Well I knew this ould inevitably happen. I now have my first disgruntled customer. After spending 12 hours working on his comp, it still isn't working perfectly. In the 3 months since I started up my in-home servicing business, I have yet to reformat & re-install. I've managed to save everyone's installation, no matter how badly corrupted by spyware. Until now.

Here's the situation. His son was using (and still is) Limewire and Ares, two peer-to-peer filesharing programs and the comp got chaulk full of spyware. Consquently, it caused all kinds of problems. Initially, I removed all the spyware and got it working. Then I got a call from him saying his printer isn't working just right. I returned and fixed that. Then I got another call a few days later. His son turned on the comp and went to use Limewire and it came up in arabic! We solved that problem over the phone. Then I got a call from him the other complaining he can't open a mail attachment. We tried to solve it over the phone but it turns out that Windows won't assign "pdf" files to Adobe. I suggested he save pdf docs to his Desktop and open them directly with Adobe Reader. He did't like that. So I returned again, fixed that problem with a repair install. I got a call from him today saying his printer has the old problem again and his Internet is acting funny. Now he's getting seriously pissed and wants to take his comp to Staples to get them to reformat & re-install. I explained to him that that solution is highly undesirable as the store only does the re-installation of Windows and device drivers but leaves it to you to re-install programs, Internet and restore files. Not to mention, all your settings and configurations are gone. He doesn't like that idea. Then he complains, "I don't mind paying the bill, I just want the damn thing to work!"

He's the type of customer that is fickle. When I fix something, he loves me. He pays me, even feeds me beer and wine while I work. But when something doesn't work just right, he's on the phone complaining he paid for something but it's not working. When I get into explanations about the pros and cons of saving the installation versus reformatting/reinstalling, he tunes out. I want to make him understand that in the end, trying to save the installation is a lot less hassle and irritation than reformatting/reinstalling. I know from experience that most customers don't keep their program CDs or lose/misplace them. Worse, they even throw out the case or sleeve with the installation keys. Consequently, it costs then a lot of time, money and aggravation re-installing programs! Then there's the aggravation of setting up your comp exactly the way you had it. I get the impression I can't make him happy in the end.

Trials and tribulations of dealing with general public customers!

Then stop trying.

This guy has taken the proverbial to long and its time to cut him loose, tell him straight that you have done all you can for the PC , but its like a sieve leaking water.

If he wants to take it to staples then let him....

Walk away, you have other customers...

I know you have pride in your work and I respect you for that but is it really worth all the hassle. ?

Regards

Like my dad (who owns a business) says, you need customers like that to appreciate the good ones.

But I do agree with Ididmyc600. When people just won't agree with whatever you recommend, it's probably time to let them go.

Regards :)

Keep the customer, its free booze.

Fire up the XP File and Settings Transfer Wizard and have it save everything, reformat reinstall, fire up the wizard again and import the file you created the first time, and all is well again. Of course you should probably install all those programs he has now, which may be the problem.

You can't please them all. From time to time, you'll always run into people like that. I think it's awesome that you try to do everything you can to salvage their machines rather than jumping straight to the reformat option.

Keep the customer, its free booze.

Fire up the XP File and Settings Transfer Wizard and have it save everything, reformat reinstall, fire up the wizard again and import the file you created the first time, and all is well again. Of course you should probably install all those programs he has now, which may be the problem.

I agree with this completely "if" you want to keep him as a customer. If in the end, this doesn't satisfy him, cut him loose.

Keep the customer, its free booze.

Yeah dude yeah.

Just try really hard to explain to him what's right. If he doesn't listen then ditch him.

(Joy 800 Posts.)

100% success isn't possible.

Got to take the bad with the good.

After a completely free job (reformatting a ten year old celeron full of crap), hunting for the drivers (was quite a job finding them) (he had no driver CDs), paying for the transportation expenses etc., all I got was a cold 'we didn't have that problem before'.

What had happened was that shades of green had appeared on the monitor.

It had been working fine at my place, with a truly beautful display.

Told him to power on & off the monitor a few times. He was very skeptical.

Anyway, he had done as told, and the display become fine, but he didn't even bother to give me that feed back.

