home Audience 5 Create a computer repair group. How to promote a service center: finding effective promotion tools

Create a computer repair group. How to promote a service center: finding effective promotion tools

Computer repair business. How to open a computer repair shop.

If you are well versed in computers, have skills in repairing and installing software, then you can make money from this. You can even run a computer repair business at home; at first, this will be quite enough. In this article we will look at how to do computer repair and what nuances need to be taken into account when working with clients.

Computer repair business.

Computer repair specialists can be divided into two categories: those who do repairs at home and those who work in a workshop.

Now let's take a closer look at both options.

Home repairs. Almost all novice computer scientists start with home repairs. The scheme is quite simple: you take the customer’s computer system unit or laptop to your home and repair it. At the end of the work, either take the system unit to the customer’s home, or if the laptop is being repaired, the customer comes himself.

If minor repairs or adjustments are required - installing programs, drivers, setting up the Internet, WI-FI, then a visit to the client’s home is enough.

Repairing at home has its advantages; usually this type of income is not officially registered, the client pays you for the work performed and all the money is yours. But there are also disadvantages: working illegally, you won’t be able to make normal advertising and there will be few clients. The bulk of clients will be friends, acquaintances, acquaintances of friends, work colleagues, neighbors. Accordingly, the income will be small, that is, it will not be a business, but rather earnings or additional income.

How to open a computer repair shop.

The second option is to open a computer repair shop and officially register business activities.

We select the OKVED code - 72.50 Maintenance and repair of office machines and computer equipment.

You need to write an application for a simplified tax at the tax office, and you will also need to buy a book of income and expenses. Get a certificate from the statistics department to open a bank account. Order a print.

Rent a room for a workshop.

The workshop also has its advantages - the opportunity to make good advertising on the Internet, in newspapers, and on local television. Accordingly, there will be more clients than when working from home. Possibility of cooperation with organizations providing maintenance of computer equipment and software.

The ability to hire employees, since quite often you have to go to clients’ homes to set up Internet and WI-FI.

The volume of work and the number of orders is much greater than when working at home.

But there are also some disadvantages here - you need to pay taxes, for renting premises, employee salaries and other expenses. In addition, there will be checks especially for working with licensed software.

As for working with unlicensed programs, there is a possibility that government agencies will check the OBEP, FSB, Department K for licenses for operating systems and programs on computers. If there is unlicensed software, the equipment may be confiscated, and the entrepreneur may be fined for distributing pirated software.

But when repairing computers, reinstalling the operating system of Windows XP, Windows 7 or Windows 8 is usually required very often, and not every owner of his computer is ready to buy a licensed version that costs about $200. If you can install the pirated version for free and only pay for its installation.

By installing unlicensed software, you are breaking the law, but in most cases the client wants to install a pirated version, and only a few are willing to pay for the license.

Therefore, if you work only with licensed software, you will lose some of your clients. With details, the situation is simpler; buy in a store with a permanent discount or online, it will be even cheaper. The client pays you the cost of the parts in advance.

Business computer repair.

Here is an approximate list of services provided in computer repair shops:

Fault diagnosis.
Installation of the operating system.
Setting up the operating system.
Installing drivers.
Removing viruses.
Installation and configuration of software.
Wiring and setting up local networks.
Setting up the Internet and WI-FI network.
Cleaning laptops from dust.
Replacement of parts, etc.

The list may change depending on the skills of the specialists; you can add services such as flashing routers, setting up servers, etc.

Prices for services depend on the specific region; usually in all workshops in the city the price is almost the same.

How much can you earn from computer repair? Here is the price list of one of the workshops in Moscow.

Quite often, the cost of repair includes several repair services at once, and the final cost of repair is several thousand rubles.

The business of repairing computer equipment will always be in demand, but competition in this niche is also quite high; in any case, if you have good repair skills, you can always have additional income.

For many people, a laptop and a computer are the main source of income. If something breaks down, it is not always possible to buy new equipment. High prices on the market for new computer equipment are forcing people to send in faulty PCs and laptops for repairs. Here a business prospect opens up – a computer repair service. How much do you need to invest to start such a project and what is the approximate profit figure?

