Settings repair prices

[mrapoc]

Hey guys

Im looking at setting some fixed prices for my "computer repair business". At the moment as its friends and family its no fix no fee, if its a small job i wont ask for money and they offer and other jobs i just say what i "feel" is right 

So im seeking some kind of guidance for competitive prices (want to beat anyone in the area...not many to say the least - say 5 or less  )

So in some layout such as the below, I would appreciate some indication on what you would deem very reasonable

Virus removal: £10
Operating system reinstall: £30
Broadband setup: £30

Or something 

Cheers my idnetternutter friends 

[Baz]

ive got no idea but why not see what others charge and beat that. or try PCworld for prices and work off that 

[Sebby]

The problem is, some viruses are easy to remove (e.g. if there's a removal tool), whilst others require manual removal. What about spyware? That can take ages. I think you'd be better to charge by the hour.

[talos]

Charging by the hour can be counter productive because we all know of a service engineer who took an hour to do a 5 min job
  I agree with Baz, you could even quote their prices in your blurb, then show how much cheaper you are.  But above all be totally honest with your customers, always give excellent value and treat their problem as if it was yours,  a good reputation in this business will pay great dividends, and customers will always pay a good price for a good service,  a bad reputation will sink you

[davej99]

Virus removal for a tenner has to be a bargain. Could take a few minutes, but could take all day. Have you thought about selling a support contract, perhaps at different levels depending on users ability. Think of the number of novices now investing in new technology that struggle for want of very basic intervention, many of whom cause there own problems. By the way I have this nasty rash. Can you fix it for a tenner?

[somanyholes]

Personally

I would charge by the hour. As has been stated no two jobs are the same.


Virus removal: £10 (could take many many hours)
Operating system reinstall: £30 (reinstall times differ, drivers not always available, some system's are slower than others,let's not forget the likes of not been able to install app's until systems are patched etc. Customer's will have different idea's on what a rebuild actually is.
Broadband setup: £30 (Issues with lines not being enabled, authentication issues, contacting the isp to get support) (think virgin here)

I really recommend by the hour. Doing job's on a type basis will bite you in the bum. If you really want to charge by this method, I would at least bump your prices up....

Personal opinion anyways... Am sure some others may disagree

[Simon]

How about a tiered system, where you charge, say, an initial £30 for up to three hours work (whether it takes five minutes or three hours), then £10 per hour, or part thereof, after.  You can actually price yourself out of the market by being too cheap, as people will think you're an amateur.  Again, just a personal opinion. 

[talos]

I really recommend by the hour. Doing job's on a type basis will bite you in the bum. If you really want to charge by this method, I would at least bump your prices up....

          This is better than your customers thinking they have been bitten,  if you charge a set price , some you will win on , some you will loose on, but your reputation will grow,  don't forget this is a part of the communication industry, a disgruntled customer will always tell their mates, but a happy one is worth £££££ in recommendations

[somanyholes]

i think it depends on if you are willing to work for minimum wage

[talos]

i think it depends on if you are willing to work for minimum wage

When you start up in your own business you usually have to, but if you make it work, well, WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

[Rik]

I'm another in favour of hourly rates, Sam. There's nothing worse than having a flat tariff and the job only takes five minutes. Fwiw, I was charging £60ph 15 years ago, so I think you need to raise your sights a bit.

[David]

Virus removal: £10
Operating system reinstall: £30
Broadband setup: £30

Where are you.

This is what I have paid in the past

OS reinstall £80
Virus removal £55
Broadband Setup £50
DVD Drive replaced £85

Your prices are so low,and I did a lot of homework before I found someone at the prices I got....

This was about a year ago and I have not used him since and this is thanks to the guys here mostly.but good luck I still think you are very cheap.

[kinmel]

Your pricing merely includes what you think you time is worth, there are a lot more costs that you will incur.

Advertising, telephone calls, transport, buying parts, warranty for when you break something else on their computer and you will, liability insurance for when someone is injured by your activities,  administration ( including HMRC whether you are busy, or not ) the list goes on and on

[Rik]

Not forgetting bad debts and unchargeable time.

[David]

Business is business and when someone has no pc or is offline they will gladly pay to get them back online or thee system repaired....some are repairers take the P but there are a good few who give good service.


What price Trust,reliablity and good speedy service........These questions should be asked rather than the going rate ?good luck.

[zappaDPJ]

Turning what sounds like a hobby into a small business is not something to be undertaking lightly and it requires a good deal of research and planning.

