As most of you know I run the Association of Computer Repair Business Owners. Well for some reason Yext has decided to continue their sales strategy by calling members and saying they are somehow associated with the Association. This could be no further from the truth.

They have said previously “they were working with the ACRBO to find local PC repair shops”, they also have said “ACRBO provided me with your contact information”.  Lastly the claim was “since the majority of our techs are ACRBO members”. Well none of those statements are true.

I could be wrong but this is not the correct way to gardner a realtionship that you plan on lasting.  Starting off with a lie to obtain business is  pretty much wrong on all levels.

So once again I call Yext www.yext.com and talk to them about this and the practices they are deploying. Of course it takes forever to get the “right person”. Then I am told it won’t happen anymore (been told that before). Then I am told it does not matter becuase they are getting out of the computer repair business anyway. Now my response to that was “If you are getting out of the computer repair business then it makes no sense to call people”….Long pause….Then it came “Well that is not until September”. So again making no sense whatsoever is Yext. I guess call people until September get them signed up and then drop that service? Again, crazy way to do business.

My suggestion to Yext is if you want to scour list that is fine but don’t make up things when you call business owners in an attempt to deceive them….The truth does come out.

Dan Martin, Technology Division, YEXT please don’t reference ACRBO in your conversations anymore.

Dan
ACRBO.com

I was recently contacted by a computer business owner in regards to joining the Associaton of Computer Repair Business OWners (acrbo.com). The reason they contacted me was they had tried to join a forum for computer business owners and was declined due to not being registered in their state for at least one year.

So the question to me was “Is there a requirement that one has to be registered in their state for a year”?, “Or any other requirements”? Now this made me thing “Maybe we need some stringent requirements”….But, then reality set in and I realized no we don’t. The Association is for all business owners that feel as though they might benefit from the Association or feel that they can contribute to the Assocation. If you want to call it a “requirement” you can but what we do require is that you abide by a “Code of Conduct” in all your business dealings. To me that keeps it simple and it’s a personal preference if you feel that you can abide by them.

The thought of setting specific requirements to me is rather foolish for a number of reasons. First, when I started my business I had 20 years of experience in the industry. I worked on million dollar networks, and managed many others. So in the above case I would not be eligible to be part of that forum. Why? Becuase I was not registered in my state long enough? What is to say that the person who has been registered for a mere year does not only have “one year” of experience. What makes that business owner a better canidate then myself? To me it is a rather foolish way of doing things.

I am thinking maybe i’ll change the Association so anyone who wants to join has to meet the following requirements:

1. Your business has to be registered for at least 5 years
2. Your business has to be a corporation (no sole proprietorships or llc’s allowed)
3. Business insurance to include E&O Insurance
4. Tax statements showing at least 100K each and every year
5. At least 2 full-time employees
6. At least 1 company vehicle
7. Signed lease for at least the last 3 years of busienss showing you have a storefront

Granted I am only going to end up with let’s say about a dozen members but what a treat it will be. We can all visit the forum and tell each other how great we are and how much we respect each other for meeting the stringent requirements to join….

Wait…Another thought just crossed my mind……

How about if I keep the Association the way it is, and welcome all business owners, no matter the years of experience in the Assocaiation and help them grown their business. Or better yet, we continue to allow all owners into the Association and listen and hear what new innovative ideas they have to build a business model.

Don’t ever forget “everyone” has to start somewhere….”Seclusiveness” does not always mean better…

Dan
Association of Computer Repair Business Owners

Burning Bridges

Some of you that are not youngsters probably have heard these words at some point or another. Typically it’s used in sentences such
as “Don’t burn any bridges”…Basically what that means is to think before you do something because if you don’t you won’t be able
to correct it.

Now, don’t get me wrong in my 40+ years I have “burned bridges” and even pulled a “Bridge on the River Kwai” (if you have never seen
it great WW II movie), where I went well past the burning of the bridge.

In hindsight I have never looked back as any that I burned and wished I could correct or made amends. That is not to say it is a good thing, burning any bridge is never a good thing in life or in business. Maybe if I had burned them in my earlier years I would of had regret due
to a number of situations that can arise. That is why it’s so very important to make the “right” decisions before you do anything
with the full understanding that there are consequences to everything.

Bottom line is most times in life, if you make a decision, then you best be willing to stick to it.