Official registration

A computer repair business can operate either without registration or with legally issued documentation. The first is illegal, the second makes it possible to cover a potentially profitable sector, namely servicing legal entities.

First, register as an individual entrepreneur to simplify taxation and accounting. If your plans include a network business, then it is better to immediately register an LLC.

When organizing an office, you will need to obtain the consent of the State Fire Inspectorate.

Market research - prices and assortment

The computer repair business has considerable competition and high demand. The basis of success is to provide customers with attractive prices. To do this, study the price lists of large companies and the range of their services.

It’s worth starting with the most basic, in-demand and profitable services. Computer repair service includes:

diagnostics, repair and prevention of all types of computer equipment;
assembly of processors from used spare parts;
advisory services;
services for configuration and installation of operating systems, programs and antiviruses.

Many of the services offered are onsite, giving the lion's share of the profits to such companies.

Room

How to start making money repairing computers - organize a home service. To do this, you do not need to rent a room and pay rent. Most similar companies started this way.

Another option is to find a small room of 10-15 m2 with cheap rent. Placement is not that important because:

You will pick up most of the equipment from the customer’s home;
Some clients with a car will bring equipment to the office by car.

The 2nd floor is quite acceptable, which is significantly lower in terms of rental price - ≈ 6 thousand rubles per month.

Consider the option of coworking - working in the same room with other entrepreneurs-masters (rental cost is half the price) ≈ 3 thousand rubles.

Try to find a room with an acceptable renovation so that you can only purchase furniture.

Office furniture

Furnishings:

Total: 20 thousand rubles

Additionally, you need to purchase a water filter and an electric kettle for the comfort of the craftsmen. (1000 rubles).

Hiring staff

Workers must have experience

Often, the start of such a business idea is two or three people with skills in computer equipment repair and related services.

At the start, you need two setup and repair technicians with a salary of 20 thousand rubles. For reporting, a freelance accountant is invited, the cost of services is 2,000 rubles, or the owner does it himself. One of the foremen must have a car and a license to go to calls and pick up equipment, while the second one works locally.

At the initial stage, the company will do without an office manager; all calls will be taken by a specialist. In the future, it is planned to organize a call center and hire a full-time accountant.

Advertising

The best option for advertising is free bulletin boards, social networks and creating your own website. To launch your website, you only need 300-600 rubles (paid hosting) and a little skill in working with it. Computer repair and PC setup specialists will be able to deal with such a task on their own. Creating and printing basic business style business cards is also not difficult.

Come up with a new name for the company - it can be humorous, but it speaks volumes about the purpose of the company. Suitable: “Zhelezyaka”, “Comp City”, “Smart Comp”, “Diagnostics and Service”, etc.

Try to establish work with legal entities without their own technical support department. Send your proposals to companies' emails with a list of conditions.

Purchase of equipment and components

Before opening a computer repair service center, you need to purchase equipment and components for urgent replacement, diagnostics and testing of equipment.

Other components will be ordered as needed. Over time, the service center will be able to offer replacement parts with new or used ones at the request of the client.

Service center business plan - calculations

A detailed business plan will allow you to evaluate the investment attractiveness of the business and the return on investment.

Investments

To organize a company you will need to spend:

legal registration persons – 6 thousand rubles;
purchase of equipment – 150 thousand rubles;
furniture and other things for the office - 21 thousand rubles;
other expenses (printing business cards, installing the Internet, etc.) – 3 thousand rubles;

Total: 180 thousand rubles

Gross revenue

Table. Price - list of possible services

Price list for computer repair services	Cost, rubles	Orders per month	Total
Diagnostics	300	50	15 000
Prevention and cleaning	600	20	12 000
Replacement or installation of components (price for 1 unit)	500	80	40 000
Installation (reinstallation) of software, antivirus, etc.	500	30	15 000
Consultation, setup	300	50	15 000
Other services	200	20	4 000
Gross revenue			101 000

The earning opportunities are much broader; the table provides an approximate unified list of the work of the service center.

