Remote Troubleshooting Service

dvdfan

Hello,

Just want to run an idea past you. Im starting a pc repair business soon that will focus for the most part on home users with issues such as internet problems, virus removal, reinstallation of windows, upgrades, etc

I was also very interested in trying remote troubleshooting both nationally and internationally. Heres my plan, most times i have one of those hard to shift viruses such as a recent one i got "spy falcon", and i always go to the internet to find the solution, however some of these solutions are very complicated for the novice computer user that just wants to get back to chatting on line and playing games. I could easily fix this problem with 20-30 mins work on my part and i could be doing other things while i have the anti virus scanning the pc. Because of this i could charge a reasonable rate maybe in the region of €20. From the basic searching ive done ive only came across one or two irish companies that do remote pc repair and not a whole lot internationally. And the ones ive check charge in the region of €50 an hour with 50 euro being a minumum charge.

I would also offer a free evaluation of the problem, and give them a free quote and at that point they could decide wheter they want to pay or not, the other companies dont seem to do this. The software i would use would not need to be involved with ip addresses or have any firewall issues as it would access the pc remotely via the browser and require little or no interaction on the users part and wouldnt be complicated for a non techy. Of course there is always going to be a security issue with these remote access programs but this isnt a big issue with home users more an issue with corporate users.

As ive said there is alot of issues that are simple that someone wont call a technician out and pay €50 euro for that could be fixed in a few minutes such as video player not working because of system conflicts, viruses, email problems, spam etc etc that might only cost in the €10-€20 region that could open up a market for me.

Whats your opinions on this and this would compliment my existing call out service in my local area, im surprised there isnt more competition for this or am i missing something obvious????

Thanks

seamus

I assume you're considering using something like webex to bypass proxies and remove the need for IP addresses, remote desktop, etc.

It's a fairly good idea in theory, just to point out some potential problems if you haven't thought of them already:

Something like webex I can only imagine is not a cheap subscription, and so would require a substantial investment up-front. There may also be further costs, i.e. you may only be allowed run a certain amount of sessions before you get charged per-session. This could force your own price through the roof.

Following on from this, while €20 initially may cover your costs, when your costs start flying upwards, you may have to increase your costs dramatically which will result in a rather short-lived business.

Think about what you need to survive. Assuming the remote assistance technology is quite expensive, this can't be a part-thing where people ask you to connect and then you get around to it. It would have to be full-time. If you're charging €20 per hour, is that enough to cover your costs, yourself and your income tax?

In terms of the business model, you can't expect people to request assistance, receive a quote 24 hours later, and then be told to wait by the computer for the next 6 hours until someone gets around to assisting them. I'm sure you've thought of this already, but if someone accepts a quote, you want to get to them within an hour, or within 15 minutes if you schedule them a time.

It's calculator and business plan time. Work out what your costs are going to be (webex subscription, internet bill, light, heat, electricity, computer equipment). Work out how much you need to live comfortably for the first two years. Be pessimistic but realistic. You can't expect to be rolling in cash without plenty of sacrifice. This includes things like pension, life insurance, car insurance, etc etc.
Add some money for expansion (i.e. profit for the business), and then crunch the numbers in terms of expected clients per week, etc.

Come up with a business plan. This doesn't have to be much, just words on paper that you can refer to. Include in this plans for the future in terms of further staff, expansion, possible future services (perhaps an agreement with local companies who'll do contract callouts for a cheaper rate?).

Sketch down the flow of a client request, right from you advertising your service, to the customer contacting you to tell you the problem is well and truely clear. In this flow add in plans for things which go wrong (incompatible software/hardware, problems which require callout - people can feel cheated if you bill for not fixing the issue).

Think of contingency plans. What happens if the one machine you're using goes tits-up at 8pm on a Sunday evening (it'll happen)? Will you have 3 or 4 spare machines? What happens if your ISP cuts you off, your power goes or your home/workplace is burgled? If you're running an online business, these are the kinds of things which can instantly wipe out your business.

Do some market research. It doesn't necessarily have to be comprehensive you can use your family and friends and their friends, but try and get your target market - non-technical home users. Read every suggestion, and see if your plan needs adjustment.

dvdfan

Hi Seamus,

Thanks for the detailed response. Ill try and respond to most of the issues.

Something like webex I can only imagine is not a cheap subscription, and so would require a substantial investment up-front. There may also be further costs, i.e. you may only be allowed run a certain amount of sessions before you get charged per-session. This could force your own price through the roof.

ive used www.logmein.com free trial for their helpdesk/support packages and i have to say im really impressed, im assuming i havent misread how they charge you but it appears to be $99 per month. Am i missing any hidden fees?? You can view the subscription page here: https://secure.logmeinrescue.com/HelpDesk/Buy.aspx

I feel this would allow me to charge reasonable prices unless im missing hidden costs

In terms of the business model, you can't expect people to request assistance, receive a quote 24 hours later, and then be told to wait by the computer for the next 6 hours until someone gets around to assisting them. I'm sure you've thought of this already, but if someone accepts a quote, you want to get to them within an hour, or within 15 minutes if you schedule them a time.

This is a very good point and one that i think will give me biggest headache, because i already run another business full time i cant do this full time initially so i have come up with an idea that i think will help.

