of view
b) more people are attempting to stay with their current machines rather than fork out for a new machine - if it's fixable in a short space of time.
c) lots of people that were in the computing (programmers etc) that are being made redundant are finding this an easy stop gap.

The problem is - has it reached saturation yet?

A mate had a PC shop that did make money but it took an exponential amount of effort to maintain the business - a good sign that the costs are being forced down by competition. So make sure you have something that differentiates you. Lastly don't just drop prices or discount - find a better way to add value to your service.
 
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Soldato
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I work in Technical Support, I am pretty handy with PCs, not to bad with hardware. I keep debating setting up something like this but on a part time bases so to speak for a bit of extra cash. My only worry would be if I encountered a problem I couldn't fix. It does happen at work but we have the luxury of replacing the hard drive here -.-
 
Soldato
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To the people who say it's "dead work" and such... well I made £2,500 after tax in July... there are plenty of small businesses ran by people who are clueless about PCs and for that matter older people.

excactly.

businesses are where the big money is at. for anyone starting out it takes quite some time to get your foot in these sort of places, especially as everyone is in computer support these days.

waste of time unless you put a huge amount of effort and time in IMO.
 
Man of Honour
Man of Honour
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I work in Technical Support, I am pretty handy with PCs, not to bad with hardware. I keep debating setting up something like this but on a part time bases so to speak for a bit of extra cash. My only worry would be if I encountered a problem I couldn't fix. It does happen at work but we have the luxury of replacing the hard drive here -.-
I never found anything that couldn't be fixed. If you can't rescue it then a re-install fixes it ;)

For hardware, if a hard disk is dead, it's dead and has to be replaced. If it's dying and you can hear it, or it's having trouble reading, then I'd normally replace it anyway to be on the safe side. People would also believe you if it wasn't dead and you said it had to be replaced, an unfortunate fact that some people take advantage of.
 
Associate
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My opinion is that its a saturated market, there are a hell of a lot of pc repair businesses out there competing and also computer shops that will repair for you for an extra charge.

The main problem is that too many people know 'somebody' that can fix it for free or for a tenner, friend of the family or nephew etc.

Obviously in some cases it does work as smr has shown but i wouldnt go down the route of setting up business in this field.
 
Soldato
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Expat in the USA
Expect to make no money in the 1st yr. It will take you time to establish yourself and you'll probably end up putting more money into advertising, than you'll be bringing in.. Then get yourself Dell / HP etc Certified, so that these comanpies send business your way when they need a mobo switched out...

Good luck.. Honestly, you'll probably need it. As i said, budget for a yr at best even, most probably at a loss though.
 
Associate
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sit around moaning about "saturated markets" and it will be.

Do market research, how many similar companies are listed in your area, postcode?

Richard Branson made millions in a "saturated market", not by being innovitive but by doing what has already been done, better.

If you have drive and determination you will suceed. Do it!
 
Associate
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The only thing I'd say (long time member, geek and IT type professional) is if you're in work, don't quit to run the business, take sickies, holidays, work in the evenings and weekends to get it going. Then once you've got a customer base, quit work.

It's a bad time to be going it alone, have backup work even if it's pizza delivery or labourer. When you run your own company or are a sole trader, you need to have money in the bank to pay rent. If customers don't pay you either need a buffer in your account or another source of income.

Only quit work when you know you have 3-6 months of rent and bills and ALDI shopping money in the bank.

I don't want to come across as patronising, I made the break for it and went solo last year, earn plenty but my outgoings are such that after 12 months I'm only just reaping the benefits.

Good luck.
 
Soldato
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In the ether
Firstly, good luck to you.

But, to be totally honest, PC repair is the lowest rung of the computing world. Why would anyone (bar "not bad" money) even think about going into this business? Seems crazy to me.
 
Associate
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Agree but in all honesty I started temping, then in a post room at a large company, then was office monkey, then washer upper in canteen, then data monkey, then query writer, then DBA, then Project Manager, now consultant earning enough to keep my family happy.

Everyone has to start somewhere, if it's what you enjoy then great. Just make sure those bills are covered.
 
Associate
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Firstly, good luck to you.

But, to be totally honest, PC repair is the lowest rung of the computing world. Why would anyone (bar "not bad" money) even think about going into this business? Seems crazy to me.

Why does it matter if it's lowest rung of the computing world? You got a chip on your shoulder?

My mate started the same small business around 2 years ago. He travels no further than 6 miles to a job and works around 30 hours a week totally stress free. He loves it especially the £40 per hour minimum he charges.

Some of easiest money I have seen earned to be honest.
 
Soldato
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Manchester.
It might be the lowest rung but the possibilities are still endless, if it was successful you might have to employ people to help you, before you know it you never repair Pcs yourself and rake in the cash. Ok not quite so simple but it is possible.

A friend quit to do PC Repair and office IT support, setting up exchange servers etc also.
He seems to do Ok.

I have little experience fixing other peoples computers but when mine die it is usually hardware related, If it isn't even posting it can be hard to work out exactly what is wrong, CPU, mobo, Ram, PSU etc. OK, you can have a spare PSU and Ram but it is harder to swap out the mobo/cpu and carry relavent spares.

I know it is possible to check the lights or the bleeps but on a random old machine it would be a pain.
 
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Soldato
Joined
17 Jul 2008
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7,367
I do this for fun because my normal job is sh$%, I make more on my hobby than I do on my normal job now.. I have doubled my earnings in a year..

1) get some cards printed to go up in local shops
2) get an add in a local paper
3) get some card printed to post thru peoples doors ( I got 15k cards from vistaprint) - pst them yourself ronud the local area
4) get a web site set up and a domain registered (5.99 a month and 599 set up fee I got mine done for) web site looks ok was done on a template
5) get a mobile and an answer phone with a sensible message on
6) ask everyone you get a call from where they got your number (so you can cancel adds if they dont make money etc)
7) NEVER loose anyones data (be very careful poeple forget about email, and also not everyone knows their passwords)
8) like other people will say keep spares...
9) get labels printed to stick on stuff you fix
10) keep a database / mailing list - try and keep in touch with people
11) get a small pocket size note book to write stuff in!
12) make sure people know how much you charge before you do the job

I find this easy money but you will struggle if you are at A+ level..

consider getting a normal job and do this on the side for a while

gypo is wrong there is HUGE ammounts of work, you jsut got to find it... most PC repair people are rubbish (if my area is anything to go by)
 
Soldato
Joined
17 Jul 2008
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7,367
My advise is just dont! It'll sap the fun out of pc's and life in general trying to explain to everyone what you are doing and why you arnt breaking it :(

But if your going to do this, make sure you outline that nothing can be solved over the phone or via email (unless its something really simple like whats the admin password that they might have forgotten), other wise your just going to become the free/generous pc whipping boy.

I use the phrase 'im not sure I'll have to come and take a look at that a lot' I only fix it over the phone or via remote access if its something I would fix for free (ie I reinstalled their PC and they have and issue from the reinstall)
 
Soldato
Joined
30 Sep 2003
Posts
6,188
Why not go straight to 1st line support? It's a good first step untill you work out where you want to specialise. PC repair is a useful skill, but you'll find most organisations opt for a rebuild almost immediately. They don't care that it may be an easy fix, or that you'll charge them 200 quid to rebuild it - they just want the PC working in a few hours.

Move away from desktops and towards servers and networks as soon as possible. Way more interesting and more money :)

Either way, good luck.
 
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