At the same time, sell those assembled from various used components. An attractive price will allow you to get a good additional profit, and possibly become one of the main sources of income.

Monthly profit calculation, profitability, payback

Such a calculation will help to assess the main indicators of the computer repair business.

Table. Balance

Monthly income and expense balance	Amount, rubles
Gross revenue	101 000
Office rental (coworking)	3 000
Salary	54 800
Freelance accountant fees	2 000
Public utilities	5 000
other expenses	5 000
Profit before tax	31 200
Tax	4 680
Net profit	26 520
Calculation of investment attractiveness
Investments	180 000
Profitability	36%
Payback	7

Profitability of 36%, payback within 7 months - these are excellent indicators for any business project.

Of course, a net profit of 26 thousand is not promising, but these calculations are based on figures for the initial stage of entering the market. With the expansion of the client base, the list of services and the number of works performed will be increased.

Give discounts to regular customers, as customer retention is very important. Regular clientele is the basis for the success of a reputable company.

An interesting option for starting to work with corporate clients is to conclude a deal for the first service at half the cost. If you like the work of the masters, then offer long-term cooperation with a 15-20% discount.

Natalya Belkova,
General Director of the 4D business communications agency, partner of the AMI Business School

To promote service center, Necessarily:

Best article of the month

We interviewed businessmen and found out what modern tactics help increase the average bill and the frequency of purchases by regular customers. We published tips and practical cases in the article.

Also in the article you will find three tools to determine customer needs and increase the average bill. With these methods, employees always fulfill the upsell plan.

1. Study the activities of competitors, the target audience and its needs.

2. Take into account the innovative model of industry development in Russia, aimed at increasing its competitive advantages and increasing the output of high-quality products of the new generation.

3. Study the issues of technical re-equipment and development of industry science, import substitution, protecting the domestic market from illegal use and circulation of cartographic and geodetic products, providing the industry with resources and professional personnel.

The analysis will allow you to determine the main competitive advantage that will distinguish you in the professional services market and set you apart from your competitors.

In the future, both high recognition in the market and, for example, the offer of a unique service will allow you to make a choice in favor of your company. This could be the repair of unique equipment that competitors do not offer, or an extension of the warranty for further service at a discount. It is always very important for the client that it is COMFORTABLE for him to work with you, i.e. he can receive the maximum amount of turnkey services in one place. This can be either the repair of geodetic equipment (from outdated to modern), or the possibility of purchasing/renting additional equipment or parts. You don't have to do the sales yourself, but it is important to have a sales partner you can turn to locally. Having determined WHAT your competitive advantage is, WHO your customers are and WHAT wide range of services we are ready to provide, we can focus on promotion.

To promote the service center and increase the loyalty of regular customers, you should introduce a loyalty program so that the client understands that he is distinguished from the rest and always returns to you. The loyalty program can be as follows: it can be a cumulative discount for each service, a discount on the 5th repair (for example) or a “6th repair for free” promotion.

Online promotion for service center promotion

Among the main tools for direct online promotion are:

Yandex Direct.
Banner advertising.

High-quality use of each tool will allow you to reach the target audience as much as possible and effectively promote your service center.

Partnership

To quickly promote your service center and gain wide audience coverage, a tool such as partnership is very useful. Large organizations – communities and associations, and equipment manufacturers – can become partners of the service. Obtaining certification and employee training can also be an additional advantage in obtaining a client. Depending on the negotiations, these can be either local communities, for example, the Society of Geodesy and Cartography, or international ones - the International Association of Geodesy. In addition, industry media that are read by experts in the industries where media equipment is used can become a partner.

Loyalty to the company largely depends not only on the quality of the services provided, but also on the reputation of the company and its managers. In this context, it is important that the people at the helm are industry experts and opinion leaders for the target audience to which the services are directed. Here it is important to interact with journalists and business media who write about industries where surveying equipment is involved. If an expert (or an expert’s representative) is personally acquainted with journalists or is in their databases, then when publishing on a specialized topic, the media can directly apply for expert commentary.

