One common issue people raise is the presence of some of the larger computer stores in a given neighborhood. Don’t let that stop you. No matter what other businesses are in your area, large or small, there are still opportunities for a profitable computer repair business. For instance, one of our stores is right around the corner from one of the “big-box” computer stores. The store has tens of thousands of square feet of floor space, hundreds of associates, and nearly any component you can imagine for sale, often with multiple alternatives. No point in trying to compete, right? Wrong!
Big-box stores are very different from smaller, more agile shops. There are huge differences between the large, impersonal store and the close and personal service of a small store. Instead of the larger store hurting our sales, we found that many of our customers find us as they are driving to that “other” business! They know that the prices at large box stores are often very high for computer repair and they may decide to try a local business instead. Imagine that; we get customers because there is a big-box store in the area that does computer repair. Also, many customers like the idea of dealing with the same person all the time. That’s unrealistic to expect in a store that employs a hundred or more people, so in our smaller store our customers get the value of familiarity.
Another thing that people often worry about is that a large retailer will take all the computer sales from the business. What we have found is that this is not the case at all. We actually have a business in a Walmart shopping center. While there is the risk of losing business to a large store such as Walmart, we still find bargain hunters that buy our products instead of theirs. Being a small repair shop, we have the opportunity to tune our offerings to compliment the large behemoth (e.g., we don’t compete on new laptop prices with Walmart). While Walmart does sell computers, they don’t build custom systems with high-end parts. As a result, Walmart employees have actually been known to send us business!
In other places, there may be no other store or competition, but that doesn’t mean that people don’t need computer repair — just the opposite. In some areas, a lack of businesses may mean a golden opportunity to fill a real need in your community; in this case, there is even less need to start a retail store at first. If there is no competition, it means that people are either living with problem computers or they are driving dozens of miles just to get to a repair store! You may find that your store will grow quickly just from word of mouth!
Wherever you are, one of the best parts of being in the computer business is that it is a business that can exist in any town, in any part of any country. With the low entry costs and high immediate return, it is easy to test an area before you commit!
If you have experience running a retail store or have significant capital, starting with a storefront may be the way to go. We only recommend this if you have significant financial resources and are sure this business is for you. It may be months until you’re profitable and you don’t want to put all of your money into a venture, sign multiyear leases, hire employees, buy equipment, get everything set up, and then realize you don’t actually want to do this as a profession.
9.2 Working from home
One of the best parts of getting into computer repair is that you can ease into it. You don’t need a special permit, expensive equipment, or even a special license. It’s just you and your own hard work!
The best advantage to starting this type of business is that you can test the waters by starting part time and increasing your hours as your business becomes profitable. It’s tempting to jump right in and open a store, but if you haven’t done anything like this before, take our advice and tread with care. You may have a strong idea you eventually want to open a store, but if you want to save a few dollars and start slowly, the easiest way to get started is to begin as a part-time, home-based company. This will let you invest the available time you have for the lowest amount of money. As the business grows, you can decide how to expand.
If you are currently employed, starting a computer repair business is an easy way to supplement your income. Before you start running ads, decide when you will be available. If you have a day job, you may want to focus on finding customers who need “after hours” service. This will let you charge a premium for your service while building your customer base. It’s important to decide this in the beginning. A critical part of creating satisfied customers is meeting expectations. If you know your boss has called a meeting for 9:00 a.m. the next day you can’t expect to work until 2:00 a.m. on the side as your primary job will suffer. With this in mind, create a time range in which you’re comfortable working and stick to it. Customers will naturally push you to work outside of your time frame, but if you stick to the stated times, they will respect your boundaries. You must be consistent. If you arrive late or don’t have the expected work done on time, customers will expect you to make up that time elsewhere.
Rich Dad’s Before You Quit Your Job: Ten real-life lessons every entrepreneur should know about building a multimillion-dollar business, by Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter: This was the first book we read about owning a small business and the information in it was very helpful. The discussion isn’t just about opening a business, but also why you should and what it will entail. This book covers the risks and rewards that come from leaving a permanent position and pursuing business entrepreneurship.
10. How Much Will It Cost to Start Your Business?
One of the first questions you may consider is how much it will cost to start your own computer repair business. The short answer is that it depends on what you want to do. One of the best parts about starting a computer repair business is that the start-up costs are dramatically less than they are for other businesses. If you want to open a restaurant, you’ll need ovens, sinks, disposal, venting, a theme, tables, chairs, glasses, dishwashers, a full staff, and menus — it’s easy to spend $150,000 getting it ready.
As a point of contrast, when we opened our second retail store we spent less than $30,000. That sounds like quite a bit, but consider that included the entire interior setup, all the inventory, the signs, the computers to run the place, the software, the lease, the security deposit, as well as the phone system and all the tools. In addition, we became profitable in our second month of operation without any advertising whatsoever. I’m not suggesting you go this route; it’s a decision not to be made lightly, but knowing how much less it is to build a turnkey operation can help you make that call.
If you choose to forgo a retail location and simply work from your home, the start-up costs are almost nonexistent and you can easily get started for less than $1,000. The biggest reason for this is that you probably already have most of the things you need.
The following are some of the things you will need to get started:
• Website: Do you need a website on your first day? Of course not. With that said, many people use the Internet to find low-cost computer repair so there’s no reason to neglect this form of advertising. Purchase a name that’s easy to remember, get it hosted through one of the many hosting services and you’ll be well on your way! A single page with your services and telephone number will do to start. You don’t need a full e-commerce site to get a customer. Every time you’re thinking of spending money, ask yourself this question: “When will this purchase pay for itself?” When you’re just starting, especially if you’re working from your home, if you can’t answer “immediately,” don’t spend the money. (See Chapter 3 for more information about building your website.)
• Contact number: You should have a dedicated business phone line. However, a cell phone can be a great way to dedicate a line without breaking the bank — initial cost between $0 (if you already have a cell phone you can use) to $100 per month. A nice way to have a dedicated line without spending any money is to use Google Voice. They will give you a number that’s 100 percent free and will forward calls to your cell phone when you want them to. That way, you will have a separate line but can choose to answer it or not.
• Equipment: In general, you will need some equipment to get started but it doesn’t have to be expensive. The only