Ugh! Cheap Clients...

[sapphirescales]

I'm running into more and more cheap clients nowadays. I just got a call from a past client of mine and the conversation went something like this:

Client: I bought a few computers from you in the past and I just bought this computer on eBay that was a really good deal. The problem is, it only starts up properly every now and then, the DVD drive doesn't work, and there's a loud noise coming from inside the computer.

Me: I can take a look at it. What's your schedule look like?

Client: Well how much is this going to cost (HUGE red flag sentence here)?

Me: I'll have to look at it to know for sure.

Client: I forget, do you charge just to take a quick look at it?

Me: Yes. I do charge a diagnostic.

Client: Ugh, well can you tell me how much it is to get it working again.

Me: I have to take a look at it and run a diagnostic in order to find out what's wrong with it first.

Client: Well how about a RAM upgrade? I think it's only got like 2GB.

Me: *Cringe* It depends on what type of RAM it takes, how many slots there are, and how many are occupied. I'll have to take a look at it first.

Client: Well what if I just have you wipe it out like new?

Me: That's not a good idea until we make sure it doesn't have a hard drive issue or some other problem. It doesn't always start up and is really slow, so it could have another issue.

Client: Well, I have an appointment with another guy I found on Craigslist that says he'll look at it for free. But I know you do good work so maybe I'll bring it into you first. I'll have to cancel my appointment with him and call you back.

Me: Ok.

So what I got from this conversation is he probably bought some piece of crap HP business class desktop from a recycling center off of eBay for $100. It probably has an illegal copy of Windows 7 Ultimate (Win Vista COA), 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a dying hard drive, a dead DVD drive, and who knows what else.

My only hope is to convince him to look at this computer as a loss due to his cheapness and get him into a refurbished i5 system. By the time we purchase a Windows 7 license, get a new hard drive and DVD drive, upgrade the memory, and install the OS, he's looking at like $300 - $400 in repairs. This is why you don't buy some cheap piece of crap off of eBay and expect a good computer. The computers he's bought from me in the past have been around the $300 range. What does he expect paying $100? Does he really think I'm that overpriced that I'm selling a computer that I get for $30 for $300? Thinking logically is just beyond some people.

 

[Slaters Kustum Machines]

But he got a good deal on it.

 

[overburnz]

LOL i also get some costumers like that one, every time i price a repair that i have to change some hardware i get answers like "but it's just changing the hard drive and install windows, why is it so pricy?" i once had a customer that wanted me to teach him to format and reinstall OSX in his macbook, i told him i'll do it for 60€ his face changed to an angry one and got this reply "i'm not gonna pay you 60€ for you to press a couple of buttons", my answer was "i'm not gonna teach you how to do it for free, and you're not paying me 60€ to press a couple of buttons, you're paying for my experience and knowledge" and smiled at him, he bolted away cursing at me... wonder if he already knows how to do that

 

[sapphirescales]

Well, kinda good news I guess. He rejected the idea of getting another refurb from me, but he wants to pay $454 to get it fixed. It has a bad power supply too. So this is what we're doing:

New HDD: $85
New PSU: $65
PSU & HDD Installation: $70
New OS Installation: $99
4GB DDR2 Memory + Installation: $65
New DVD Drive: $35
DVD Drive Installation: $35

Surprisingly it did have a Windows 7 Home Premium for Refurbished PC's sticker on it. I told him it was crazy to put this kind of money into the computer, but his response was "in for a penny, in for a pound." He actually paid $200 for it and another $200 for the monitor, so I guess he doesn't want to just throw that money away. Crazy.

On a positive note, he says he'll always buy his systems from me in the future. It's better than doing this.....

 

[Dionysis Kalimeris]

It seems to me like a win wI need situation. He learned a pricey lesson and you've got a customer for life. You stuck to your principles and it worked

 

[MDD1963]

Can't you just give a proper $19 estimate, including all parts and labor, even BEFORE looking at the system???

 

[Dionysis Kalimeris]

Price points are key to profitability. You need to have your costs assessed and then charge a healthy margin. If you go cheap from the start then they will always try and price you down. It's human nature.

 

[Dustin Hennis]

Generally, we charge a one hour minimum for all services (rates vary DOR). There are times where I have told clients, you just need a new one. Actually, I have one of those sitting in my office now. If you use your technical skills/knowledge, then replacing their existing system becomes a sales opportunity. Especially for businesses, they will hold to MCs and give reciprocal revenue.

 

[cypress]

Can't complain that you are getting the business, definitely a win win. But now he is spending $650+ on an old computer when he was better off getting a refurb from you. He definitely wasn't thinking this through, but don't tell him that lol.

 

[NYJimbo]

Can't you just give a proper $19 estimate, including all parts and labor, even BEFORE looking at the system???

YES !, I was wondering this as well !

 

[gikstar]

I curious, what processor is in that system?

 

[sapphirescales]

I curious, what processor is in that system?

I don't remember the exact model, but it was a Core 2 Duo 3.00Ghz. Probably an E8400.

 

[gikstar]

I don't remember the exact model, but it was a Core 2 Duo 3.00Ghz. Probably an E8400.