Effective partnership: 4 ideas that increase sales by 400%

Content for promoting the service center online

Another high-quality tool for promoting a service center can be the creation of your own profile content. Because you work in an industry you know well, you understand your audience's information preferences. The site may contain a section that is not related to sales, but rather related to the latest information from world leaders in the geodesy industry, etc. General Electric has a good similar case. They lured into their team an eminent journalist who understands science and knows how to write interestingly about it, then they assembled a small editorial team and created a separate website with constantly updated interesting content. Thus, they promote their company and have an additional tool for promotion, reaching an audience that is growing daily.

Offline sales

There is no substitute for personal selling. To successfully promote your service center, it is important to constantly monitor the list of business industry events where you can represent the interests of the company. These could be exhibitions with separate stands, conferences and seminars, where you can prepare a presentation on the topic of geodesy, cartography or geodetic equipment and, as part of the presentation, talk about your company and its advantages. It is important that you should always be in places where your target audience is concentrated, get acquainted and SELL!

And finally, the success of promoting a service center directly depends on the level of services provided to the client. You can attract the maximum number of audience, but if the level of your services is low, the conditions specified on the site are not met, and the managers are impolite, then the mechanism will not work.

Modern life is now almost impossible to imagine without computers, which have long ceased to serve as simple computing machines, and have become something much more for humans. And therefore, a computer breakdown is often akin to a “tragedy”. As a rule, problems in the operation of computer equipment are two-pronged - hardware failure and software errors. Only professionals can repair a breakdown, which means the computer repair business, given its role in our lives, is more relevant than ever.

Brief business analysis:
Costs of setting up a business:705 - 1030 thousand rubles
Relevant for cities with the population:from 150 thousand people
Industry situation:high competition
Difficulty of organizing a business: 2/5
Payback: 6 – 9 months

Computer repair - is it difficult or not?

Just a few years ago, a person who could reinstall an operating system was considered a computer genius. Now any ordinary student can do this. Free, almost unlimited access to information on the Internet has made it possible for almost anyone to become a professional in one field or another.

Same with computers. More precisely with their repair. You can find a description of any problem that arises with your PC on the World Wide Web and try to fix it yourself. The only thing that stops the vast majority of people is lack of confidence in their capabilities. In fact, with the help of a competent tutorial, anyone can cope with a computer problem.

Of course, every time you look on the Internet to search for answers to solve this or that issue related to computer repair, it will be funny. Therefore, if there is a need, then it is best to deepen your knowledge and skills in this area.

Nowadays there are a lot of training courses on the design and use of a computer and various programs. It is not at all necessary to purchase paid courses; all the information they contain can be found on the World Wide Web absolutely free, except that it will take a little more time.

In fact, a computer is not such a super complex device as many people think it is. And with experience, any, even very complex, breakdowns will be resolved very quickly.

Do you need a business plan for computer repair?

The lack of a clear, structured, well-written step-by-step plan of action when organizing any business, not only computer repair, in 70% of cases is the reason for the closure of the company soon after the start.

A business plan is a must if you want to succeed. If you want, a business plan written on paper already translates the business idea into reality by 50%. Why exactly do you need a business plan, what goals and objectives does it pursue, read in this source -. You can learn how to properly create a manual for your business by following this link.

It is unlikely that you will be able to find and download for free a good ready-made business plan for computer repair on the Internet, so you need to be prepared to create it yourself.

How to register your business

Do you need to formalize your business? Among private entrepreneurs, there has long been a tendency towards complete legalization of their business. This is partly due to the increased activity of tax authorities (paying fines for illegal business, it turns out, is more expensive!), partly to various government programs to support small and medium-sized businesses, which, no doubt, includes the computer repair business.

However, there are also “businessmen” who work without registration. They advertise on free classifieds websites or on social networks about computer repairs and quietly earn their “bread and butter”, leaving the “cream” for their officially registered colleagues.

This approach to business is clearly not productive. Firstly, the opportunity to attract more customers is missed, who clearly have more trust in an official service center or workshop, which is responsible for the work done and gives some kind of guarantee for it.