Not sure what they are? Here is the easy definition from Wiki:

A QR Code is a matrix code (or two-dimensional bar code) created by Japanese corporation Denso-Wave in 1994. The “QR” is derived from “Quick Response”, as the creator intended the code to allow its contents to be decoded at high speed.

You may have already noticed that some places in your area have started using QR Codes, and if you have not noticed any then stand by because you will. QR Codes are starting to pick up alot in the U.S. but it will be some time before it catches on like it has in Japan and other countries.

QR Codes put in simple terms is an instant identification, ad, opportunity, or anything else that you are trying to get across to others. Now with the latest version of Google’s Android and Nodia’s Symbian OS including the pre-installed QR Readers it will pick up even easier. Others will still have to install a “free” QR Reader on their phone.

You can see from this article that Google Maps has picked up on it and you can read what TechCrunch has to say about it.

It’s really a rather simple concept and now is the time to prepare. Publishers and advertisers who believe QR Codes are limited to Japan, or to young hipsters, should remember how odd it first seemed to hear about reading emails on cell phones.

Heres our QR Code for the Computer Repair Blog

Computer Repair Blog QR Code

Recently had a “potential” customer meet with me about doing what he referred to as a website. So I met with him went out things about his business and then he asked “So you do websites right?”…My answer was “no what I do is create a web presence”…

Now some of you might think what in the heck is that, so i’m going to explain it to you. Anyone and I do mean just about anyone can create a website. My child created on in I think 8th grade. So yes when I say anyone I mean exactly that.

Now a “web presence” is someone who can not only create a website but can make it so people can actually find the site. An example is if your domain name is “my business website” and someone goes to google and types in “my business website” and that comes up on the 1st page of the search. That is all fine and good but it does nothing for that business. Having that happen typcially will not bring in new business to the person and that is the goal.

If done correctly someone should be able to type in the company name and find the company. If the company specialized in say “pool” they should be able to type in “pools City Name”, “city name pools”, “pool maintenenace City Name”, “City name pool maintenance” etc. There should be quite a few variartions in order to find that company in particular.

I am a firm believer that every company needs a web presence not a website. You need to be able to differentiate between them. If you are going to provide this service make sure you know what you are doing or have a JV with someone that can make sure you are able to deliver these items. Nothing is worse than creating a “website” for a person and they do not make any monies off of it.

Backups….You tell customers that word over and over again yet you still find people out there that do not backup their data properly.

How many times have you told a customer about backing up their files? Sometimes you go as far as giving them a flash drive and explain how to use it or demonstrate it for them only to have them come back to you about lost data.

I actually think people do not realize that it can happen to them. I can’t count the amount of times I have had customers lose their data due to hardware damage and either they can’t recover it or it’s cost a small fortune to recover it.

For that reason alone you need to get your customers on an online backup program. Yes, I know of the “great concern” about online backups and security/protection and everything else that goes with it. But, seriously do your customers really have to be concerned with online security? These big online companies are all to familiar with security matters and do have procedures in place.

Now what it comes down to is a product to use. I am all for white labeling a product and using that for your customers. Yes there are the big boys out there such as Mo** and Carb***** etc….But, the difference between those companies and your company that might charge a few more dollars is your customer knows “you”….They can not pick up the phone and talk to the person they are accustomed to talking to when calling those other companies. They can’t fee that security they have knowing “their” IT person is not the one they are talking to.

You need to be that all-in-one person for them to use and that inclused online backups.

Paradigm Shifts for Techs: Managed Services Part 1
by Derek R. Iannelli, IT Strategist, Progressive Integrations, Inc.,

When I ‘closed’ my first M&S agreement (maintenance & support), I thought I finally figured it out, and if I could sell enough of them, our business would making the American Dream come true. That was 10 years ago.

Until this past year, I still had the same thoughts regarding M&S agreements until our economy started to affect our clients too. Instead of the fluidity or automatic renewal agreements (essentially blocks of hours for them to use whatever way they wanted), I noticed a change in our maintenance appointments first. They started to turn them down because they wanted to save their hours. What ended up happening, no matter what type of convincing argument I had, was it inevitably turned into a B/F (break-fix, one-shot, one-kill) situation, and in some cases I cannot get them back on the phone or to schedule an appointment to do much needed maintenance.