That sucks... I've recently purchased Intel C2Q 9400 in a HP SFF's for $45 w/4Gbs ram & 250Gb HD (tested systems) from my recycler...
I'm a big Craigslist shopper... picked up two Xeon workstations this week - HP Z420, 1Tb HD, 8Gbs ram, Quadro 4000 with an E5-1660 Xeon cpu (speed tested faster than a dual processor X5650 system) for $300 each (place teaches high school kids to refurbish donated computers and the systems are verified as being good prior to being sold)
and this morning I got a call from my brother in New York looking for a computer for a relative of his in Charlotte, NC who is looking for a computer so I located a system for him to call on, for $100.00 on Craigslist in Charlotte, an Optiplex 390, i3-2120, 4Gbs ram, 120Gb SSD + a 500Gb storage drive and a 19" monitor
Deals are out there and fortunately we as techs can spot them and test for them. I purchase very little on eBay as there's plenty of good buys on Craigslist in the 3 counties surrounding me.
I've been shopping Craigslist for about 8 years now and it has provided me with a number of contacts that contact me even before posting on Craigslist. I have made 2 "really" significant contacts through Craigslist... a seller of business class Dell laptops and a major laptop buyer, where I'm just the middleman
Craigslist works for me since I don't have to "work". It's not for everyone here. It takes time to find the good deals and go pick them up, and my son who owns his own IT company can't take the time to do this, not when he's charging $150 hr., it's just not profitable for him. I help him out in his business when I have nothing better to do as I enjoy fixing computers and finding good deals that he can make a good profit on

 

[HFultzjr]

But can't you just give me a ballpark figure, before I run it all the way out to you?

 

[buzzcut]

It's your win for you ($$) in this case and their lost since for the amount they're wasting on an older unit they could have bought a brand new Walmart special for that price.Then within a year they would be back to see you again with issues with that one .

 

[fencepost]

He rejected the idea of getting another refurb from me, but he wants to pay $454 to get it fixed. It has a bad power supply too.

Honestly, even if the money might be nice I think I'd refuse to do this. I'd point out to him that the existing PC is money already gone, and that for his $450 he can get a better computer than this one will be even after it's repaired.

It's not like the monitor is bad - and for that matter, what kind of monitor is he dropping $200 on?

 

[tucsonpc]

I guess I need to make up a new "random guess without seeing anything" assessment cost. $900. Without seeing anything, I'm assuming it will cost $900 to fix.

 

[mikeroq]

Honestly, even if the money might be nice I think I'd refuse to do this. I'd point out to him that the existing PC is money already gone, and that for his $450 he can get a better computer than this one will be even after it's repaired

I'm with you on that one.

 

[sapphirescales]

Honestly, even if the money might be nice I think I'd refuse to do this.

I strongly recommended against it, but it's not good business to outright refuse a client's request. It's his money, not mine. It's my responsibility to give him my opinion, but the choice is his in the end.

This isn't the first time a client has insisted on fixing something that wasn't worth fixing, and it won't be the last. I just had a guy spend $300 to fix an old XP box. I told him I could get him a better box with XP on it for $50, but he wanted THAT exact computer. I told him that running XP nowadays was crazy, but he didn't care. I told him that I no longer support XP and once it leaves here I'm not his tech support line. He agreed.

Last month I had a guy bring in a Gateway Solo 2550 laptop with Windows 98. He wanted it upgraded to XP. Spent $350 with a new hard drive, 256MB of RAM (the max for that model) and a new adapter and upgrading to XP.

In all these cases, I strongly recommend against fixing the computers. But a lot of people become sentimentally attached to their computers and after 10+ years of good use, they just don't feel right throwing them away in the garbage.

I don't have to agree with their decision, but I do have to RESPECT their decision. Refusing to work on their computer is only going to make them upset and drive them to one of my competitors. At least I know with me that they're going to be fixed PROPERLY. I have extensive experience with vintage computers, and there are a number of my competitors that would be desperate enough to accept the job even though they don't really know how to work on something that old.

 

[lan101]

I strongly recommended against it, but it's not good business to outright refuse a client's request. It's his money, not mine. It's my responsibility to give him my opinion, but the choice is his in the end.

This isn't the first time a client has insisted on fixing something that wasn't worth fixing, and it won't be the last. I just had a guy spend $300 to fix an old XP box. I told him I could get him a better box with XP on it for $50, but he wanted THAT exact computer. I told him that running XP nowadays was crazy, but he didn't care. I told him that I no longer support XP and once it leaves here I'm not his tech support line. He agreed.

Last month I had a guy bring in a Gateway Solo 2550 laptop with Windows 98. He wanted it upgraded to XP. Spent $350 with a new hard drive, 256MB of RAM (the max for that model) and a new adapter and upgrading to XP.

In all these cases, I strongly recommend against fixing the computers. But a lot of people become sentimentally attached to their computers and after 10+ years of good use, they just don't feel right throwing them away in the garbage.

I don't have to agree with their decision, but I do have to RESPECT their decision. Refusing to work on their computer is only going to make them upset and drive them to one of my competitors. At least I know with me that they're going to be fixed PROPERLY. I have extensive experience with vintage computers, and there are a number of my competitors that would be desperate enough to accept the job even though they don't really know how to work on something that old.

Sometimes just gotta give em what they want. Take their BS and take their money lol. But yeah...totally agree. Been in the same boat on a few different occasions. I just do the work and then put on their invoice that I strongly recommended against it....that way when some family member that thinks they know everything...won't tell them that I tried ripping them off.