Secondly, the service center has the opportunity to enter into contracts with brands that manufacture computers and laptops for the repair and maintenance of their products. And this is a lot of money!

Thirdly, registering your business, as already mentioned, makes it possible to take advantage of government programs to support private entrepreneurship. Read more about this below.

A beginning entrepreneur must not only know how to register an individual entrepreneur or how to form an LLC if there are several business owners, but also know some of the intricacies of tax legislation.

For information about which taxation system is right for your business, read. You can find out how to combine several tax regimes here. Look for information about paying taxes by an individual entrepreneur.

The OKVED code for registering activities is 95.11.

Analysis of the competitive environment

The computer repair business is one of the most highly competitive niches in private entrepreneurship. The ratio of average PC users and those who have even the slightest idea about their work is approximately 50/50. But it is precisely these basic knowledge that gives the second half confidence to position themselves as specialists.

There are plenty of such amateurs in any business. They cause particular negativity because they actively dump, reduce prices for services, and completely undermine confidence in other, qualified craftsmen in the event of poor-quality repairs.

Of course, you shouldn’t take such competition seriously, but it’s better to be aware of who is working in your “territory” (city area, street, etc.). But real competitors need to be carefully analyzed:

monitor the price list for their services;
find out the qualification level of their employees;
collect statistics of customer requests to them;
identify strengths and weaknesses in their business.

After collecting information, all that remains is to make your business better than others. Simple, like everything ingenious.

What to open - a service center or a small workshop

The main difference between a computer repair service center and a regular workshop is that the former, having received a certificate from any computer or laptop manufacturer (that’s why service centers are also called authorized), is engaged, among other things, in warranty and post-warranty maintenance of PCs of this particular brand.

Of course, the service center’s profit turnover is much higher. But, despite all the advantages of the repair center, it also has its disadvantages:

strict requirements for warranty service imposed by manufacturing companies (starting from the parameters of the premises and ending with the level of service);
mandatory use of licensed software for diagnostics and installation on a PC (additional purchase costs);
the need to purchase special equipment and tools for testing;
highly qualified employees.

A regular PC repair shop has much less hassle associated with opening and running a business. There are also advantages that are not available to service centers. For example, employees of some (not all!) centers are not allowed to travel to repair computers at customers' homes or offices.

It happens that for the sake of one breakdown, which is quite possible to fix on the spot, spending 10-15 minutes on it, the client has to take his PC to the service center and come again to pick it up.

A PC repair shop can afford to rent a smaller office (10 square meters will be enough for one or two people), not spend money on uniforms for employees, and set prices for its services that it considers acceptable.

Opening a workshop involves much lower costs and is more suitable for students and aspiring entrepreneurs with small initial capital. While a service center requires significant costs to open.

What is needed to open a service center

How to open a computer repair service center, what is needed for this, and what nuances of business organization should you pay close attention to?

Room

Firstly, it is immediately necessary to clarify that a service center is a rather large organization with its own structure and management hierarchy, which requires premises with a significant area. The optimal, but most expensive option is the first line of houses on the ground floor. But the specifics of the business are such that the client comes to the center either through advertisements or on the recommendation of friends and acquaintances, so it is not at all necessary to “catch the eye” and pay expensive rent.

Therefore, you can consider cheaper options for premises - the second or semi-basement floors in a building located in the courtyards. Or in a less prestigious area for doing business.

The room should include several zones:

acceptance and delivery of computer equipment;
workshop;
spare parts warehouse;
staff room;
WC.

An example of the design of the work area of the service center can be seen in the photo.

Tools

Purchasing the necessary tools and equipment is perhaps the most expensive part of organizing a PC repair service center. As many repair shop owners joke, you only need three things to start a business:

head;
hands growing from the right place;
and experience that comes with time.