Well, the way I handled it was : Buddy, next time call a Support guy, and pay.

Don't come back to me. I aint touching your lousy PC anymore.

Thank you to everyone who replied. I hear ya!

First, I was able to make this disgruntled customer happy in the end. I found a workaround for the latest problem that he was satisfied with. Once I solved something, he's happy again and reasonable. While he was in this mood I then got him to agree that this now ends our current service charge and that if his son continues to use Limewire and Ares, it would be an altogether new charge. <PHEW!> Glad I finally got that resolved. Then the next day I got another call from him. My cellphone displayed his name and I groaned. But I answered it and he immediately said, "Hi Andy? It's your customer from HELL!!" Turns out his Internet wasn't working but after a discussion I advised him to contact the ISP. Turns out it was the ISP. <PHEW!>

Although many of you recommended I cut this guy off, I decided not to. The difference is that he is not the 100% "head-case" type of difficult customer. He is difficult but only in one way. I'm 41 now and although I haven't worked my whole career in customer service positions, I have worked at a number. Unless the person is totally difficult or almost totally difficult, you are to try to find some resolution. If you give up on all difficult customers, it does hurt your bottom line. Anytime you lose a customer, you need to replace him/her. Unless you reach a point where it's hurting your business, i.e. losing potential business because you're spending too much time working on his problems, it's worth it to try to find a way to please him/her. Since I'm early in my new business, I have lots of time. Moreover, he's only difficult 10% of time, otherwise, he's terrific! He feed me beer and wine while I work!! WOO-HOO!!

It's only the truly difficult customers you give up on. Once it becomes apparent they can't be satisfied or are taking complete advantage of you, you drop them. You're better off spending the time recruiting new customers.

You have a reasonable approach to the problem. Coincidentally, did you read how Sprint handles some its troublesome customers? They dropped them.

It is posted on various sites. Click here (http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7007844280) for one.

Thx for the article!

Yeah, it's pretty much my approach. You drop a customer if they're costing you business. In business terms it's called "opportunity cost" You could be making more money by not having this difficult customer.

The article reminds me of a friend of mine who once worked at a bank. This was 20 years ago when ATMs were new but not as popular as they are today. Most still went to a real teller at the bank. She complained that there was this couple who routinely came in every month with their bank statements. Each would tie up a teller for an hour arguing every service charge on the statement. Fianlly, the bank sent them a letter saying they were closing their accounts. Their behaviour was hurting their business, making other customers wait (not to mention driving the staff up the wall!)

I once worked at a Dell call centre as a tech agent and was surprised at my experience! I expected to get 1 or 2 irate, nasty, abusive customers per shift. SHOCKER!! I got 1 or 2 per month!! Far, far, far lower than I expected. Don't get me wrong, I had many customers in a foul mood because their comp didn't work or were getting a run around by Dell. But they wouldn't take it out on you. Most people are reasonable, more or less. They know enough not to blame the person they're talking to because it's an organizational problem.

Getting back to my former disgruntled customer, I should point out a few reasons I wanted to stick with him.

First, he's paid me TWICE from one initial call. Initially he had bad spyware as his son uses two p2p fileshare programs and downloads heavily. My approach is to make every atempt to save an installation rather than resort to reformatting/re-installating. He responded favourably everytime I fixed a problem. Since I put a lot of time into it over 3 visits, he paid me for a second call. This makes him a "repeat" customer which any business person will tell you is the best customer of all! The problem started when he would call back after finding some annoying little problem. But he insisted he wanted it fixed, "I don't mind paying the bill, I just want the damn thing to work!" But I would fix that, then he would discover another problem. Finally, I re-iterated what I told him on the first visit, that I may not be able to repair everything corrupted by the spyware, not without reformatting and re-installing everything which is less desirable for him. Then he would tune out and complain. Still, in most cases he was fair and reasonable. I felt it was worth it to keep him rather than lose him. Plus, I'm early in my new biz so I have time. It was just annoying when he wouldn't listen in that one case and complained. But I found a way in the end to satisfy him.

You should tell your customer's son to delete the P2P programs and stop downloading alot because those are probably what caused all the problems in the 1st place.

There is lots of good advice from these people, listen to them and do get your spirits down. Retail always has its bad apples.

