Who hasn’t had to cope with a computer infection that needed to be treated by a professional or a laptop accident? There is a $19 billion market for computer and electronics repair in the US because we have all been there. If you have computer repair skills, you might launch your own business, fix people’s computers for a living, and take a little portion of this enormous market.
Remember that professional computer repair costs can reach $80 per hour. You can join in on the activity with a modest investment and operate your repair business from home. In the future, when your company expands, you might rent a space where you can sell and fix equipment like PCs.
Although having a solid command of computers is essential, starting a successful computer repair business also requires some business knowledge. Thankfully, you can acquire that knowledge by reading this step-by-step manual and will soon be successful as a computer repair entrepreneur.
Step 1: Find Out if this is the Right Business for You?
Positives Vs Negatives
| Charge $60 to $80 an hour to make good money. Flexibility – Work from home and on-call schedules Customers will value your services if you can solve their problems. | Having great computer technician abilities is a requirement. Low-cost laptops have a shrinking market, and many people choose to replace rather than fix them. |
Industry Trends
- Industry size and historical growth – Despite a little dip in recent years, the electrical and computer repair services sector in the US is now valued more than $19 billion[2].
- Growth forecast: The market is expected to increase modestly at a 1.3% annual rate through 2025, which bodes well for computer repair businesses.
- Number of companies – In the US, there are about 47,000 companies offering computer repair services.[4]
- More than 138,000 individuals are employed in the sector.
Cost of Starting Computer Repair Business
A computer repair shop’s initial investment might be between $4,000 and $12,000. The low end implies that you are an experienced technician with a dependable computer, and costs will primarily include a website, tools, and marketing. The high end covers the price of a computer as well as instruction. All scenarios presuppose you’ll launch a home-based mobile computer repair service.
For a total price of about $2,000, you can enroll in online courses and earn high-level certification from the Computer Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) in 12 months.
Investments Items:
- Screwdrivers
- Tweezer
- Multi-testers
- electrical supply testers
- POSTER cards
- tools for crimping
- Paste for heating
- Multi-meter
- Thermo camera
Is Computer Repair Business Profitable?
Between $60 and $80 per hour on average is charged for computer repair. The 80% markup that you should aim for.
You could start a business from home, work 25 hours per week, and earn $90,000 in the first two years. If the assumed 80% margin is accurate, this would translate to a profit of more than $72,000. Sales may increase to 80 hours a week as your brand becomes more well-known and as you hire technicians. Your margin will fall to around 50% with labor expenditures. You would still generate a handsome $145,000 profit on an annual revenue of more than $290,000.
Entry Barriers
- obtaining the necessary education and credentials
- battling against powerful rivals like Best Buy
- producing the beginning costs
Step 2: Create a Strategy
Identify a Gap
Examine the services, costs, and customer feedback of local computer repair companies. Finding a market gap to fill is what you’re after. Perhaps a business that installs high-security networks is lacking in the local market. Consider focusing on a certain area of your industry, such as firewalls and virus protection, in order to appeal to a specific market. Your word-of-mouth advertising may gain momentum as a result, drawing customers in right immediately.
Solutions
- Virus removal
- Virus protection
- Data recovery
- Hardware repairs
- Accessory repairs
- Networking installation and support
- Computer maintenance
- Computer training
Pricing
The typical hourly rate for computer repair is $60 to $80. When you’re working alone, you should strive for an 80% profit margin because your continuing costs should be kept to just fuel and marketing.
Using this step-by-step profit margin calculator, you can calculate your markup and final price points once you have an idea of your expenditures. Do not forget that the prices you use at launch should be flexible if the market requires it.
Target Market
It is up to you whether you want to market to consumers at home or at businesses. LinkedIn is a good place to attract business clients, while Facebook and Instagram are good places to find household clients.
Location
You can prefer to operate your company from home in the beginning to save money. But as your company expands, you’ll probably need to hire personnel for a variety of positions and could need to rent space for an office or a shop where you can sell computers and accessories. On websites like Craigslist, Crexi, and Instant Offices, you can find commercial space for rent in your neighborhood.
You might want to abide by these general guidelines while selecting a commercial space:
- accessible by public transportation in a central location
- With plenty of natural light and ventilation
- As your firm expands, your lease might be made more accommodating.
- a space that is ready to use and doesn’t require any substantial upgrades or repairs
Step 3: Write a Business Plan
Every organization needs a strategy. With this as a roadmap, you may launch your firm and stay focused on your primary objectives. Another benefit of a business plan is that it helps potential investors and business partners understand your company and its objectives:
- An executive summary that is brief should be written once the business plan is finished.
- The business overview offers a concise summary of the company’s vision, mission, ownership, and goals.
- The descriptions of your goods and services make it very obvious what you have to offer.
- Market trends, such as changes in demand, and potential future development should be evaluated, along with a SWOT analysis of the market.
- Outline the benefits of your offerings and contrast them with the qualities and drawbacks of your primary competitors.
- Take your company’s USPs into mind while developing sales, marketing, and promotional initiatives.
- Organizational structure of the business as well as a summary of the duties and backgrounds of the members of the management team.
- The operational strategy details the logistics, location of your company’s offices, essential assets, and equipment.
- a three-year financial plan with startup expenses, a balance sheet, cash flow, profit and loss projections, and a profit and loss analysis.
- Any extra accounting or business records should be included in the appendix.
Step 4: Create a Marketing Plan
Even while online visitors and casual onlookers may contribute to a portion of your revenue, you should nonetheless spend in digital marketing! Spreading the word is crucial for new businesses as it will increase brand and client recognition.
Link your social media profiles to your website once it is live and vice versa. Because you can make interesting postings that promote your items on social media, it’s a fantastic tool for business promotion:
- Facebook is a fantastic tool for paid advertising since it enables you to target particular demographics, such men under 50 in the Cleveland area.
- Facebook-like advantages with a different audience on Instagram.
- Website: SEO will assist in advancing the position of your website higher in pertinent search results, which is essential for boosting sales. On your website, make sure to optimize the calls to action. A call to action, such as “Schedule Now,” can be improved by experimenting with the text, color, size, and placement. As a result, purchases may rise significantly.
- Google and Yelp: Listing on Google My Business and Yelp might be essential for businesses that depend on local clients to increase visibility and attract new clients.
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Kickstart Marketing
To raise awareness of your services and establish your brand, make use of your website, social media presence, and in-person activities. Below are a few ideas.
- isigns: Display striking signs in your store and on your website.
- By handing out flyers in your community and at professional gatherings.
- Person-to-Person Sales — Promote your products at fairs and markets in your area.
- Post an online video describing your computer repair services. If you use comedy, it might become famous.
- Send regular emails to consumers and prospects as part of your email marketing or newsletter strategy. Individualize them.
- Blog creation: Create a blog and post frequently. Share on many sites while varying your material.
- To encourage consumer referrals of new clients, consider offering incentives.
- Choose platforms that will allow you to reach your target market and run targeted social media marketing.
- Pay-per-click advertising: Boost your search engine ranking with Google AdWords. Initial keyword research is required.
- Participate in a webinar and offer a video seminar online to share your knowledge about computer repair.
- Share client testimonials describing the value of your services.
- Publish infographics and include them into your material after creating them.
- accentuate your USP