Technibble » Bryce Whitty

Fix WU Utility – Repair Tool of the Week

Bryce Whitty — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:30:56 +0000

Fix WU Utility is a small, portable and freeware tool designed to repair the Windows Update utility built into both Windows Vista and Windows 7. This utility will re-register a total of 114 .dll, ocx and .ax files that are needed for Windows Update to function properly. This application only works on Windows Vista and 7. To fix Windows Update on Windows XP, try Dial-a-Fix.

Screenshots:

Downloads:
Download from Official Site – 20.7kb

More Information

Special thanks to our forum member Methical for recommending this one.

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Fix WU Utility – Repair Tool of the Week

Considerations For Starting Your Own Part Time Computer Business

Bryce Whitty — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:35:43 +0000

Doing computer repair work on a part time basis is a great way to ease into the business. It can take many months to get your client-base up to a level where your income is similar to that of your full time job. It takes time to learn how to make money and its kind of like easing yourself into the shallow end of the pool rather than jumping into the deep-end and hope that you learn to swim really quickly.

Before you start a part time business on the side, there are a few things you need to consider first.

Making The Jump
If all goes well and you believe that your new computer business is making enough money for you to live off, when you quit your main job you need to keep in mind that you may lose the benefits provided by your previous employer such as health insurance (in the USA anyway) and you now need to factor those into your cost of living if you still want to remain covered.

When you make the switch, your tax setup may also change. For example, in Australia our primary and secondary income are treated separately tax wise (secondary is taxed more) and you need to specify to your accountant or to the government which one is your primary income. This can greatly change how much tax you pay so be careful not to get caught out.

Conflicts of Interest
Before you start doing computer work part time, you need to make sure that there isn’t a “conflict of interest” in you doing so. I talk about conflicts of interest fairly extensively in this article. Basically, a conflict of interest is defined as “when an individual or organization is involved in multiple interests, one of which could possibly corrupt the motivation for an act in the other”. For example, you might be subconsciously sabotaging your current employers business to help your own.

Think about it like this: If you owned a computer repair shop, employed a young technician and then found out he’s starting his own business to compete with yours, what would be the first things going through your head? “Is he stealing my customers? will he copy my work processes? I trained this guy and now he is using my knowledge against me”.

You need to make sure that your part time business doesn’t conflict with your current employer. If it does, the right thing to do is to quit completely and start your own business full time.

Non-Compete Agreements
Another consideration worth looking at is whether you are on some sort of a non-compete agreement. If you signed a contract with your current employer you should check it for some sort of a non-compete agreement. You may find that you are not allowed to start your own computer repair business within a certain time frame, even if you have quit the job completely.

9 to 5? Not a Problem
I have heard many computer technicians say that the problem they have is that they still have a 9-5 job so they can only get on-site after hours. They need to keep in mind that most residential clients work 9-5 as well.
Instead of your work hours being a disadvantage, turn it into an advantage by making it a selling point. I remember there was a technician on the Technibble forums a few years back who had this problem and turned it into a selling point by making their business slogan “We work when your not” (or something to that effect).

If you can only work after hours, I recommend that you don’t take on business clients because most businesses are open 9-5 and you may be needed to come in during those hours (especially in an emergency). Also, many new computer repair businesses don’t have the appropriate insurance to do computer repair for businesses. So you shouldn’t touch a business computer until you have adequate insurance in place. If you make a big mistake such as losing their data, they can sue you into oblivion for loss of business and opportunity.

Starting a computer business part time is how I started and it is the method that carries the least risk. Hopefully, you will encounter that magic moment when you realize that your side business is making more than your main job or your main job is hampering the growth of the side business. Then it is time to make the switch.

Speccy – Repair Tool of the Week

Bryce Whitty — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 03:32:40 +0000

Piriform Speccy is a small, portable and freeware utility from the people who brought us CCleaner. Speccy is designed to scan and display a computers specifications. While there is plenty of software out there that can scan and display a computers specifications such as System Information for Windows, SIW can be a little overkill with the amount of information that is shown.

Speccy will just show the important information without all the extra fluff. One Technibble forum member described Speccy as “Portable. Simplistic. Nice GUI. Informative. Straight to the point” which sums it up nicely.

Screenshots:

Downloads:
Download from Official Site – 1.3mb

More Information

Special thanks to our forum member iisjman07 for recommending this one.

How You Are Losing Clients

Bryce Whitty — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 00:47:09 +0000

There are many articles on Technibble are about gaining more clients. However, you need to make sure you keep them once you have them. In this article, I’ll show you 5 ways you might be losing clients.

Clients losing your contact information
One of the most common ways for you to lose customers is because your clients simply lose your details. They like you, they are happy with the work you do and would love to call you again, if only they could find your phone number.