You should tell your customer's son to delete the P2P programs and stop downloading alot because those are probably what caused all the problems in the 1st place.

That's what I did alright! I told him from here on if his con continues to use p2p then it's an altogether new charge.

There is lots of good advice from these people, listen to them and do get your spirits down. Retail always has its bad apples.

I hope you meant "don't get your spirits down". I wasn't really feeling down, just dreading that "difficult" customer I knew I was inevitably going to encounter.

BTW, I'm not in retail. I do in-home computer servicing.

I hope you meant "don't get your spirits down".

:haha: Yeah I think he meant that instead, typos suck :(

If you are interested, here is what I often do to solve this type of problem:
You need a spare hdd, and you need to buy Move Me from spearit.com. Clone the customers hdd to your spare hdd, this will become the 'old' drive. Format customers hdd and re-install Windows, this will become the 'new' drive.
Then follow these instructions: http://www.spearit.com/new_drive.html.
I've done this many times and it's always been very successful. Just include the $40 into you charge. It's worth ever penny, as you don't need to try and find all his data and settings, plus you can move all the worthwhile programs across. Just my 2 cents worth, if you're interested. I'm sure other guys here have other great methods as well.

I too run a small in-home based computer repair business. I have had about 200 customer repairs in the last 2 years. Several customers have refered me to others. 2 families call me their personal computer repairman, including aunts, uncles, and cousins. I have had a few disgruntled customers (you really can't please everyone) that I have done what I can, and dropped them. Some of my customers pay be in dollars and beer!

I do make some house calls

I have found that it takes much more time to try and save data than it does to do a clean install. Most of my customers back up their important data for me. Most are glad to get rid of all the "crud" and have a good working computer once again

I too run a small in-home based computer repair business.

Alleyullah! Someone I can get real feedback from! Finally!!

I have had about 200 customer repairs in the last 2 years. Several customers have refered me to others. 2 families call me their personal computer repairman, including aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Yeah, I was surprised how quickly I get the repeat and referrals! Once you show people what you can do for them, the cheque book flips open and the repeat & referrals start flowing! I've got some really happy customers so far! The hard part is convincing people to try you. A home computer is often just a toy or convenience for most and they are reluctant to put money into it. As homeowners they have many other higher priority repairs/improvements to put their money into. The comp is low on the list so they put it off or try to get someone they know who'll fix it for them for free. But once you get in the door and start fixing things and improving things, they just LOVE it!! I've had some customers pay for more work immediately!

I have had a few disgruntled customers (you really can't please everyone) that I have done what I can, and dropped them.

That's the tricky part. When it's the "Class A" difficult customer who can't be pleased, it's academic to drop them. It's the other type of difficult customers who are pleased at first then turn on you. You feel obliged to try to get them happy again.

Some of my customers pay be in dollars and beer!

I've also gotten wine, pizza and watch the Ottawa Senators playoff hockey while working!! WOO-HOO!! This biz does have perks!!

I do make some house calls

Right now, 95% of my biz is in-home. I expect my phone service to kick in by the fall. I've had a few so far.

I have found that it takes much more time to try and save data than it does to do a clean install. Most of my customers back up their important data for me. Most are glad to get rid of all the "crud" and have a good working computer once again

Again, I am reluctant to reformat & re-install for a number of reasons. What I do is explain to the customer upfront the pros and cons of each approach, save the installation vs reformat/re-isntall. Yes, some customers opt for the reformat & re-install if they don't have anything truly valuable on the comp. Then again, I've spent 10 hours rescuing some person's installation and they agree to pay be an extra service charge for being so dedicated!

I think the real point is to make the customer decide which they want up front. I personally prefer saving the installation because it's far less hassle for the customer as most businesses only reformat & re-install Windows and device drivers then leave it to the customer to re-install programs and files. Plus, the customer is not setup for anti-spyware which usually was the problem in the first place. I noticed at the call centre, persons who had a reformat/re-install due to spyware were back a second, even third time because the previous tech agents didn't advise them anti-spyware to prevent the situation again.

