Flat Rate computer repair $59

[Puff]

I've been working on pricing and after going to flat rate based on what type of job I think it's still kind of complicated and confusing to some customers.

Outletpc in Vegas where I purchase some of my supplies from also does computer repair and they have a flat rate of $59 plus parts for any repair.

Does anyone else do that? I know most repairs take less than an hour and some of course are longer so I'm wondering how that washes out at the end of the month.

http://www.outletpc.com/computer-repair-las-vegas.html

 

[vdub12]

I think that's to cheap. But then again it depends on a lot of factors. For me I am mobile so I would never make it with pricing that cheap but if you had a store front you might be able to make it work.

 

[Mushin]

I've been working on pricing and after going to flat rate based on what type of job I think it's still kind of complicated and confusing to some customers.

Outletpc in Vegas where I purchase some of my supplies from also does computer repair and they have a flat rate of $59 plus parts for any repair.

Does anyone else do that? I know most repairs take less than an hour and some of course are longer so I'm wondering how that washes out at the end of the month.

http://www.outletpc.com/computer-repair-las-vegas.html

We do flat rate pricing.

The key is to not undercut yourself and to clearly state the scopes of work for each service that you perform.

There is a big marketing advantage with flat rate because of the fact that the customer never really knows how much it will cost with the hourly rate method.

 

[Puff]

We do flat rate pricing.

The key is to not undercut yourself and to clearly state the scopes of work for each service that you perform.

There is a big marketing advantage with flat rate because of the fact that the customer never really knows how much it will cost with the hourly rate method.

Phil, do you have one flat rate price for all of your services or do each of your services have their own price?

 

[SThompson86]

I offer flat rates for in shop work, but with each fix costing various amounts.

My closest thing to $59 is just a strait nuke and pave, with no saving up data and no setup of programs.



Like Mushin said people like flat rates because they know what its going to cost, and nothing is left to be skeptical about like an hourly charge.

When I go to a house call I let them customer know that I can sit here and get paid by the hour or I can take it with me and there will be 1 flat rate charge. I have not had a customer turn down the flat rates yet.

 

[Alan22]

From their website:

How fast can I get my computer back? Can I get my computer back the same day?
We offer 3 Service Speeds at OutletPC - Standard Service @ $59, Express 2-Day Service @ $89, and 24-Hour Service @ $119

Also, this seems to be for physical drop-off. It doesn't seem they go on-site. So, if someone drops off their computer for the standard service when will they get it back? On-site same day service doesn't seem to be something they offer.

Also, think about it.....if they charge $59 for a repair, how much could they possibly be paying the technician and what type of technician works there? When all costs are figured in there's very little room for profit. I can't imagine any experienced tech woould work for a low hourly wage or salary, unless unemployment is very high in the area and they don't have much choice.

 

[ComputerClinic]

Flat rate pricing is a great way to go. The thing you have to realize is that you aren't limited to a single flat rate price. My rates are $79 for basic repair, $99 virus removal, and $139 advanced repair. But I don't limit myself to those prices. For example: if a client has a failed PSU that takes me 5 minutes to replace, I'll charge $49. Or if a backlight needs to be replaced, I'll charge $179.

The point is, you can give the client a straight forward quote. If you charge by the hour the closest you can get is "My hourly rate is $75/hr, and these kinds of problems generally take 1-2 hours."

 

[iisjman07]

I agree and think that that is too cheap. The only person I've known before reading this thread to do flat rate was Steve who does the Podnutz videos, and I believe he used to charge $79

 

[hardtoremember]

I agree that if you are going to do a flat rate you should take it back to your shop. Otherwise I would consider raising the price another $10 to $15.
I am in Henderson and I know they've been around a while but have never seen their shop. They do drop offs only and are in kind of a weird spot. I would do drop offs for $59 flat any day.

 

[MasterTech99]

For in-store work we have a list of about 25 common service that each have a set charge. Anything not on the list we determine an estimate based on an hourly rate.

We start with a set diagnostic charge that is agreed to at checkin. Then we perform diagnostics and call the customer with a price and options. We give them the total and they either authorize the work or pick the system up and pay the diagnostic charge. We do not itemize the price unless the customer asks for it. Once the customer has authorized the repairs then we continue work. When the system is finished we call the customer and they pick it up and pay the bill.

The main thing is we never charge the customer an amount that they have not already authorized. Over the last 20 years we have tried just about every pricing scheme and this is the one that generates the most revenue for us. YMMV.

 

[vdub12]

My closest thing to $59 is just a strait nuke and pave, with no saving up data and no setup of programs.

I personally think your leaving yourself open with this one.

I will never N&P a system without an image first. Even if the customer says the data isn't important it could bite you in the long run if you wipe a system and the wife relies shes lost all her wedding pictures. They could hold you liable.

I charge a flat rate of $130 for a system and $195 for a server for a N&P. I base my pricing on my hourly rate. I charge $65 an hour and charge 2 hours for a system and 3 hours for a server. This includes complete image of the old system if possible that I hold for 30 days, Reinstall of the OS (Windows or Linux) restore of there data including email, favorites, documents, and other data. Sometimes this required converting data for upgrades (Example: outlook express to live mail) I also set the system up for the customer on site including internet, printers, etc. Each system also gets all updates and activation taken care of. I will even install one or two of the customers programs if they have the genuine disks available. This includes office or quickbooks or something like that. I will not install an older game on a newer system for the flat rate price. I have had problems before with this. Like installing NFS Porsche on Windows 7. Nightmare, lol.

