thinking about starting a local computer repair business

[unlovedwarrior]

hey guys i was thinking about starting a local computer repair business and i was wondering where to start it would be part time at first then if it works maybe go full time. but i don't know about pricing or equipment i would need to buy or marketing? i got a name but that's about it.

any suggestions would be helpful


P.S. i just found out that there is already a local repair shop in my area here is a list of their services http://www.taftpcservices.com/Computer_Repair_Price_List.htm what do you think about their prices
unlovedwarrior

[Zylstra]

As in, an actual office where you would need to buy new equipment? Or things you would already have at home?

Since your starting off, you would probably be better off ordering on demand when it comes to things such as hard drives, CPU's, and RAM... its too expensive to do an initial stock up, even though in the long run you can save money.

Things I find useful when working:
An empty work station with a monitor, keyboard, mouse, Ethernet, and a power plugin. That way, you can grab the PC, and just work on it at that workstation.

I also keep a copy of Ultimate Boot CD at hand for diagnostics.

Tools (just about three sizes of screwdrivers. The little "nose pickers" that you can get for picking up small screws are nice too if you drop one inside the computer)

A flashdrive with a bunch of utilities on it, especially ClamWin for removing viruses since it requires no installer

Business Cards! Propaganda is good! No one said you needed to have a company print business cards for you... if you have a printer at home, look online for a template. Dont use regular printing paper though, find a thicker paper.

Somewhere to back data up to, eg: an external hard drive. Your customer needs things backed up before you reformat their computer...

Disclaimers saying your not responsible for lost data, keep these in check. Get a filing cabinet. Dont throw these forms away, I can dig an official form up for you in the MS-Word format if you remind me to. People arent nice when they go about suing you for something that was probably their fault. Signed paperwork is your shutdown on them.

Once you start getting more of the tech stuff done, keep all your downloaded drivers in a safe place.
I personally keep master copies of drivers for the major models of computers I work on.
In a folder called Drivers, I have things separated by manufacturer, model number, and operating system.
This just reduces time spent on the manufacturer website, as they try to convince you to buy a new computer

If its not inside your home, grab an answering machine... you're going to want to leave hours on the message and have callbacks.


Thats all I can think of.
At my school, I just ghost anything that stops working. Unfortunately, people like to keep their current operating system and files intact... darn them!

[Carbon Dudeoxide]

I glanced at their list of services and figured they didn't have something you might want to considering employing:

Repair installation service - instead of completely reinstalling the OS. This may be an attractive solution if people don't want to go through the trouble of reinstalling their programs and reapplying system settings.

[unlovedwarrior]

k kool i also noticed that they didnt have anything related to malware i emailed them on this to see what their reply is going to be

[Carbon Dudeoxide]

If someone came to them with a malware problem, they would probably reinstall the OS as the computer shop in my area does.

[BC_Programmer]

take the cheap way out. That must be what my boss did when I secretly wrote a small VB app that denies access to the training program. I mean- secretly... prevents bad things from happening. yeah, that's it.

Besides, I left instructions to fix it on a memo. they read memo's, right?

[unlovedwarrior]

i hope not if so then i might have some business after all lol

[BC_Programmer]

woops, I meant they take the cheap way out, wasn't meant as a suggestion, woops. 

[stewieisme]

i would start from your home and just start small with friends and family and let it spread by word of mouth. san ramon computer repair is a small and basic name that tells exactly what you're all about. it's nice going out of the home because you won't have to worry about a lot of overhead. i would also recommend getting business cards from vista print. google it.

[Karnac]

Have a look at this site....lot of sound advice.

http://www.fonerbooks.com/compbiz.htm

[squall_01]

I would also try an get like A+ certified not sure if that was mentioned.  Jsut wanted to use this as a refrence for later.  I was thinking about the same thing and saw this today. 

[CnP Systems]

- I second the Vista Print thought (search for a coupon before purchasing)
- Do a clear/ not complicated, easy to read website.  Read about how to make it further up in the search rankings.
- Create an account and post/repost on craigslist every 48 hours.
- In addition to the items that Zylstra talked about: an IDE/SATA drive adapter.
- Older people may try to confirm your existence by looking in the physical yellow pages if you are referred by someone.
- Communicate clearly and speak clearly when you answer the phone.  Basic yes, but somewhat uncommon...