How to “Kick Start” a Newly Established Computer Repair Business …part 2

Once there was a spiritual sage and his pupil walking through a forest. Across their path ran a hare being chased by a fox. The sage turned to his pupil and asked the student who would win the race.

The student said he favored the fox because he was bigger, stronger and could run faster. The sage shook his head and said the hare would always win because he was running for his life. The fox was merely chasing his dinner.

This story illustrates one of the hurdles facing a proprietor of a newly established computer repair business. Being in the unpleasant position of having to struggle to exist and pull out all stops to generate an income. Before the new owner is one of the most unpleasant tasks known to man. It is the dreaded and disliked chore of direct marketing.

The most pleasant and effective way to introduce a new business to the marketplace is by using the Yellow Pages directory. So what, we heard this all last month!! This month is all about getting started …before the Yellow Pages are published.

This is the make or break period when you don’t have any advertising working for you. What other tools do we have to get started in a computer repair business? These are the options: direct marketing and the conventional media. You can forget about word of mouth advertising as you don’t have that luxury, yet!

Slapping an ad in the local newspaper is no-no. It is a scatter gun high cost method of marketing a business. Just think about it! If you are advertising a computer repair business, the cost is mind blowing. To put display ads in newspapers will break the bank.

To advertise in the classifieds as a business to business service is also expensive and a knee-jerk way of getting the business. What type of business are you going to get? Lousy business I would say. It is all about introducing yourself in a more professional manner. What you need is some sort of vehicle or method to establish new clients.

One technique is to write a free report on an ideal IT setup for a small business. You could make the report interesting, revealing and written in plain simple English.

An excellent suggestion would be to focus on system security and the potential problems in this arena. You could target a range of businesses, ring them, and somehow get them to accept the report by fax, email or post.

Then you could make a follow up call and see if your service is of any benefit to them. When you make the initial call …remember to offer the “alternative choice” method of marketing.

Instead of prompting for a “yes” or “no” reply you ask how they like to receive the info: by fax, email or post. This method will give the best outcome. Don’t expect to get instant results, but by planting the seed and following up with regular newsletters, you will get the business.

The Next Step in Marketing Your Repair Business After the Basic Introduction

Every month you need to keep in contact with your new customers. You know in your private life you have to keep in contact with friends ...or otherwise you lose them. This even applies to relatives. It's the same with a business relationship.

The problem is how to keep in regular contact with your business customers? So your challenge is to form a relationship with these small business owners and be a preferred supplier to them. Even in small towns computer shops have plenty of competition from the direct on-line vendors and city stores.

What you need is a good excuse to contact your past, present and future customers. Contacting your customer directly is something you probably avoid like the plague, actively soliciting new business and acting like a pesky salesperson.

I bet if I followed you around for a week, I would not find you dialing the telephone to cold call, happily knocking on doors or aggressively doing much else to get new customers. Be honest - admit it!

A constant contact newsletter is a perfect way to get a long lasting relationship underway. A monthly bulletin that will help your customers with their needs and at the same time put your promotional material in front of them, at low cost.

Direct Marketing Distaste

Direct marketing is arguably the best way to market a business. The only problem is, it a chore most would avoid. In fact, it is one of the most shunned tasks in human existence.

Most would sooner go bankrupt or find a job and suffer the indignity of working for a boss rather than pick up a phone and talk to a stranger. How do we motivate ourselves into direct marketing?

In my opinion, the only way to complete this distasteful task is by rationalization and goal setting. “Hell, the worst that can happen is they swear and hang up the phone.”

The rationale here is …it is truly the worst that can happen. The other way of motivation is by playing the numbers game. If you make “x” phone calls you get “y” number of sales.