STAPLES Free Tune Up? What Does Everyone Think Of This?

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nepcrepair

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Hello again all.

I am just about ready to open my retail storefront computer repair business. The
other day I was in a Staples getting some office supplies when I saw a poster
for a free PC Tune-Up.

When I inquired about what exactly they do for free the tech was very vague.
The only straight answer I got from him was that they vacuum out the inside
of your computer.

Does anyone know what exactly they do for their "tune up"? Also, has anyone
here had their service done? Also, how do you all compete with their free
service?

I was planning on offering a PC tune-up for anywhere between $19-$39. I
just haven't decided yet. I did make a flyer (not printed yet) that offers a
tune up for $19. However, I think that is too cheap. I want to charge more
but don't know if I could with the "free" tune up out there.

So what is everyone's input on the free tune up's offered out there and how
do you all compete with it?

:)
 
Make a poster with the font of Staples that reads "We uninstall malware and other useless programs from Free Tune-up promotions" or something like that. You get the idea :cool:
 
Staples doesn't do that over here in the UK but I am sure that they will do the absolute minimum of work and then tell them that they need to purchase x product and y service.
Nothing is truly free in the business world, there is always a catch.
 
A lot of people in the UK are cleverer enough to stay clear of the big firms so I doubt Staples would have much of a PC repair market in the UK. Carphonewarehouse GeekSquad is not doing that well and the PCWORLD TechGays have a bit of a reputation.

I would worry a lot more about the local guy with a good reputation you will be competing with, not some evil big firm.
 
Free tune up is only a ploy for getting paying clients.

I can imagine a "tune up" being a defragment, CCleaner and blowing out the inside. Considering someone wanting a free "tune up" probably already has a problem (afterall, why do they want work done on something working fine?) the goal is to detect this problem and turn it into a billable issue.

Think of it as you offering "Free Diagnostics." The idea is you probably aren't going to be diagnosing a computer that has absolutely no problems, as there is no point to diagnose a problem-free computer. Now, when they pay you for the actual repair, you make the money. The goal is to get more customers than you normally would by just regular advertising because free is a great seller.

We may hate them, but their marketing works. Learn from it. If I wasn't solely on-site, I would offer crap like this all the time to get more clients.
 
MrUnknown said:
Free tune up is only a ploy for getting paying clients.

I can imagine a "tune up" being a defragment, CCleaner and blowing out the inside. Considering someone wanting a free "tune up" probably already has a problem (afterall, why do they want work done on something working fine?) the goal is to detect this problem and turn it into a billable issue.

Think of it as you offering "Free Diagnostics." The idea is you probably aren't going to be diagnosing a computer that has absolutely no problems, as there is no point to diagnose a problem-free computer. Now, when they pay you for the actual repair, you make the money. The goal is to get more customers than you normally would by just regular advertising because free is a great seller.

We may hate them, but their marketing works. Learn from it. If I wasn't solely on-site, I would offer crap like this all the time to get more clients.
Click to expand...
Exactly.

They changed their software to where the tune up is running Windows Defrag, Disk Cleanup and Norton Technician Toolkit, and sometimes vacuuming the inside.
 
joydivision said:
I would worry a lot more about the local guy with a good reputation you will be competing with, not some evil big firm.
Click to expand...

Sorry I missed this in my previous response, but I second this completely. If you provide great customer service, people actually want to give you money. I now offer online backup through Nine Technologies, it costs more than Carbonite or Mozy but is essentially the same thing. They buy it simply because I am supporting it.

Who would you rather do business with? "You were here a month ago? What was your ticket number?" or "Oh, hey John. How was your camping trip with your son? Glad to hear you got back safely."

Some may think this little chit chat is a waste of time, after all you could be working on a PC, but this is usually invaluable to them as they don't get treated like a human when they call someone else.
 
joydivision said:
A lot of people in the UK are cleverer enough to stay clear of the big firms so I doubt Staples would have much of a PC repair market in the UK. Carphonewarehouse GeekSquad is not doing that well and the PCWORLD TechGays have a bit of a reputation.