For the service I offer I think I am dirt cheap. Most N&P's take me well over 5 to 6 hours including setup time on site and I only charge 2 hours.

I always quote a job before i do it and I almost never go against my quote. I feel that if I diagnosed it and i am wrong I need to eat it and take care of the customer. The only time i will rise the price is if other hardware is required. However I always call and get it approved but in cases where I miss diagnose something labor stays the same as quoted. Even though my quote is based on my hourly rate the customer knows what they are going to spend. This is not flat rate pricing but its not just a blank check ether.

The only true flat rate I charge is $39 for a diagnostic, $130 N&P, and $195 virus removal. The virus removal only applies to badly infected machines. The price is based on 3 hours and if the fix takes less time i only charge for the time spent.

 

[SThompson86]

I personally think your leaving yourself open with this one.

I will never N&P a system without an image first.

O yea I do an image first.

I would not get any business charging what you charge. I wish I could charge that much, but its just not going to happen just yet. I rather have customers than charge alot and wait on those customers that are willing to pay alot.

I charge so little on N&P`s because its basically a NEXT NEXT NEXT kinda setup. NEXT and Wait. Brainless operation. The hardest part is getting all the drivers back and thats easy most of the time.

 

[Puff]

The only true flat rate I charge is $39 for a diagnostic, $130 N&P, and $195 virus removal. The virus removal only applies to badly infected machines. The price is based on 3 hours and if the fix takes less time i only charge for the time spent.

Good point when it comes to imaging. I can't tell you how many times working in the corporate world I've been told "no, there's nothing I need" and an hour later after returning a re-imaged system that call comes in "OMG...why pr0n is gone, I need it for work". Well ok, it's not pr0n but usually some kind of spreadsheet.

$195 for virus removal? Is that for removal or does that include fixing OS and/or other software issues that have resulted from being infected?

I'd like to charge more so for virus problems but don't want to price myself out of the business so I came up with a structured pricing where the client can pick how much they want to spend.

Basic virus scan and removal: $79.95
Basic virus scan, removal and virus prevention: $99.95
Repair and restore : $129.95

This way I don't get stuck with having to fix IE or anything else that was damaged as a result of infection for $79.95

If their IE doesn't work after I've removed the malware and they complain I just point to the price list on the wall.

I might up the repair and restore to $149.95 because you can easily end up with a couple of hours worth of work....as you probably already know.

 

[RegEdit]

I do flat rate repairs. Customers appreciate that there will be no "hourly billing gone wild" as lawyers do. But you need to itemize everything to protect yourself. If their machine is infected with Virut and you have to nuke and pave AND they have 100 GB of personal data to migrate, settings to migrate, secure data (such as Internet Explorer passwords), a VPN, etc then you need to anticipate stuff like that and have set pricing in place.

The prices you charge should be competitive with the other repair places in your area. If the customer's only other choice is Geek Squad then you would certainly want to charge more than $59 to repair when the only other choice in town is $199 (in-shop).

 

[SThompson86]

I have always wondered why people charge 59.99 rather than $60.00 or 34.99 rather than $35.00. Maybe it sounds better to a customer? Personally, I have noticed how I will be less worried about spending money on something that is $75.00 vs $80.00 Kinda like $45.00 vs $50.00 . Always wondered about the .99 pricing though I rather charge a whole amount than worry about counting pennies.

 

[vdub12]

I would not get any business charging what you charge. I wish I could charge that much, but its just not going to happen just yet. I rather have customers than charge alot and wait on those customers that are willing to pay alot.

You know I thought the same thing when I started, that I needed to be really cheap or I would not get any business. I even felt like I was riping people off by charging allot. However, I provide a quality service and I need to be paid for it. At 59.99 N&P pricing I would not be able to live. At $130 for a N&P I get almost 99% of people say do it.

$195 for virus removal? Is that for removal or does that include fixing OS and/or other software issues that have resulted from being infected?

Thats everything it takes to get the computer back up and running correctly even a N&P if thats what it takes.

 

[Xander]

I have always wondered why people charge 59.99 rather than $60.00 or 34.99 rather than $35.00. Maybe it sounds better to a customer? Personally, I have noticed how I will be less worried about spending money on something that is $75.00 vs $80.00 Kinda like $45.00 vs $50.00 . Always wondered about the .99 pricing though I rather charge a whole amount than worry about counting pennies.

It's all about the psychology of sales.

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/720/why-do-prices-end-in-99
http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=461008

 

[Corbin]

How fast can I get my computer back? Can I get my computer back the same day?
We offer 3 Service Speeds at OutletPC - Standard Service @ $59, Express 2-Day Service @ $89, and 24-Hour Service @ $119

Are they better on parts and price then Frys? I mean as a business to business aspect, where Frys only is for end user people.

 

[Puff]

Are they better on parts and price then Frys? I mean as a business to business aspect, where Frys only is for end user people.

I've purchased some power supplies and hard drive enclosures from them. I've been happy with the prices and with what I've received.

One example I can give you to compare them to Fry's is the power supply. Fry's wanted $24.99 and Outletpc was $14 and change for the same PS.

 

[SThompson86]

I've purchased some power supplies and hard drive enclosures from them. I've been happy with the prices and with what I've received.

One example I can give you to compare them to Fry's is the power supply. Fry's wanted $24.99 and Outletpc was $14 and change for the same PS.

humm.. I guess I should start doing it. I know that my personal opinion of a .99 price is that look more professional or at least more appealing.. I guess I fall into the .99 trap like the theory states lol I may change my pricing to .99`s