How do you reponse to customer whom compare your price with service to website retail price?

[DataRecoverySingapore]

As tech, we all know we have different biz expense to cover to cover for the service we provide.
What's your thought on customer who compare your price with amazon/ online retail price who does not provide any form of services.

 

[Mercenary Roadie]

I don't reply to them plan and simple.

 

[brandonkick]

I think I understand... and I always let them make their own decisions.

Someone comes up and says.... I can get that at _____ for ____


Well then go ahead and go get it!

 

[kwest]

I think I understand... and I always let them make their own decisions.

Someone comes up and says.... I can get that at _____ for ____


Well then go ahead and go get it!

"But then I will have to wait days till I get the item". Exactly that is why we keep it in stock and charge more to take care of stuff fast.

 

[DataRecoverySingapore]

I remember 1 actually ask me for the model , as a method to check the compatibility component, before purchasing from online store. and hand it to me for installation.

 

[sapphirescales]

Screw 'em. If they want to get it for cheaper somewhere else, let them. I'm not Walmart or Amazon. If you want to get it TODAY and want it installed correctly, then buy my part. Otherwise, go mess with it yourself or find a pizza tech to help install it after you order it and wait a week for it to ship to you.

 

[stro]

I have used this type of response in the past...

We cost more because we have the part in stock now, we stand behind the parts we sell, and we insure you get a quality part and the correct part for your device. But if you would like to purchase the part yourself, we will be happy to install it for you, just one less part we have to stand by. But also please be advised, if we install a part that you have provided and and it does not work, you will still be responsible for the labor charges.

Then laugh on the inside when they walk in with the wrong part.

But if you get that vibe that they are someone who can afford to pay your price, and they are just being a cheapskate, then tell them you only install parts you sell because you don't want to risk a customer getting upset at you if a 3rd party part fails.

Sometimes I will even give them just enough info that they attempt the repair themselves just to get them out of my store so that they stop wasting my time whining about prices. They act like you are trying to screw them, but in the long run they screw themselves with a botched self repair.

Had one a few months ago, $50 laptop job, he didn't like the price after looking at parts on ebay. He attempted himself. Got his screws mixed up, had one screw that "wouldn't go in all the way" so he got the bright idea to drill it deeper. He drilled straight through the motherboard, through the bottom of the laptop case, an into his kitchen table (his wife was real happy about that). Ended up selling him a refurb laptop. Made more money than what the original job would have been.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

Who takes the time to shop around, look online, order, hope it's the same quality, hope is has a solid warranty, cross your fingers that the actual "seller" ships it on time, and is legit.

Invest your time in proper wholesalers...as your history and volume rise...your actual wholesale prices will drop, and you'll be able to compete with "online" prices.

 

[cypress]

I don't reply to them plan and simple.

Yup. Not worth the time nor the aggravation.

 

[MotzTech]

We don't sell a ton of hardware, 95% of what we do is service. However when we do quote hardware we use a generic description. If they want detailed model numbers, we offer to provide those at our standard consulting rate. In 6 years we have had maybe 2 complaints about this process.

 

[wavey]

Only sightly off topic...

While I was reading this thread I got a phone call, he said his friends laptop was getting really hot & shutting down all the time, the fan was spinning really fast but no air coming out, can I help? So I give him a price to strip down the laptop, clean out the fan and replace the thermal paste.
He asks if I guarantee that if the laptop still shuts down that I replace it for him!

I said no, he calls me a cheat and a thief.

Made my day :-D

 

[thecomputerguy]

This never ever happens to me, which is surprising because I don't sell anything below a 50% margin and some items are over 200%, and I just buy all my stuff through amazon because prime is amazing. I don't try to compete. If it ever did come up I would just say...

"Well I have what you need right here right now, when I bought it and stocked it the price was higher than it was now. If you want to buy it yourself then you can pay for my service fee today, then pay for another one when I return to install whatever it is you ordered. If you want to run to a store and buy it yourself by all means do that, I'll be waiting outside your house for you to return on the clock."