However, in addition to all this, you will also need something material, namely:

multimeter for measuring PC parameters;
oscilloscope;
battery analyzer;
soldering station with consumables (flux, solder, needles, replacement tips, etc.);
A set of screwdrivers, wire cutters, tweezers, scalpel, toothbrush (for cleaning hard-to-reach places);
vacuum cleaner for cleaning;
chargers for various laptop models;
microscope for repairing small circuit boards;
motherboard holder;
power supply with power regulator;
work computer and laptop with Internet access;
various software for diagnostics and installation on a PC.

Supplies you will need:

thermal paste;
various models of motherboards, video cards, sound and network cards, coolers, RAM sticks, processors, matrices for laptops, batteries, etc. During operation, a lot of such spare parts will accumulate. But you need to start somewhere, so it’s better if spare parts for most popular models of computers and laptops are always in stock.

The approximate amount required to purchase equipment is about 300-350 thousand rubles.

Currently, most service centers in Moscow and St. Petersburg have switched to 24/7 operation. This does not yet occur in the regions - the need for this is not yet so high.

The number of staff will ultimately be determined by estimated customer traffic and order volume. To open a full-fledged service center, it is necessary to recruit the following employees:

two equipment receiving managers (to avoid creating queues);
two computer repair specialists (one on-site if necessary);
accountant (the option of an incoming employee or contacting a specialized company is possible if necessary);
administrator;
technical employee.

Services provided

An approximate list of computer and laptop repair services provided by the service center is shown in the table:

Type of service	For computer	For laptop
Diagnostics	For free	For free
Settings	From 300 rub.	From 300 rub.
Cleaning dust, replacing thermal paste	From 600 rub.	From 990 rub.
Upgrade for PC, recovery for laptops	From 590 rub.	From 490 rub.
Assembly to order (for computers	From 999 rub.
Repair/replacement of components	From 390 rub.	From 480 rub.
Replacing a broken matrix (for laptops)		From 999 rub.

Approximate price for software installation and network and Internet setup:

Software	Internet and networks
Installation of the operating system – from 500 rubles.	Setting up a router – from 399 rubles.
Installation of MS Office package – from 290 rubles.	Setting up a Wi-Fi connection – from 490 rubles.
Installation of drivers – from 100 rubles. a piece	Internet setup – from 500 rub.
Antivirus installation – from 400 rubles.	Creating and setting up a local network – from 990 rubles.
Installation of a basic software package – from 590 rubles.	Browser settings – from 190 rubles.
Recovering lost data – from RUB 390.	Setting up remote access – from 350 rubles.
Removing viruses, banners, etc. – from 390 rubles.
Consultation – from 100 rub.

In addition to service services, the center can also sell spare parts and components, as well as accessories for computers and laptops:

cleaning products (wipes and sprays);
external cooling devices;
external memory drives;
headphones;
stands, etc.

How to get authorization from an official brand

How to obtain authorization from a service center in order to officially produce on behalf of well-known brands? The specific scheme depends on the conditions specified in the service contract in a particular company. The general scheme looks something like this:

An application for authorization is sent to the official representative office of the manufacturing company in Russia (personal presence in the office will then be mandatory);
the company considers several criteria that determine the possibility of satisfying an application - the presence of a need for a service center in a given region, taking into account the number of residents and the sales volume of devices of this brand; having authorizations from other companies (this will be an advantage); distance from other authorization centers of the same brand; compliance with the requirements for the service center premises; Confirmed qualifications of employees performing equipment repairs.

free or at a significant discount provision of original components for computers and laptops of a given brand.
free or discounted provision of software;
free advertising for ASC;
large visitor traffic from device owners of this particular brand.

At the same time, you need to understand that the ASC is an independent legal organization, and in the event of lawsuits brought as a result of poor-quality repairs and maintenance, you will have to get out of it yourself.

Where to find clients

As already mentioned, in terms of advertising, service centers have a great advantage over ordinary computer workshops. But this does not mean at all that the latter have fewer clients. The percentage of visitor traffic is divided approximately equally – 50/50.

Most people in our country are state employees and people with average incomes who can afford computer equipment in the middle price segment. Many people simply cannot afford to repair such equipment with the installation of original components.