I would worry a lot more about the local guy with a good reputation you will be competing with, not some evil big firm.
Click to expand...
In the UK so called 'bait-and-switch' sales techniques are illegal under the 'Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008'. Offering 'free' or low cost 'health checks' are likely to fall foul of this law if their is any incitement to upsell to more expensive repair services.

This was covered tonight on the BBC's consumer TV program 'Watchdog' under their 'Rogue Traders' segment. The article covered a cleaning company who advertised a carpet cleaning service for £8.99 but encouraged their commission-only agents to upsell to far more expensive services. A more comprehensive synopsis can be found on the BBC's website here.
 
MrUnknown said:
Free tune up is only a ploy for getting paying clients.

I can imagine a "tune up" being a defragment, CCleaner and blowing out the inside. Considering someone wanting a free "tune up" probably already has a problem (afterall, why do they want work done on something working fine?) the goal is to detect this problem and turn it into a billable issue.

Think of it as you offering "Free Diagnostics." The idea is you probably aren't going to be diagnosing a computer that has absolutely no problems, as there is no point to diagnose a problem-free computer. Now, when they pay you for the actual repair, you make the money. The goal is to get more customers than you normally would by just regular advertising because free is a great seller.

We may hate them, but their marketing works. Learn from it. If I wasn't solely on-site, I would offer crap like this all the time to get more clients.
Click to expand...

Very good point: "The idea is you probably aren't going to be diagnosing a
computer that has absolutely no problems, as there is no point to diagnose a
problem-free computer."

I never thought of it like that. I figured that the free tune up was just some
sort of way to "get" you in the door. I don't want to use tactics like that. I
am planning on charging $19-$29/$39 for a tune up. My tune up will be very
thorough though.

How do you all handle the tune up? Do you charge? How much?
 
Alan22 said:
Yupp, it's a hook to get people in the door and upsell them on other product & services. Really, nobody is bringing their system to the store if it's working properly.
Click to expand...

I agree. Most users do not want go the the trouble of disconnecting everything on their desk and lugging their PC around unless there is a specific issue causing frustration.

However, there is a subset of users who feel the need to keep their computers tweaked up and running optimally and can be sold on the idea of bringing their computer in for the "check up". These are the ones who can really get burned on it because sometimes the "check up" can cause an issue the user didn't have in the first place.

The rule of thumb applies to all users: "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".
 
Elemdee said:
LMAO, THAT wins the TN quote of the day!! Congratulations!! :D
Click to expand...

Incidentally,remember the old GS motto "Saving the world one PC at a time"? One of my tag lines for my computer shop, which was down the road from Best Buy, was "Saving the world from the Geek Squad one PC at a time". My customers got a kick out of that.
 
rsavoia said:
Incidentally,remember the old GS motto "Saving the world one PC at a time"? One of my tag lines for my computer shop, which was down the road from Best Buy, was "Saving the world from the Geek Squad one PC at a time". My customers got a kick out of that.
Click to expand...

that's fantastic, mind if I change to PC World and pinch it for my website?
 
I've said this before on this forum, but I have no competition. I'm not talking about not having other people in the area that do computer repair, either. Obviously there are others, however I do not even try to compete with them. I have selected my target market and offer the best service I can at an affordable rate. An affordable rate is not the cheapest rate. An affordable rate, to me, is a rate that allows me to make a living without dealing with a lot of BS and with reasonable hours. It is also a rate that provides the best service I can offer to my customers so that they feel they have had an exceptional experience and that it was money well spent.

I don't care if a store opened up next door that offered $10 flat rate repairs. I would not change my rates. People will learn soon enough that the cheap way isn't the best way. Those that don't learn that, well.... I don't want those customers anyways.

My point is, it's better to spend your energy making your service better and increasing your knowledge, then it is to worry about what other companies are doing.
 
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