To help prevent this, consider getting some small stickers made that you can stick onto their computer case with their permission. It won’t get lost like a business card and the number is right there when they need it.

Is your answering machine message up to date?
It’s easy to forget what your answering machine message says because you simply don’t call yourself. It’s quite possible you changed it before you went on holidays to let your clients know you will be unavailable and forgot to change it back. Make sure your answering machine message is up to date.

Do you return calls quick enough?
Most of your clients should have some sort of loyalty towards you. They have met you; they trust you and know you are competent. They would rather not try out another technician because they have fears of getting someone that doesn’t know what they are doing. However, if you don’t answer the phone immediately they will only wait for so long. Try to return calls as soon as possible. The same day is ideal but the next morning should be the very latest. Don’t give them a chance to try out another technician and possibly replace you forever.

Do you “close” phone call enquiries?
When someone calls you and asks how much will it cost to have a wireless network setup, do you just say “$200 for parts and labor” or do you say “That will cost $XXX for parts and labor. I am available to go onsite tomorrow. Would you like to book in a time?”

The first way just encourages them to call around for the best price. The second way helps you “close the sale”.
This is what the marketing world calls a “call to action” and it gives the customer a way to take it further. It is easier for them to say yes to you and be done with it rather than continue calling around for the next hour.

Do you always provide value?
Just this week I went to a repair job that was about an hour away from my location and I fixed the problem within 10 minutes. I asked the client if there was anything else they wanted me to do and he said that I had fixed everything that he needed. I could get paid and go home then and there but I felt like I didn’t provide value. I noticed he was asking me a lot of questions about basic word processing. I told him that because of the distance I have traveled, I have to charge my full hourly rate regardless of whether I am here for 10 minutes or the full hour, so if he likes I can fill the rest of the rest of the hour and teach him some basic word processing, which I did.
After the hour he got his computer fixed, learned a lot and felt like I delivered value for money.

If the client feels they are not getting value for money, they will simply replace you with someone cheaper.

Fix IE Utility – Repair Tool of the Week

Bryce Whitty — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:20:16 +0000

Fix IE Utility is a small, freeware and portable application designed to help fix Internet Explorer after a Malware attack. Fix IE Utility will re-register 89 DLL and OCX files that are often de-registered in a Malware attack and are required for Internet Explorer to run smoothly. You will still need to run your usual malware removal applications but if Internet Explorer still wont work correctly after the system as been cleaned, its possible the malware de-registered some files and this is where Fix IE Utility helps. Many people would just suggest that the client could just switch to Firefox. However, the core of Internet Explorer is still used inside many other programs so it needs to be operational, even if you don’t use Internet Explorer as a web browser

Fix IE Utility has been tested on IE7 and IE8 on both Windows Vista and Windows 7.

Screenshots:

Downloads:
Download from Official Site – 405kb

More Information

Special thanks to our forum member Methical for recommending this one.

7 Simple Marketing Tips for Your Computer Business

Bryce Whitty — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:35:26 +0000

Here are 7 easy and practical marketing tips that don’t take much time or money that you may be overlooking in your business.

Offer Free Pickup and Delivery
This is another way you can make yourself stand out from other businesses in your advertising. I have found that people are either too scared to unplug their computers or simply can’t find the time to get the computer to you. This is better used for new businesses since the more busy ones may not be able to find the time to drive around or leave their storefronts. As for making up the time and money of travelling to and from your clients, just include it in your prices.

Offer a Free Second Opinion
This form of marketing is very easy and effective. You can mention in your advertising that you will provide a free second opinion. When a client comes in for that second opinion such as “whether the computer they are looking at is a good deal or not”, you have two chances to generate business. The first one is that the computer they are looking at IS a good deal and you probably won’t be able to beat that price. However, you can offer to set it up for them any install the appropriate security patches, antivirus programs etc..
The other option is that the computer isn’t a good deal and you can do better for cheaper and possibly get a new computer sale out of it.

Vehicle Advertising
If you do any onsite computer repair work, advertising on your vehicle is an amazing opportunity to have your name seen by many people all over town. Even if you don’t get any direct calls from the advertisement it will help build up your brand. For example, when a potential client looks in the local paper and is presented with a huge list of computer businesses that service your area; yours will stand out because they have seen your brand before.
There are 3 main ways to advertise on your car. One of the most popular are rear window vinyl that completely covers the car’s rear view window, but allows you to see out from the inside.
Another option is if you have a car that has a spare tire on the back (like a SUV), you can get custom made tire covers for around $100-200.
If you have the marketing budget, you can go all out and cover the entire car with your advertisement. I have seen a handful of computer businesses do this to their cars and it looks great. Do a search on Google for businesses that can do “car wraps” in your area.

