Is anyone a PC repair person?

[mdavies]

Like to hear from anyone who does this for a living. I dabble a bit myself but only as a hobby.

Your experiences etc good/bad.

Skills/training/experience that you had on startup.

Methods used for marketing.

Any tips on services offered.

Cheers

[Green trader]

Hi there,

I'm a repair guy! Laptops, mobile phones, desktop Pcs, printers, and so on.

My backgrounds in physics and electronics but most of what I know is from experience.

Most people who do repairs generally are not certified or qualified but I don't think that should matter, I know people with no qualifications who are better than me at repairs.

Word of mouth is key here, I've yet to discover more effective methods.

If you are interested in starting your own business, then maybe we should talk more, I want to expand my IT rental company. Email me at info@rentpcs.co.uk

:wink:

[Ozzy]

I read about a guy who started doing PC repairs to earn some money whilst he studied at Uni. He put a simple add in the local papers that said something like "Student with bike to travel. Will fix your PC and network problems." (or something like that).
He then ended up leaving Uni after his degree and had built up a network support business employing about 8-9 people off the back of his reputation and contacts he'd built up whilst doing hsi degree and earning a few quid to get him through Uni. Quite an impressive story to read it was, but he's now an MP up north somewhere.

[SmallBizSoftware]

Guys, I have been thinking about doing this for a while now but have always been held back by:

PAT testing - surely as soon as you open the box of anything that plugs into the mains it must be PAT tested before giving it back.

Product liabilty & public liability insurance - a must i would think just in case you short the case and electrocutet someone

Business rates - not a prob if u fix on client site but might be if you fix at home.

liked the previous post about rentals, wonder how many of those are never seen again?

[chris1317]

I work fixing computers

Most of the stuff ive learned from experience/internet. Also have HNC computing and am working towards MCSE.

The HNC is not that relevant to the work carried out but looks good on paper but the MCSE work is definitely benificial especialy when doing more advanced OS and network work.

Most companies that I have worked for do not PAT test the equipment unless a power fault is suspected.

Theres no point promising wonders to clients as most dont realise the ammount of work that can be involved or the resulting cost, possibly set a one off inspection fee of say £35.00 then prepare a quote charged at an hourly rate and dont let them push you into doing more work than required. Quite often ive seen jobs come in that appear to be quick fixes but are actualy major jobs, you realy have to keep the customer up to date with the progress. Its not so bad with corporate clients but with people off of the street it can be a nightmare sometimes.

Also try to make sure that you stay within the law regarding software i.e. dont re-install someones OS unless they provide you with their original os disk.

Hope this has been of some help, if im speaking rubish feel free to let me know.

Chris.

[Green trader]

Pat testing is definitely a money spinner. Its always in demand.

It may not make you rich, but the equipment, insurance, training will pay for itself.

As for rentals, I have had problems. Defaulting on payments is the main one however thats not common. Legal letters work wonders. I have had one machine vanish however with the deposit, the equipment was already paid for.

[Jackie606]

Anybody offering these services in newcastle..(upon tyne)/gateshead. I have three laptops and a PC that I want cleaned and loaded with appropriate software before by business goes live...
regards
technophobe

[davehalo1]

Yes, we launched Leeds Computer Repairs in 2008 using the first video presenter driven website on the internet <<< active link removed >>>

We deal with home users mainly and are flexible to their requirements.

I have enjoyed every minute of it even thought it's been hard work.

I qualified as a CIW Master Web Designer but learnt as much as I could about all aspects of computers.

The website makes the business more personable due to the videos and my customers like it.

A lot of business is word of mouth and a lot of the repairs come from experience, and I've met some great people.