If you are interested, here is what I often do to solve this type of problem:
You need a spare hdd, and you need to buy Move Me from spearit.com. Clone the customers hdd to your spare hdd, this will become the 'old' drive. Format customers hdd and re-install Windows, this will become the 'new' drive.
Then follow these instructions: http://www.spearit.com/new_drive.html.
I've done this many times and it's always been very successful. Just include the $40 into you charge. It's worth ever penny, as you don't need to try and find all his data and settings, plus you can move all the worthwhile programs across. Just my 2 cents worth, if you're interested. I'm sure other guys here have other great methods as well.

Yes, that's one approach. Mine is to advise them to get an image backup utility with an external hard drive. It's more flexible.

Thank you to everyone who replied. I hear ya!

First, I was able to make this disgruntled customer happy in the end. I found a workaround for the latest problem that he was satisfied with. Once I solved something, he's happy again and reasonable. While he was in this mood I then got him to agree that this now ends our current service charge and that if his son continues to use Limewire and Ares, it would be an altogether new charge. <PHEW!> Glad I finally got that resolved. Then the next day I got another call from him. My cellphone displayed his name and I groaned. But I answered it and he immediately said, "Hi Andy? It's your customer from HELL!!" Turns out his Internet wasn't working but after a discussion I advised him to contact the ISP. Turns out it was the ISP. <PHEW!>

Although many of you recommended I cut this guy off, I decided not to. The difference is that he is not the 100% "head-case" type of difficult customer. He is difficult but only in one way. I'm 41 now and although I haven't worked my whole career in customer service positions, I have worked at a number. Unless the person is totally difficult or almost totally difficult, you are to try to find some resolution. If you give up on all difficult customers, it does hurt your bottom line. Anytime you lose a customer, you need to replace him/her. Unless you reach a point where it's hurting your business, i.e. losing potential business because you're spending too much time working on his problems, it's worth it to try to find a way to please him/her. Since I'm early in my new business, I have lots of time. Moreover, he's only difficult 10% of time, otherwise, he's terrific! He feed me beer and wine while I work!! WOO-HOO!!

It's only the truly difficult customers you give up on. Once it becomes apparent they can't be satisfied or are taking complete advantage of you, you drop them. You're better off spending the time recruiting new customers.

Very well put. You have a great business mentality and even though it's early in your new business it sounds like you are doing pretty well for yourself. Keep up the great work!

This question is intended for almcneil and Tmagic650:

How do you determine your rates for repairs?

This is a VERY good question! There are several interesting points I used to formulate mine.

First, I based it on my experience when I worked at a Dell call centre in 2005. I used to be a high tech engineer but tech collapsed in 2001 and by mid-2003 I got laid off. They opened a Dell call centre at Ottawa, Canada in mid-2004 and I eventually took a job there. The call centre offered PC software/system support for home and home office users. Their pricing policy when I joined was as follows. They offerred a "per incident" fee to solve one problem, basically a flat rate. When I started it had just gone from US$29 to US$39. They also offerred 1 to 4 year support packages. Over the next 8 months, the "per incident" went all the way to US$99!! Meanwhile, the yearly support packages went from 1 to 4 years, to 1 or 2 year, to 1 year, then was cancelled outright. This meant that home users only wanted "pay as you go" pricing packages. It also showed that when homeowners wanted something fixed, they would pay whatever.

The next point is my experience. I decided to mimick the call centre pricing policies but with a bit of a twist. I offer a "Door Crasher Special" at $99. It's in-home in which I charge $99 flat rate to fix a principle problem. It also comes with 4 guarantees. First, if I can't fix the problem or do the job (i.e. installation), they don't have to pay. I guarantee 60 minutes minimum service so if it's a quick fix, I continue working on other items up to at least 60 minutes. It's a guaranteed flat rate so if it takes me 10 hours, it's still $99! Fianlly, if they are not pleased with my work, they can opt not to pay. If they do pay, I give them a free telephone support call. Now, on subsequent in-home calls, it's $129 daytime and $169 evening (my prime time since it's home market.) For telephone support, it's $69 per incident after an initial paid visit. I'm hoping my repeat business will be more telephone with is economical for both the customer and myself.

