Fixing to advertise my services as a computer repair man . Any advice?

[JC316]

I always fix my friends and family's computers and I have been told by many people that I should do it for a living, so I am going to give it a shot. I can do ANYTHING when it comes to computers, so I am not concerned about running into any problems, but I was wondering if anyone had any advice for me?

I will be going to people's houses and try to do as much on site repair as possible.

Any advice would be appricieated.

[snuif09]

dont say you want to be payed per hour.just for the whole job

[JC316]

dont say you want to be payed per hour.just for the whole job

Why is that? I was going to charge by the hour, but now you have me spooked.

[snuif09]

most people dont like that then their going to think you are going to take long over the repair
just to earn more money and some dont want that

[Polaris573]

I imagine you will be operating this business out of your home? It might not be a good idea to have a plethora of strangers visiting your house. Maybe you should pick up their computer where it is located and bring it back with you if you need to.

[erocker]

I agree with Polaris. You should have set charges for the various services you provide. Craigslist will get you buisness, but it will also bring some unwanted people.

[BullGod]

I always fix my friends and family's computers and I have been told by many people that I should do it for a living, so I am going to give it a shot. I can do ANYTHING when it comes to computers, so I am not concerned about running into any problems, but I was wondering if anyone had any advice for me?

I will be going to people's houses and try to do as much on site repair as possible.

Any advice would be appricieated.

Well first off, don't get angry. People are really stupid. They don't know shit about computers. You will be amazed by what you will find out. Oh yeah and don't charge too much. Some people will ask for 60 euros just to install XP :shadedshu

[JC316]

I have fair rates and I am doing house calls, so no problems there. I advertised in a local paper, so we will see.

[Hawk1]

Don't know if you've read it or not but This Issue (http://www.maximumpc.com/article/march_2007_windows_vista_survival_guide) of maximum PC gives you some tools/hardware to have on hand if your business ramps up. Would make it easier to diagnose any hardware issues. It's way too pricey to have everything, but some would definitely help (PSU tester for one).

[JC316]

Does being A+ certified help? I am going to be getting it, but I am curious if it would help.

[Polaris573]

Does being A+ certified help? I am going to be getting it, but I am curious if it would help.

I'm a college student who can't work full time while school is in session but with the help of my A+ certification I was able to prove that I know at least a little about computers and it helped me get a full time job making $12.75 for the summer. It's not a lot, but it's good for summer work especially in the rural area I live in. Many people can say they know something about computers, but not everyone can prove it. It's actually an extremely easy test the biggest obstacle is the price it costs to take it. So is A+ a magic bullet that will give you jobs? Probably not, but it definitely doesn't hurt you.

[JC316]

Jobs aren't my concern, I have my own business, and for John Public, I think that being certified will help.

[DaMulta]

I do this job.


Fist try to make set prices. People like to know what they are going to spend. Note:some jobs will take a day or two to do, but still use that set price.

Have a 2ed price for when you take to long. People like to have their fix cost cut in half when you take too long to fix it. This happens, and yes sometimes it's because they have a slow POS system.

Keep memory with you at all times. Noting sucks more than getting on a XP machine with 128 megs of ram, and they have been using that system for years. This saves you time. Also keep some on you to sell, people will always upgrade their ram when they see the differance.

Don't be scared to tell them you need to take their machine with you to fix. Sitting next to them asking you 1000 questions gets old very fast.

Don't be scared to tell them that their machine is just to old. Explain it to them like cars, and how when they get so old it's time just to let them go.


ALWAYS use nortan ghost on a machine before you start fucking with it. People sometimes forget they have stuff that needed to be saved.




NO ONE CARES IF YOU AFE CERTIFIED. I have never been asked that before, all anyone cares about is if you can do it.

[JC316]

I do this job.


Fist try to make set prices. People like to know what they are going to spend. Note:some jobs will take a day or two to do, but still use that set price.

Have a 2ed price for when you take to long. People like to have their fix cost cut in half when you take too long to fix it. This happens, and yes sometimes it's because they have a slow POS system.

Keep memory with you at all times. Noting sucks more than getting on a XP machine with 128 megs of ram, and they have been using that system for years. This saves you time.

Don't be scared to tell them you need to take their machine with you to fix. Sitting next to them asking you 1000 questions gets old very fast.

Don't be scared to tell them that their machine is just to old. Explain it to them like cars, and how when they get so old it's time just to let them go.


ALWAYS use nortan ghost on a machine before you start fucking with it. People sometimes forget they have stuff that needed to be saved.


Thats about the best advice that I could give anyone. I have done this for several people before and I have run into all of it. Try fixing a 266MHZ machine with 128 megs of ram and XP loaded on it. I am pretty blunt with the options that I give to people, I can take it and try to fix it, or you can get another one and I will set it up for you.