Uniform
I have mentioned uniforms on Technibble many times before because they are just so important. A uniform can help build up credibility and shows your clients that you take your job seriously.
I personally wear a nice collared business shirt, dress pants and formal shoes. When I arrive at a clients house, I have my repair bag slung over one arm and my EeePC laptop in the other hand which makes me look the part of a computer technician. Some computer technicians who do consulting work for large companies will also work in a full-blown suit. This makes you look great for the larger companies but might scare off some of the smaller businesses and home users. Choose the appropriate uniform for the type of work you are doing.

People Do Business with People They Like
This seems pretty obvious. However, I have to mention this in the computer industry because many people turn to computers because they often lack good social skills. Being friendly with good communication, the ability to talk in layman’s terms without being condescending will help your business immensely.
You can take this one step further and become your client’s friend which has massive benefits of its own.

Newsletters
Many computer technicians are making use of postal and email newsletters as way to stay in the front of their clients minds. The client can sign up to their newsletter from the computer technician’s site or in person and they will be mailed computer tips on an ongoing basis.
The trick to having an effective newsletter is to make them either more interested in computers or tell them about certain dangers – rather than telling them how to fix their own computers.
For example, you might want to tell them about the benefits of having a wireless network such as the ability to use the laptop in any room, but then the dangers of it not being setup properly such as leaving their wireless network open to intruders. Once you have pre-sold them on getting a wireless network you can casually tell them that your business can provide the parts and set it up properly and securely.

Specialize
A lot of technicians try to get more customers by providing more and more services being everything to everyone. As the old saying goes “A jack of all trades is a master of none”. It is often a good idea to specialize your skills such as being the becoming a malware or data recovery expert. If a potential client with a virus is looking in the newspaper for a computer technician and are presented with 10 different ads; will they choose you as the “Virus Removal Specialists”? Or the 10 other businesses who do networking, hardware upgrades, new computers and virus removal? They will probably call the virus removal specialists.

Ninite.com – Repair Tool of the Week

Bryce Whitty — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 06:09:58 +0000

Reloading Windows and installing various applications is something that Computer Technicians do all the time. While we can streamline our Windows installs using something like nLite, there isnt really a good way to automate the installation of multiple applications. Sure, some technicians make use of .BAT files or a scripting language like AutoIT but the code is often too difficult for some Technicians. This is where Ninite comes in.

Ninite.com (formerly Volery) is a simple tool for Windows that will automatically download all the latest versions of the software you choose from its directory, then install them silently (as in, you shouldn’t see the installers or asked any questions). Some of the software you will see in their directory is Firefox, Thunderbird, VLC, Foxit Reader, Avast, AVG, Flash Plugin, CCleaner, 7zip and much more. This program will not choose not to install the spammy toolbars/search pages that comes with certain software like Foxit Reader.

Screenshots:

Go To Ninite.com >

The Problem with Getting Good..

Bryce Whitty — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:03:24 +0000

There is a certain issue that will effect just about every self employed computer technician. It can slowly sneak up on you and may technicians don’t even realize it has happened to them. So what is this sneaky little issue I am talking about?

Once you have a year or so of experience under your belt, you will probably raise your prices from “I am just starting” prices to a middle of the range price that you are happy with. You will also most likely leave your prices at this rate for a few years and this where the issue can sneak up on you. As you become more experienced, you begin to make less money than you used to when you were less experienced. Why? because as you gain more experience, you can solve problems quicker than you used to in the past and if you charge on an hourly basis, this is a bad thing.

For example, if a client had virus that used to take you 2 hours to fix at $60 per hour and you can now do it in one. You just cheated yourself out of $60 for being good at your job. Doesn’t seem right does it?

The solution to this is to evaluate your rates every year or so, look at how much you are making per job and keep raising your rates as your experience grows. In the example above, you would need to double your prices just to remain at the same level you used to be as an inexperienced technician. Additionally, the cost of living usually rises so you are often forced to raise your prices just to keep your head above water.

You may be thinking that you might lose clients when you raise your prices. However, you will find that if your clients know you and trust you, they won’t care about a small price hike. They are often just glad that they have found a technician that knows what they are doing and can trust. I talk about raising your prices in more depth in this article.

Don’t let this sneak up on you, keep raising your rates as your experience grows or your income will decline.

Windows 7 System Recovery Discs – Repair Tool of the Week

Bryce Whitty — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:12:09 +0000

Windows 7 is just about to be released (October 22) and you are going to start seeing it on clients machines when their new brand name laptop or desktop comes with it pre-installed. The problem with many brand name laptop and desktops is they often dont come with the Windows 7 disc.