So im seeking some kind of guidance for competitive prices (want to beat anyone in the area...not many to say the least - say 5 or less  )

That would be a mistake. You do need to be competitive but you certainly don't want to be the cheapest. You should sell your services on quality and reliability and you should do it at a price that suits you. If you sell yourself low then customers will come to expect that and you will end up working your backside off for little or no income. If you offer a good service then you will still get recommendations even if you charge more than the competition.

As far as pricing is concerned, fixed rates will do nothing to help your new venture. You should either set an hourly rate and stick to it no matter what or offer free estimates. Going on-site to give an estimate for your services allows you to price the job accordingly but more importantly you can sell yourself to the customer. First contact with a customer will set the trend for the future and it's where you should put the maximum amount of effort to present yourself in a way that will impress. Never haggle or drop your prices to be competitive. It's unprofessional and sets a trend that will bite back in the future. Conversely always stick to your estimates whenever possible even though they are just that, estimates. It means that sometimes you will make a loss if something unexpected happens but it also means you will retain a happy customer.


The only other bit of advice I'd offer is that your suggested prices are ridiculously low. You need to factor in travel time and costs, tax and national insurance, book keeping costs, sick/holiday pay, bad debts and the cost involved chasing them etc. badpianoplayer's suggested prices are far more realistic. Look at this way, would you rather do four jobs a day for £100 or one for the same income? 

[mrapoc]

wow what a response  8)

crikey to think of the money I could be earning - although that being said, it will primarily be a weekend job and evenings after college.

with the OS install is that including the new OS license? I havent had to do many so far (just family really) and let say I have no idea where to buy new licenses (i could offer a new OEM disk...but the price - surely that would basically put people off?)

unless...I find out the current key and install using that (?)


so are we mainly in favour of hourly rates? £30 for 3 hours seems good and £10 on top of that per hour. Then parts ontop of that. I need to setup a spreadsheet sometime with all the prices/hourly rates - making an electronic system for my college IT project for this soon 

[David]

When mine was done the licence number was on the sticker on the case....

If he had installed a new OS it would have been treble that I would guess.....

Be careful the public expect and some will rip you off,get the tips of established men first,for instance what would you do if I let you carry out the work in my home then refused to pay..............................a lot to learn take care,good luck 

[vitriol]

A problem you may bump into Sam is people running pirate copies of Windows software, how you would get out of that one I'm not sure.  I think a legitimate key can be purchased over the phone from Microsoft but is dependant on the version of software being used.

Maybe you need some sort of disclaimer for OS reinstalls.....

[Rik]

so are we mainly in favour of hourly rates? £30 for 3 hours seems good and £10 on top of that per hour.

It's peanuts, Sam, less than twice the minimum wage and it doesn't take into account your costs. Put it this way, if you worked flat out for 40 hours a week, 50 weeks a year, you'd only gross £20,000. That's way too low a figure.

[David]

I checked mine immediatly with the "Is This Copy Of Windows Legal" but I had used this guy before..... take your time that way lesson learned may not be too harsh

[mrapoc]

So the best option would prolly to buy 3x oem and give the customer the oem disk - unless MS allow you to purchase serials to use with 1 disk?

True but this isnt going to be a full time job, weekend and evenings when i dont have college work (taking that into account could you provide some idea of pricing?)

[Rik]

Pricing comes down to a number of factors, Sam. How much do you want to earn and what will the market bear being the two most important.

[David]

How about a figure of £50 per hour minimum if this way the more you have to travel etc should be covered,minimum fee £50 some you will win a few you may break even as long as its profit then away you go.if I got charged £50 to fit ram I would be happy and you should be out of here in 30 mins..everyones a winner.


this time next year Rodders 

[zappaDPJ]

I agree with Rik, I'm in a similar line of business and I charge my customers £50 for the first hour and £35 per hour for any additional time if I go on-site. I charge corporate customers substantially more than that. Depending on the issue most of my call outs take less than two hours and the majority under an hour. I find most domestic customers are happy to pay £50-£85 assuming I leave their computer in a properly working condition.

Unlicensed software is a huge issue. I can't really quantify it but I see a huge amount of unlicensed software everywhere I go and that includes a number of high profile multinational companies as well as government organisations. I can't really offer any advice there other than to play it by ear and remember that at the end of the day you are there to earn a living so you may not want to do anything to annoy your customers.