And therefore, the owners take their usual repair shop “around the corner”, where they will do no worse, and they will supply Chinese spare parts, which, if handled correctly, will last even longer than the original ones.

advertisements in local media;
creating your own website. Advertising on social networks;
introduction of a system of discounts for regular customers;
holding promotions such as “discount on repairs based on a friend’s recommendation,” etc.

A few words about start-up capital

Of the majority of business ideas that can be implemented with 100% confidence in a successful result at the present time - in a crisis in the country, the computer repair business is one of the most attractive and profitable.

But what to do if you don’t have enough money to start your own business (but you really want to!) or don’t have enough? There are several options:

you can apply to the bank for a loan to create and develop your business (interest rates are now quite attractive compared to last year or the year before);

you can contact the employment center with a ready-made business plan to receive financial assistance from the state to open your own business (see how to draw up a business plan to submit to the employment center); to the table of contents

Costs of creating a business, planned profit, payback period

The final costs of starting a computer repair business depend on the specific region, but based on the total experience of successfully operating workshops and service centers, the following figures can be derived:

costs of organizing an authorized service center

Expense item	Amount, rub.
Purchase of equipment	300 000 – 350 000
Rent for premises	50 000 – 150 000
Repair of premises in accordance with authorization requirements	100 000 – 200 000
Purchasing furniture	100 000 – 150 000
Purchasing branded uniforms for employees	25 000 – 30 000
Advertising costs	80 000 – 100 000
Unexpected expenses	50 000
Total	705 000 – 1 030 000

the cost of organizing a regular computer repair shop can be significantly less.

Expense item	Amount, rub.
Purchase of equipment	10 000 – 20 000
Rent for premises	5 000 – 40 000
Purchasing furniture	0 – 7 000
Advertising costs	0 – 20 000
Purchase of spare parts and components	10 000 – 40 000

When thinking through a business plan for computer repair, it is worth considering many little things, including the location of the repair point, the type of services provided and the costs of equipment and software. If you have never worked in this field, immediately opening an enterprise and getting a lot of income from it in the first month of work will be unrealistically difficult, but for this you have us. We will tell you about all the intricacies of working in the field of computer repair, and explain how you can cheat and spend less money on repair equipment and software. When you have some problems, and they will appear, you need to continue to move on, try to develop. This is a very good business with a constant influx of new clients, because computers break down very often, and if you get on your feet, you can safely call yourself a successful businessman.

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We need to immediately decide what services your repair shop will provide. It will be incredibly difficult and expensive to cover the entire range of services, so we will select the main tasks and carry out work only on them. We will choose services where you do not need to use expensive equipment - installing an operating system, installing additional software, diagnosing computer operation, replacing damaged parts, assembling a computer from scratch. To perform these services, we need to spend a little on the operating system and find a parts supplier.

Where to look for a computer repair facility

We need a small room to install several tables, a cabinet and computers for diagnostics. A room of 15-20 square meters is suitable, preferably with cosmetic repairs - so as not to spend money on this too. Renting such a room will cost us 20 thousand rubles. This is the first expense of a computer repair business. Try to find a room near a famous building so that it would be easier to describe how to get to your office on your business card and website. At the same time, there is no need to try to rent a room closer to the city center, since the closer you are to the center, the more expensive the rent. A novice businessman cannot afford rent for 200 thousand per month.

Many entrepreneurs in this area, when drawing up a business plan for computer repair, are looking for a room with two rooms - one for receiving orders and the second for the repair itself. We don’t have the budget to rent half of the house, so we’ll solve this problem in a simple way - we’ll fence off part of the room with a display case made of an opaque back wall, on which anything can be sold, and thus we’ll get two rooms. This way you will kill two birds with one stone, because you won’t have to spend money on expensive rent and at the same time you will have the opportunity to sell mice or keyboards for your computer.

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Computer repair business plan: personnel search

Not all businessmen understand computers and know how to repair them, so they won’t be able to do this work themselves. You need to find a specialist who can perform a wide range of work, order parts from the supplier for installation on a non-working computer. You may be a little disappointed that a specialist in this field will demand a salary of 60 thousand a month, which is simply an unaffordable amount for us. We will go the other way and find a specialist who does not require such a high salary.

