Starting my own Computer Repair Business

[kainjow]

For a while now I've been considering starting my own local computer repair/consultation business. I've been hesitant to actually get things going for a variety of reasons, but now I'm starting to think about it more seriously (as I need the money ).

Has anyone done anything like this before? The one thing I'd be nervous about is people having problems with their comps that I have no clue how to fix. Now I'm a good researcher, I can find out stuff pretty fast online, but the thought of the huge array of problems with Wintels scares me sometimes. I'd most likely have them describe to me their problem before I can say "here I come to save the day" just so I don't get screwed..

I help family and friends with their comps quite often, but most of the time it's over the phone, and if I was actually on their computers I could solve problems way faster. I've also done tech support for a DSL company, that gave me a lot more knowledge in PC tech support in general.

What would you recommend I charge per hour? I know that computer repair is quite costly, but I want to be very affordable so that even the slightest problems people would come to me. Or should I charge per 30 minutes or 15 minutes??

I live in an apartment, so I'm considering just starting with people around me, so I can keep costs down on gas

Any other advice would be excellent.

[delsoljb32]

step 1: defrag hard drive, check for errors, if yes, proceed to step 2

step 2: clean format hard drive, reload Windoze OS, check for errors, if yes, proceed to

step 3: open car window while in motion, throw troubled PC out of window


these are the only things you need worry about when fixing PC's, hahahah

[symphonix]

Well, I have a friend who has set up his own business looking after computers for several of the schools and community groups in the area. He says that the increasing petrol prices are a really big factor on his bottom line, even though he uses VNC to administer networks wherever he can.

Don't underestimate telephone and electrical costs. Factor these in. If you're planning on being able to go out and about, and still get business, you'll need a mobile phone, and they cost. As for power, simply plugging in a PC overnight and running a virus scan on it will draw as much power as a load in the washing machine, and if you're doing twenty PCs a week it can really impact your bills.

That said, don't under-sell yourself too much. Resist the temptation to do unusual favours. If you find yourself saying "I normally charge $20 an hour for this, but because its you, I'll do it for $10" then you're setting yourself up for more and more work at the reduced rate. Plus, if you charge too little, then many people will simply ask for too much. I know that sounds weird, but I've worked in IT support and know the difference between customers that might have to pay for service, and customers who have their company pay all their support costs. The ones who get their support for free are always calling, asking "Hey I just got this digital camera, can you send someone out to teach me how to use it?" and "I just bought a copy of Visual Basic because the guy in the store told me I could make games. How do I get started?".

I made the mistake, when I was trying to pay my way through university, of helping a few older people with their computers for $10AU an hour. The surprise to me was that there was no limit to how much time they were willing to take. If it took three hours to explain how they could print their own photos at home and save $1 per 50-something photos, they'd still take the full three hours. And then, even though it was well past 6 at night and I had to ride a bike home, they'd get upset when I had to cut it off at that.

The moral of the story is, set specific times to be there, specific time limits on how long you're willing to try at something, and stick to it.