Here's the surprising part. No one's haggled with me over my prices (yet!) When customer book a call, they just pay the bill. Even on the repeat, they pay the $169!! Never haggle or complain about the price. I believe that because they decide to use the service, they accept whatever the price is. It's an all or nothing sort of thing. The price point is not an issue. I guess compared to other servicing like plumbing or air conditioning, I'm cheap!

$45 diagnostic charge repaired or not. PC's $125 plus parts... Laptops $150 plus parts... house call $25 extra, added to the above

All you can do is be honest as possible, present the options as fully as you can and have the customer choose one. I'm going to ramble a bit after reading just the first few replies...

I base my entire computer repair operation on candid honesty and doing 'the right thing' even if it costs me; however, some people are really difficult to work with. Even when you think you're doing the right thing by doing something extra or a favor, you find out you are actually doing the wrong thing for yourself and even sometimes for the customer. The 'Customer first' philosophy is great in an ideal world, but putting others on a higher platform creates many unforeseen issues. Always try to keep it real and keep your customers on an equal footing... Treat yourself and your customers equally well and you'll do fine (for the most part).

With no charge, I often do things like drive 30 miles on the Los Angeles freeways to deliver systems to sweet old ladies or offer to fix issues that aren't under warranty etc... But sometimes it bites you right in the **** because people abuse you and they often times don't know any better.

It seems very unlikely ALL of those issues were related to your work. This sound like an example of a customer taking advantage of you (almost certainly unknowingly). Customers forget exactly what it is that you were supposed to fix and don't understand computers well enough to reason out reasonable and unreasonable consequences.

Sadly, that is the very reason I've created an elaborate "Terms of Service and Warranty" agreement printed in triplicate using tiny font which is to be signed before any work is performed. :( I hate it, but there's been a couple of times where I've had to put my foot down do the right thing for myself.

</SOAPBOX>

This question is intended for almcneil and Tmagic650:

How do you determine your rates for repairs?

It depends on your area. Costs can vary greatly according to your areas specific needs, wants and competition. In my situation, I have to compete with a zillion computer companies in Los Angeles.

I charge $45/hr OR a flat-rate for common projects, which ever is the least expensive for my customers. My prices tend to look VERY similar to Tmagic650's ($150 for things like laptop soldering, $20 on-site fee, $45 diagnostic - non refundable). Most on-site desktop jobs end up being between $87.50-$155 and quick, on-site things like setting up wireless encryption, typical upgrades or software installs fall into the $45 cateogry, typically.

My prices are on the low-side, which affords me substantial business but 'cheap' customers. ;) If you did work in exclusively in Beverly Hills, for example (which I also do, actually), then you could easily charge $120/hr and cater to a more 'elite' crowd. But then you have to deal with people who expect a lot and are quick to resort to litigation, so pick your target audience carefully.

...

It seems very unlikely ALL of those issues were related to your work. This sound like an example of a customer taking advantage of you (almost certainly unknowingly). Customers forget exactly what it is that you were supposed to fix and don't understand computers well enough to reason out reasonable and unreasonable consequences.

Sadly, that is the very reason I've created an elaborate "Terms of Service and Warranty" agreement printed in triplicate using tiny font which is to be signed before any work is performed. :( I hate it, but there's been a couple of times where I've had to put my foot down do the right thing for myself.

</SOAPBOX>

Sounds like you've been burned a few times.

Here's my limited experience between my 8 months as a tech agent at Dell and 3 months running my own biz. By far the majority of home customers are honest and reasonable. Now I admit there is a wide margin of "reasonable" but, even if there is a dispute you often find a compromise. Case in point is my recent disgruntled customer. I did, in the end, find a compromise and got him to agree to finally draw the line on the current service call. Most home customers don't want a big hassle either. Also, you do need to re-evaluate your own expectations of what to the customer is entitled to. But, in my 8 months at Dell, I found I only encountered 1 or 2 truly "unreasonable" customers per MONTH!! I thought I'd get 2 per shift! But avergaing 15 calls per shift, 5 days a week but only getting 1 or 2 "unreasonable" customers per month, that's 0.46% of customers that I couldn't satisfy somehow. So far in my 3 months doing my own in-home biz, I have yet to encounter someone truly reasonable. In fact, everyone has been wonderful, even this recent disgruntled customer once I found a conpromise. Hey, he feed me beer and wine!!