I have web design and programming skills so when someone wishes to have a consultation they visit my website and enter all their contact details. They will then be provided with a schedule of the available timeslots similar to the system tesco.ie use when booking a delivery slot with the only exception being that if they book a 2.30pm spot for example i will ensure i will be there for 2.30pm so they wont have to wait around. I send them an email at 2.30pm or call them via skype whichever they prefer and give them the details to initiate the consultation service. Of course if they are late then i would have to put some time limit on that and they may be forced to reschedule a slot. This should at least ensure the customer knows straight away when the next slot is available (possibly immediately if im online at the time) and they also know they wont be waiting around wondering when ill start the consultation. I know its not ideal having to schedule a time instead of starting immediately but if the times available didnt suit them today they can easily pick a time slot for tommorrow or the next day.

We see this in many situations when you ring a painter, electrician etc, they are not always immediately available even though it can be an urgent job but you just arrange a suitable time between you both. Again i agree with your point that full time is the way to go but even i was doing it fulltime, the international market is open 24 hours so i cant cover everyone and scheduling a time is a reasonable option.

Because i already have an income im not reliant on this taking off immediately and i will also be doing call out services in my local area, its alot of work to take on but i enjoy this kind of work so ill have the motivation. If things start going well i can ease down on my hours that i do in my current business no problem because i will have the extra cash and if things dont go so well i can continue to work my current job and build up the repair business slowly because after all if im not that busy i will have more time to concentrate on advertising etc

Think of contingency plans. What happens if the one machine you're using goes tits-up at 8pm on a Sunday evening (it'll happen)? Will you have 3 or 4 spare machines? What happens if your ISP cuts you off, your power goes or your home/workplace is burgled? If you're running an online business, these are the kinds of things which can instantly wipe out your business.

I already have access to a laptop and a pc at broadband speed at 2 different locations myself and if they both went at the same time i could easily take a spin to a friends or familys house for a day or two. I only need internet access to fix the problem.

It's calculator and business plan time. Work out what your costs are going to be (webex subscription, internet bill, light, heat, electricity, computer equipment). Work out how much you need to live comfortably for the first two years. Be pessimistic but realistic. You can't expect to be rolling in cash without plenty of sacrifice. This includes things like pension, life insurance, car insurance, etc etc.
Add some money for expansion (i.e. profit for the business), and then crunch the numbers in terms of expected clients per week, etc.

My expenses would mainly be google adword advertising initially & skype phonecalls, already pay for broadband access at home and at work, same for electricity, heating, and rent. I have both a good spec pc and laptop and i can design and programme my own website.

Sketch down the flow of a client request, right from you advertising your service, to the customer contacting you to tell you the problem is well and truely clear. In this flow add in plans for things which go wrong (incompatible software/hardware, problems which require callout - people can feel cheated if you bill for not fixing the issue).

Just to make it clear, i plan on doing this over the internet and concentrate on english speaking home users that use windows 9x,XP,2000, They are my only restrictions for obvious reasons but they can live anywhere in the world although i will only call phones in countries that are viable through skype otherwise msn chat and email will be the communication tools (my main countries would be canada,usa,ireland,uk & australia mainly because they are english speaking and skype has excellent rates for these countries around 2 cent per minute). This will limit this to software issues and if it turns out to be a hardware issue then i wont be able to help them. I will also have a 100% guarantee which i will uphold that if i dont fix the problem there is no charge. I know this will lead to wasted time but i should be able to know fairly quickly if it is a hardware or software issue thats causing the problem. i will be able to offer a callout service to anyone in my local area but the remote assistance will be international and/or local.

I think thats good advice about the business plan and market research along with many other good points you made about several things i need to consider. Please keep the toughts coming

Thanks and keep the suggestions coming as unbiased suggestions are very helpful as i probably have a massive set of blinkers on.

seamus

Good idea in terms of the time slot booking system. Certainly it allows you the flexibility to work around your own current schedule. The upside of this is that you can leave a whole pile of time slots marked "unavailable", making you look more in demand than you are. A little dishonest perhaps, but I don't think anyone would condemn you for it.

What I've noticed personally in terms of home users is that they rarely require a computer problem sorted *now*. The bulk of them are usually happy to leave the machine unavailable for a day or so - it's not critical for them. Some will want it done within a few hours cos they have some work to do. A few will want it done immediately, but if they don't have a support agreement in place with some other provider, they're usually just impatient/ignorant pricks who you'd be better off without having as clients anyway. My humble opinion.

If you run your own business, I'm preaching to the choir in terms of expenses, contingency, etc.

From my own objective position, I think if you keep the two key tenants of delivering on time (unlike tradesman who've become despised in this country), and customer service are what will get and retain the premium customers. I'm currently working a similar part-time business (not competing with yours ) on those principles, and although it makes the work a little tougher, the word-of-mouth effect is fantastic.

dvdfan

Thanks Seamus,

did you take a look at the logmein link with the prices. Am i right at only $99 per month or is there hidden costs do you think??

I agree with you on getting the job done on time, i have two good things in my favour, i will be on time and i have a tendency to go above and beyond what people ask me to do which should help in repeat customers and a small bit of word of mouth. I dont do this for extra money because up until now i used to do this for free for friends and family but i do it because i get satisfaction out of fixing problems. wierd eh!

Good luck in that part time business

seamus

Had a look at it there. Can't see anything hidden in there alright. It may be worth your while giving them a ring, and asking them to send you a mail with more details (customer contract, etc) though.

leftofcentre

I thought about doing this myself in the past. I think there could be good money at it. Give it a shot, you have nothing to lose.

I use www.blive.com but it can be a bit fiddly.