A friend of mine told me about managed services (he ironically was managing one of our clients – we also do AV work) and for him, it was cheaper to pay us for a block of hours to do hardware transitions and setups (because a plane ticket and his hourly rate were twice mine), so he actually made money on me doing his leg work. Long story short, he mentioned that for him to leave his desk cost him money and had I ever considered managed services. Our business models were different, he did SMB and ours are primarily SOHO. I was hesitant at first because most of our clients are high-end home owners and non-profits. I figured I might be able to roll out managed services to a few of the more extensive ones but was resistant in that, I did not see home owners paying a monthly fee, per machine to take care of their computers. Here is what I discovered. I was an idiot…but only for a short time.

Disclaimer: Because of my understanding of the ACRBO Code of Ethics, what I am about to share is based upon my personal experience and may not be the same results or even the correct perception as they occurred. This information is being offered as informational only and in the heart of SHARING to help you become successful by understanding a core issue: “No one gets extra credit for climbing the mountain when there is an elevator next door.” Essentially, what I am going to be sharing could potentially cause you to rethink your tech business and because of my mistakes, you don’t have to do them, your results maybe even better. There are no promises however.

Background: I left full-time Christian ministry in 2007, one of the hats I wore was Technology Director. I have extensive experience with, owning a Computer Repair Business before ministry as well as some sales experience, and network marketing. I say all of this, because, it gives a foundation to where some of my thoughts are coming from.

When I came on staff with Progressive Integrations, Inc., I first was hired to set up and maintain their proprietary CRM solution. It was soon discovered that I might be able to fix a few other things too, while working on the database. LSS, I ended up taking care of the network. After I got the network to a manageable level, revamped their website, and installed a few consumer networks, I sat down with the owners and discussed adding another business unit, an IT Department. Progressive Integrations, Inc., was primarily an AV (audio-video) integrations company and I was discovering that more and more networking and pc/mac based devices were being asked for and implemented. We discussed the new IT Division, and I told them of my background with 2 other repair businesses I had, and said it had been a bit since then and I would need to do some research. They saw the need and told me to take it by the reins and let’s see what would happen. My research led me to Computer Repair Business Lessons Learned and Technibble. I devoured Daniel’s book and Bryce’s material, and for the most part, I knew and implemented already all of those things in my previous businesses and for me, I needed an out of the box kit, so I downloaded all the forms and customized them and started rolling them out. I also signed on with TechRepublic and about 6 other portal publications as well as the main AV publications and continued to monitor the industry.

At my 1-yr anniversary, I had developed roughly 100 clients with both B/F and M&S agreements and as a one man show, had the great asset of our AV installers who are involved in all 3 phases of construction (pre-trim, trim, final) and are cabling masters! I had set up VAR accounts with Cisco, Microsoft, Dell, and many others. Let me say, I am not a super sales guy. I just tell the people the truth and don’t ‘nickle-n-dime’, you either pay what we are offering or you go get it somewhere else. Most of our clients are willing to pay for the services and solutions and because of their demographic we do not have much comparison shopping. Also, I had a warm pool of over 1000 leads from the AV side and many of them have PC/Macs. Previously the owners had been referring to another local repair business, now we started getting flooded with people who were excited that they could have all their technology in their homes handled by one vendor. Because we have high integrity, are fair, and do great work, the homeowners of our area started talking; word of mouth advertising is the best marketing tool I have right now.

As you can imagine I stay pretty busy, but as I stated at the beginning of the article, I was an idiot. I am now at the end of my second year with Progressive Integrations, Inc., with roughly around 200 clients and looking forward, (actually about 5 months ago) I discovered that business was growing and that I would have to find some way to duplicate my time. Hiring a tech is not an option as I am just barely covering my salary, van, phone service, and an IT budget. We also informed all of our clients that we are shifting away from B/F and in January 2010, the only offerings (no more M&S agreements) we will have are managed services. We will still offer B/F services, but no discounted rates. We also have our AV side too. Already a little swarm has started (due to some marketing I did with ‘early adopters’ and ‘kudos’ to existing clients) and managed services is up and running. We also just started with our first SMB client. What I am going to share in the next series of articles is how I stopped climbing the mountain and started taking the elevator and managed services is key. Some topics we will be discussing are; educational marketing, daily intentional activities, networking (not the IT kind) to tap into knowledge pools and more.