It's all in how you setup your service, what your expectations are and how to ahndle disagreements. I admit, at some point I'm going to have a truly unreasonable, difficult customer. Worst case, just refund them their money and drop them from my list.

...

My prices are on the low-side, which affords me substantial business but 'cheap' customers. ;) If you did work in exclusively in Beverly Hills, for example (which I also do, actually), then you could easily charge $120/hr and cater to a more 'elite' crowd. But then you have to deal with people who expect a lot and are quick to resort to litigation, so pick your target audience carefully.

I'd re-think your pricing policies. Based on my experience, albeit limited and in a different locale, homeowners by and large don't price compare on service. They do on computer purchases but not on service. Let me give some examples.

My Dell call centre experience is the best example. When I started there, the price for fixing a single problem had just gone from US$29 to US$39. Now that's a flat charge, no matter how long it took. It then went to $49 a month later. Then it went to $59 the next. When it hit $69, I thought that was the max anyone would realisticly pay for telephone support. Then it went to $79!! Dell them opened another call centre in India to handle spyware calls we were getting flooded with. Then it went to $89!!! Dell then opened a small call centre in Virginia to handle still excessive call volume. Then the price hit $99!!!!! I was dumbfounded!! Well, people were paying it!! So, the two points out of this is, home users want "pay as you go" and "flat rate".

Next is my biz and I notice that no one haggles me over price. My "Door Crasher" is CAN$99, flat rate. On repeat, it's CAN$129 daytime, CAN$169 evening. Again, no one haggles me or complains about it. They just pay it. Now, my prices come with guarantees. I must fix the problem or succeed in doing the task or they don't have to pay. I've had one so far like that but it was because they required a new DVD drive and I don't carry an inventory of parts. But I worked an arrangement that they will pay me to setup their new comp (decided to just buy a new comp.) Back on topic, even when I go door-to-door canvassing for business, I've had 4 persons either haggle me or complain about my prices. That's out of 1,500 persons I've spoken too!! When it comes to the repair service biz, people don't price compare.

My third example is a collegue who owned an independent comp store. He was moaning about how hard it was to compete with the big box stores and he was scrapping to get by. I noticed his minimum repair service charge was CAN$25. I suggested to him to up that to $50 but he was afraid customers would go to the big box stores who listed CAN$25 as their minimum. Finally, after nagging him for a month, he did it. Just after a few weeks he smiled and said, "It's working!!" I then nagged him about his list of installation service charges. In particular, he charged CAN$10 for installing memory. I told him make everything at least $25!! He did and confessed it worked. The reason is that when it comes to service charges, people don't price compare. It's too petty and not worth the time and effort. So long as it's not ridiculous ($200 to install a $99 RAM chip!), people won't haggle or complain.

So, the lessons I've learned about the comp service biz:


everything flat rate
pay as you go (no service plans)
don't worry about price comparing, charge what you feel it's really worth


You'd be surprised how easily home users will pay! I had one customer that I saved their installation. It took 4 visits, 12 hours and even took their PC to my place while they went on vacation to work on it. I pointed out the serious hassle I saved them by geting around the reformat/re-install (they couldn't find all their program CDs). I politely *ASKED* if they would pay an additional in-home charge for my efforts. NOT A PROBLEM!! They gladly did it!!

I was born with Cerebral Palsy. I can get around pretty easily and I am married to a wonderful woman. With 37 years of Electronics/computer experience, I found it easy to start a home based computer repair service. I started strictly by word of mouth. My first customers were among the disabled and elderly sector of people. Hence all the eMachines work.

I once repaired a computer for free. The lady had terminal cancer. She used the computer to communicate with her family and friends. She died 3 months later.

I set up home networks. Both wired and wireless. I can usually supply the hardware and get the customers to do the physical setup.

I have 2 laptops here right now. One has been repaired and I have been waiting over 30 days for the customer to pick it up. She owes $100. She said she will pick it up tomorrow. The other laptop has been diagnosed and the repair has been aproved for $375. I'm going to replace the motherboard in a Gateway notebook. She doesn't have the money right now, so I have to wait, for a month or two. The notebook is totally dead...