In big cities there are always technical universities teaching computer engineering, network engineering or programming. Students from these universities know how to do everything we need - reinstall the operating system, clean the computer, restore deleted files, replace computer parts. Go to these universities and leave flyers about the search for an employee, describing the requirements and wages. For 20 thousand rubles a month, you will have a queue of people willing to work, you just need to weed out the non-professionals. In the future, when income rises to a certain level, you can hire a professional, but for now we’ll make do with students.

How to start a computer repair business

We decided to repair computers and laptops, and not restore video cards and motherboards, so we don’t need any expensive equipment. The most we need is a soldering iron to solder the fuses on the motherboard. Let's add here a screwdriver with different attachments - to unscrew the lid of a computer or laptop, and a dust cleaning kit. That's it, the equipment costs will end there.

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Another thing is buying software. Novice entrepreneurs are eager to buy several licensed Windows disks at once, not realizing that from this disk they can install the operating system on 4 computers. It will probably be a discovery for you that service centers install pirated copies with the installation of a hacked key. Installing the OS at a service center can cost you 800 rubles, while the license itself costs 4 thousand. It’s worth asking your clients whether they want a license for 4 thousand or a pirated copy for 800 rubles. All other software, such as codecs and drivers, are publicly available on the manufacturer’s official websites.

We equip our premises with two tables, a display case and a cabinet for consumables. One table will be used in the reception area of the room, where you will receive a computer or laptop, write down the type of breakdown and all contact information, the second will be used by the engineer to repair computers. Two tables will cost us 2.4 thousand rubles. The display case will cost 2 thousand rubles; it will perform two functions at once. A cabinet for storing equipment and consumables will cost 1.5 thousand rubles. Let's add another 8 thousand rubles to buy two computers.

Advertising is the basis of any business

When creating a computer repair business plan, you need to clearly understand how you will advertise your product. We will have three methods of advertising: advertising on the Internet, distributing leaflets and word of mouth.

Let's start with advertising on the Internet - this is the cheapest and at the same time the most effective way of advertising. Select a couple of the most visited VKontakte groups in your city and buy advertising posts from them with the address and phone number of your service. You can also create a page on this social network describing all the company’s services. It’s better, of course, to have your own website, but if you can’t create it yourself, then you shouldn’t do it at the initial stage, because professionals in web construction will charge a considerable amount for creating a site. Advertise your company on all social networks, do not stop doing this even when you have a constant flow of clients.

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The second way to popularize your business is to distribute leaflets. Surely, many people have some problems with their computers, but they don’t know what to do about it and where to take their “pet”. Distribute leaflets in crowded places, near shopping centers and offices. Even if one person out of a hundred who received leaflets comes to you, this will already pay for the advertising campaign. You can also hand out flyers with a coupon for free computer virus cleaning. For example: “Repair your computer and get free virus cleaning for free.”

Think about it, how many of your friends have computer problems? Probably many do. Advise them to visit your service, promise a discount and provide the highest level of service. These clients will recommend the service to their friends, and those to theirs. Word of mouth creates a customer base many times faster than any other advertising. Plus, customers who like your service will come back for more.

Costs and potential income of this business

As we promised, the costs of a computer repair business will not be high. We need to buy computers for receiving orders and diagnosing breakdowns for 8 thousand rubles, two tables for 2.4 thousand, a cabinet for one and a half thousand rubles and a display case for 2 thousand. All one-time expenses will amount to 13,900 rubles. The costs of operating the enterprise will be a little more - 20 thousand for renting premises and 20 thousand for staff salaries. As a result, 40 thousand a month for the work of the company.

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The potential income of a computer repair business is difficult to calculate due to the fact that it directly depends on the number of customers. But, we will try to calculate how much the most popular service in service centers costs - cleaning your computer from dirt, reinstalling Windows and installing basic programs. All together, this will cost the client 1,800 rubles, and we do not spend a penny on consumables.