I don't look at my margin as any sort of attempt to compete, they are paying a convenience fee.

 

[fencepost]

If you have folks that want to purchase for themselves, let them - and provide them an Amazon Associates link so you can get 4-6% of what they pay. Also let them know that if they want your specific recommendations (which will include those links...) you're going to need to charge them a bit for your time researching exactly what it is they need.

If people complain about markups, tell them "I spend time to research the best options, order and for many items keep them on hand so I can keep you up and running. The markup basically covers my costs involved in doing that. I can sell you items X, Y and Z with no markup, but then I'm going to need to charge you for the time that I spent on researching and ordering parts for you. I'll warn you up front - my markup is probably lower than it ought to be, so if I'm doing time & expenses it's probably going to cost you more."

 

[Altster]

Had one a few months ago, $50 laptop job, he didn't like the price after looking at parts on ebay. He attempted himself. Got his screws mixed up, had one screw that "wouldn't go in all the way" so he got the bright idea to drill it deeper. He drilled straight through the motherboard, through the bottom of the laptop case, an into his kitchen table (his wife was real happy about that). Ended up selling him a refurb laptop. Made more money than what the original job would have been.

Had a guy like this last year who decided to fix his laptop himself. Only thing is, he didn't remove the rechargeable battery when he started prying it apart and something went pop. Yes I took a look at it.

Too many people out there who think they can fix everything themselves.

 

[Krynn72]

Some of you guys try way harder than I do lol. Usually if someone tries to price-compare with me, I'll tell them:

"Thats not our price. Our price is X" and just look at them directly in their eyes. They get the hint that I'm not interested in haggling at all, and will either buy from us or not. Their choice was already made before they walked in the door, they just want to haggle your price down. When doing something on-site, I've never run into a price-negotiation about parts I have on-hand.

 

[gikstar]

Years ago I had a client/friend who needed a server. Told him what I had found and he went around my back and purchased it on Craigslist.
Just yesterday he asked about a newer workstation that I have in stock as he needs to upgrade... I provided him with the specs, not the Make/Model of the workstation, as I know he would look on eBay and see what kind of price he could get it for himself.
We've spent too many hours over the years quoting him equipment and him not purchasing...

 

[wavey]

Just had a customer in the shop this morning with an iPad with a cracked screen, he said he had been quoted £35 ($50) but thought he was being ripped off.
Told him we don't repair iPads but that quote was ridiculously cheap.
He went off to try other repair shops, convinced he would get a better deal.

 

[Retired Technician]

As tech, we all know we have different biz expense to cover to cover for the service we provide.
What's your thought on customer who compare your price with amazon/ online retail price who does not provide any form of services.

Over the years I've had numerous customers do exactly this, referring to a large on-line computer parts store, and my customary response has bee: "I'm glad you noticed that my price is a bit higher. It means that you've seen what the base cost for the part CAN be, if you have multi-store purchasing power, which I don't, AND if you have direct-from-manufacturer purchasing arrangements, which I don't. So now that you've seen some of the difficulties small businesses face, I know that if you purchase that part from _____, they are not going to install it for you, and you KNOW that my parts include installation, so the choice is entirely yours." That is usually the end of discussion.

 

[sbill91]

I tell them they can get the part and I will charge labor if its right or wrong. I put on the invoice customer supplied part

 

[Majestic]

As tech, we all know we have different biz expense to cover to cover for the service we provide.
What's your thought on customer who compare your price with amazon/ online retail price who does not provide any form of services.

It's simple. You explain to them that you CAN be a slight bit more expensive at times but that is because you come to them and it's a value added service. While other times you are cheaper. Additionally you are doing the legwork-- picking up the item for them. Your time is valuable.

That's it. And if they are so cheap and don't appreciate that they can get it and go somewhere else. They are obviously ignoring all your own expenses from TIME itself to Gas and your research to choose said item at times.

Majestic