So do you guys ever find yourselves 'secret shopping' your competitors to see where their rates are compared to yours? Or is it just as you see fit and who cares what the others are charging?

I can actually see all 3 (almcneil's, Tmagic650's, & Rick's) points of view. But it sounds like no matter what, you have to be pretty flexible (I guess to a point) when taking these service calls?

So do you guys ever find yourselves 'secret shopping' your competitors to see where their rates are compared to yours? Or is it just as you see fit and who cares what the others are charging?

Yes and no. I have looked at what competitors charge. It's more about the structure and policy than the exact price. For instance, Geek Squad charges a flat rate depending on the type of problem. Nerds on Site (formerly Nerds on Wheels) have a minimum charge and the agent haggles with the customer before hand what additional charges there will be depending on what problems need to be fixed. Some charge by the hour regardless of the problem. I'm the only one, at least local to where I do business, that has a guaranteed work policy. I don't charge if I can't fix it or get it working. It varies widely.

I can actually see all 3 (almcneil's, Tmagic650's, & Rick's) points of view. But it sounds like no matter what, you have to be pretty flexible (I guess to a point) when taking these service calls?

I don't see mine as flexible, rather haggle-free, hassle-free. The customer know what the exact service charge will be but has the protection in place if I can't get it fixed or working. Also, no matter how long I take, the service charge remains the same. I really like it.

Sorry, I have been away from TechSpot for a few days.

It's interesting to hear the different ways to run this one type of service (in-home computer repair service). And looking at the customer side of things....Haggle-Free is good. I wish other things were that way.

You should tell your customer's son to delete the P2P programs and stop downloading alot because those are probably what caused all the problems in the 1st place.
Exactly. Tell the little pissant to quit using P2P programs and undermining the work constantly being redone. People can be so stupid.

Exactly. Tell the little pissant to quit using P2P programs and undermining the work constantly being redone. People can be so stupid.

That's the maddening part of being the professional dealing with a customer. Getting them to do the *RIGHT* thing is like screaming at brick wall!!

I recall a conversation with my doctor once. I had already gained 11 lbs when I hit middle age then gained another 11 lbs when he put me on a medication. It officially put me overweight for the first time in my life. He asked me to lose the overweight pounds. I arrived back in his office 6 weeks later and proclaimed that I lost 15 lbs, putting me well below what he asked. He smiled and then asked me to guess how many of his patients actually do what he advises them. I guessed 30%. He replied, "Actually, less than 10%!" He then went to explain it doesn't matter what the issue is, weight, smoking, drinking, illicit drugs, ... the patients never do what has says. At least, until something terrible happens *THEN* they finally do it. He gave the example of the alcoholic. "It isn't until he loses his job, his wife, his house, his car, ... and he destitute, *THEN* he gives up the bottle!"

It officially put me overweight for the first time in my life. He asked me to lose the overweight pounds. I arrived back in his office 6 weeks later and proclaimed that I lost 15 lbs, putting me well below what he asked. He smiled and then asked me to guess how many of his patients actually do what he advises them. I guessed 30%. He replied, "Actually, less than 10%!"

:haha: yeah, Most people usually don't listen untill something bad happens, if people listened in the 1st place nothing would ever go wrong :)

He gave the example of the alcoholic. "It isn't until he loses his job, his wife, his house, his car, ... and he destitute, *THEN* he gives up the bottle!"


Hic Hic im shupposed to giz up drinkingg when this happens ??

:haha: yeah, Most people usually don't listen until something bad happens, if people listened in the 1st place nothing would ever go wrong :)

If people listened to their doctors, we wouldn't have so many doctors!

If people listened to the experts, we wouldn't have so many deaths, bankruptcies, divorces, firings, ... It's called HUMAN NATURE! We won't do something unless it's enjoyable or we've experienced the downside of what happens when we don't!

If people listened to their doctors, we wouldn't have so many doctors!

If people listened to the experts, we wouldn't have so many deaths, bankruptcies, divorces, firings, ... It's called HUMAN NATURE!

Social Darwinism! Dontcha just love it? In my neighborhood they thin the herd with 9mm pistols. What kills the listen to the experts theory is that the pistoleros are all experts at something. Just ask them, whoops too late.