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.

Was reading an article today on the importance of “local listings”. If you are not already doing it you need to set some time aside each day and review how you are using the Intenet to boost your business.

If you are thinking the word “marketing” and Internet is not included in that thinking then you need to rethink your marketing plan.

Out of all the advertising avenues you can take the Internet is the cheapest and can be the most profitable if used correctly.

Here is a fact: “Over 75% of searches for local businesses & services occur online”.

Are you maximizing your online presence?

Great read here

The Association of Computer Repair Business Owners “www.Acrbo.com” has added a new site to it’s portal for computer repair business owners. We are proud to announce it’s newest site TechSupportQA.com “Technical Support and Questions & Answers”.

Unlike your typical forums, this site is simply for “Questions & Answers”, no small talk, no chit-chat. The added benefit is you can provide “Video & Audio” to it vice just text.

The site is TechSupportQA.com and stands for “Technical Support Questions & Answers”. Unlike other sites that are your typical Q&A sites there is “NO” fee for this site. You gain points for each question, each answer and “best” answer. There are a lot of techs out there with great knowledge and enjoy sharing with others. This site rewards you for that.

TechSupportQA:

Question/Answer
Video & Audio
Ratings System
SEO Optimized
Customization
Facebook/Twitter Integration

Having maintained over 50 websites for the past few years we have finally taken the plunge and started our own hosting company. The thought of starting it was planned for quite some time, it was just a matter of putting it into effect.

You would think starting a hosting company would not be all that difficult…wrong   So many things to learn and do that sometimes it was crazy. But, with all that said we are finally done. The business is: Veteran Web Hosting

Like everything else Veteran Web Hosting allows a discount to all members of the Association of Computer Repair Business Owners.

Many of you know Steve Cherubio the creator of PodNutz and you may know him as the guy who puts out those amazing Laptop Repair Video’s.

But, now Steve has come out with the TechSiteBuilder package. This product is specifically built for computer repair technicians/businesses that need to get an Internet presence. This is basically a turn-key operation to use. It comes with everything you need and all you have to do is put your information for yourself or your business into it. I could go into more details but no need, Steve has put a site up and you can see all that comes with the TechSiteBuilder.

Great article on 2009 Internet Stats here

Few things jump out at you. Being in business one of the blocks of number is:

Internet users

* 1.73 billion – Internet users worldwide (September 2009).
* 18% – Increase in Internet users since the previous year.
* 738,257,230 – Internet users in Asia.
* 418,029,796 – Internet users in Europe.
* 252,908,000 – Internet users in North America.
* 179,031,479 – Internet users in Latin America / Caribbean.
* 67,371,700 – Internet users in Africa.
* 57,425,046 – Internet users in the Middle East.
* 20,970,490 – Internet users in Oceania / Australia.

So you don’t have to be a genius to see that no matter where you live there is a massive amount of people using the internet.  That being the case it’s safe to assume there should be plenty of work now and in the future.  The Malicious Code numbers are also pretty impressive especially on a “daily” basis.

Now all that matters is can your cusotmers find you? Are you doing the proper advertising for your business? To me those numbers mean to have a “massive” presence on the Internet in one way shape or form i.e. website(s), social networking, etc.

**Edited 27 jan 2010…
Now “Comptia” has changed their mind, or better yet clarified their position here. Seems now if you do or have done the A+, Net+ or Security Plus on or before 31 Dec 2011 then you are still good for life….

Not surprising that Comptia is finally on board and has changed their policies on how long cerifications are good for. Not sure if I really like this or not. Obviously having all the certifications that they are now changing to a “renewal” policy I am looking at it from that aspect.

I can almost buy off on the Network+ and Security needing to be renewed, but having a difficult time with the A+ needing it. My mindset has always been that there is a progression path to certifications and it was:
A+
Net+
MCP
CCNA
Then you could do the big boys such as MCSE or CCNP etc. I leave security certifications off my list becuase I believe they should come last. Reason I think that is becuase I believe you need to have a firm grasp of computers, networking and OS’s before you can really dive into “security”.

So now that it’s changed it looks like it’s back to the drawing table to renew the certs…or put some thought into it’s even worth dealing with Comptia exams anymore due to the bigger certifications are where the money is at. Maybe i’ll just concentrate on my Microsoft and Cisco exam renewals due to that is what employeers are concentrating on depending on where you are in your career.

You can read more about Comptia’s latest move here

I was at a business clients yesterday. I started working on their network a few months ago and as of yet they have not signed on for a “maintenance contract” which typically I would of been upset with by now but if they do not seem to care I am not going to hound them about it. But, I will bill them for each and every minute I am on site or my technician(s) are on site.

Well yesterday was setup so the “old” computer person they had would come in and try to recover some old data that apparently only he and the owner knew about. They had been running a program to monitor all e-mail traffic and then log it into sql databases.

Well someone should of coordinated better due to the “old” server that had crashed was at another location for a “possible” data recovery job. But, that is the system the guy needed to see if he could get to the sql databases. I looked at the owner and said “well maybe you should of said something this week when I asked you twice if he needed the old server to be here”. So then the owner goes on about trying to recover from old tape backups etc. Old tape backup machine is not even hooked up to the new server. Finally I told the owner I was leaving, no time to guess at things and I don’t do work this way.

Well as i’m walking out the old tech was following me with a stack of papers. I asked what’s up and he said “I am going to leave these invoices on (person’s name left out) desk and hopefully they will get around to paying me. I said they still owe you money? He said ya, from jobs that were done months ago. I said really, they have paid on-time for each and every time we come here. He said they never did that with him and then I thought I misunderstood what he said….I looked at him and said “how much did you just say they owe you?”….He replied $6,000…..WOW….

I could not believe they owed him that much. But, more importantly I could not understand why in the world he would come there to help them. To this business those old files are “very very” important due to a law suite with an ex-partner…So they need this guy….I said to him “why in the world would you help them if they owe you that much money?”…His only answer was “some people think i’m crazy that way”….

Now I know this guy and have talked to him in the past, he actually is a good guy. He tried opening a store-front couple years ago but location was terrible and it didn’t work out. I know him to be a proficient tech….

Whole point of this is I can’t understand for the life of me how a business can allow a client to get 6K into them, and then still do work for them. Even if they are important customers (which all of them should be) nobody should allow their business to be put in this situation. Invoice your customer(s) and if you don’t receive payment in a timly manner pay them a visit. If you do it once you should not have to do it again.

If you notice a recent post has been removed. The reason for removal is simply this “I am done with anyone who is not looking to improve our industry in general”…I have many other things to focus on that I believe will help our industry and the small business owner and that is where I am going to put my efforts in the upcoming year.

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.