This Windows 7 System Recovery Disc can be used to access the system recovery menu, giving you options such as System Restore, Complete PC Backup, Automated System Repair and Command-line Prompt. However, you cannot use this disc to re-install Windows.

If you already have access to a working copy of Windows 7, you dont need to download this because you can create this disk by going to the run dialog and type: recdisc

Screenshots:

Downloads:
Download from Neosmart.net – 32-bit (x86) Edition Torrent – 146mb
Download from Neosmart.net – 64-bit (x64) Edition Torrent – 145mb

More Information

Thanks to AtYourService for recommending this one.

If you arent familiar with how to use Torrents:

1. Download the appropriate .torrent file from above that corresponds to the version of Windows 7 you have installed.
2. Download and run µTorrent.
3. Open the .torrent file you downloaded with µTorrent. (File -> Add Torrent)
4. Select where you want µTorrent to save the 7 Recovery Disc.
5. Wait for it to download.
6. Burn the .iso file that µTorrent downloaded to a CD using these instructions.
7. When you want to use the recovery center, put the CD in your drive and boot from it. This is usually done by pressing F8 at startup, or changing the boot drive order in the BIOS.

20 Pieces of Bite-Sized Advice

Bryce Whitty — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 06:19:51 +0000

Just about every day I hand out little tidbits of business advice. It might be on the Technibble forums, a podcast or even in person. Here are some of my core pieces of advice for this industry in small, easy to chew, bite-sized chunks.

The computer repair business can be one of feast and famine. There will be some months you will have so much work you can hardly keep up. The next month could be very quiet. Save during the busy times to make up for the slow times.

Don’t be afraid to tell a client that you don’t know the answer to something. Instead, say “I dont know the answer to that currently, but I can find out”. Don’t ever lie.

Don’t ever install or sell pirate software. Aside from the obvious moral reasons, it only takes one disgruntled customer or competitor to report you. Besides, there are plenty of good freeware alternatives for most software now days.

Always return phone calls as soon as possible. If you wait too long you may miss the job.

Be careful asking friends and family for their opinion on your business (such as the business itself, logos, flyers, business cards, your new store sign etc..) They are unlikely to tell you if something is bad. Instead, ask them what their favorite is.

Be careful when entering partnerships. Be sure to outline what each person’s roles and responsibilities are BEFORE you go into business, otherwise it can get ugly.

If the time comes where you have to fire an employee, always try to be as broad as possible. The employee will want to know the exact reason that got them fired, but don’t give in. Tell them that “its not working out, they aren’t a good fit for the company etc..“. Why shouldn’t you tell them? Because they can think of 100 things that’s worthy of getting them fired that you don’t know about. However, if you tell them the single action that got them fired, its probably one of the smaller fire-able offences they have committed.

If you are running late for a computer repair job (as in, more than 5 minutes), give your client a call that you are going to be a little late. Most of the time they don’t care. However, they will get upset if they are kept waiting around. “A quick phone call saves all”.

Client data is one of the most important things to us technicians. Always assume the client’s data is irreplaceable and treat it accordingly.

Get paid as soon as possible. Get cash from residential clients and get checks from business clients. Once you have a check from a business client, try to deposit it that day. Financial issues can happen to good people whom you know and trust, so don’t leave yourself open.

Don’t undervalue your work. Sure, you find it easy and you love it so much that you’ll almost do it for free. Keep in mind you are doing something many other people can’t do, so charge accordingly. Its no different to dentists, electricians etc..

Get to know your residential clients and become a friend. It takes you from “just another tradesman” to someone they would call again and again.

When working for businesses, they usually just want you to go in, fix it and leave. Their employees are already behind on work because the computer was down, so get it fixed and get out of there fast.

Don’t be afraid to turn down a job. It’s better to just say no and lose that little bit of money than to make a large mistake that will cost a lot of money.

Don’t have the lowest prices in town. Clients want the job done right and they often expect the cheapest technician in town to do shoddy work.

Don’t look like you do computer repairs for a hobby. Instead, look like a professional computer technician with a nice pair of dress pants and a collared shirt.

Don’t “talk geek” to your clients. Instead, try and say it in laymen’s terms. Eg. “defragging is like having paper scattered all over your office but and then putting it back in alphabetical order so you can find it quicker”.

Dont give out too much free technical help on the phone unless the person calling is known to be a good previous client. You will get many phone calls from people who want technical help but have no intention of ever paying you for it. Don’t give away the farm.

Get business insurance. If someone trips and hurts themselves on your premesis they can sue you into oblivion. They dont even have to have an accident inside your house, it can even be on your driveway.

Always ask new clients where they heard about you. This allows you to determine what advertising of yours is working and what isn’t.

I would love to hear your bite sized advice. Drop us a comment.