Does anyone make spare cash by doing basic pc upgrades/fixes/advice etc..

Felix E · 25 Jun 2009 at 17:32

Just finished Uni, back home and broke. Getting some waiting work as I usually do, but was thinking about putting an ad in the local paper to offer basic pc support, upgrades, fixes, advice etc.. just as a little on the side thing.

By no means an expert but I can definitely help people who don't know much, are scared of opening their pc up etc.

does anyone do anything similar and what do you charge? I wouldn't ask for a lot of money as I would want to be cheaper than the little IT shop in town.. I was thinking somewhere above the minimum wage maybe £8-£10 an hour?

Felix

J.B · 25 Jun 2009 at 17:37

I used to when I was at home, there is not a huge demand for it and cannot be relied on. Check the paper and see if theres anyone else doing it.

I used to charge based on the complexity of the job and how far I had to travel as aposed to an hourly rate.

Tom0 · 25 Jun 2009 at 17:38

I think it depends on what you're doing, if you're working your ass off with hardware pratically re-building someones machine £8-£10 p/h is fine. If you're just installing windows or some other software maybe £5-£6 p/h would be more fair.

Duke · 25 Jun 2009 at 17:41

Depends whether people would trust someone who doesn't have insurance or trading as a company.

Antar Bolaeisk · 25 Jun 2009 at 17:59

I do a bit on the side every now and again. For example, two weeks ago I installed some RAM for someone and was up €50 for my trouble. Was only charging them a tenner as it was five minutes "work" and they live next door but they were having none of it as otherwise they siad they would have had to take the entire unit up to the purple shirt place so had saved them an awful lot of time and effort.

Generally I charge according to complexity/time but have a minimum callout fee of €20 which also covers the first hours work ad €10 after that though I generally reduce it depending on what had to be done and if I know the person or not. Friends and family are free of course.

Liquidfox · 25 Jun 2009 at 19:06

£5-£6 per hour is faaar to cheap...

I normally charge £25 for a variety of little things, then if it is more complex i'll give them an estimate. Can be between £30-£50 depending on what i do...

Just look at IT businesses, charging £60 an hour to do anything, just because their tech's get paid £5 an hour doesn't mean you have to when doing it yourself

Duke · 25 Jun 2009 at 19:16

Liquidfox said:
£5-£6 per hour is faaar to cheap...

I normally charge £25 for a variety of little things, then if it is more complex i'll give them an estimate. Can be between £30-£50 depending on what i do...

Just look at IT businesses, charging £60 an hour to do anything, just because their tech's get paid £5 an hour doesn't mean you have to when doing it yourself

Very true. If you only fix one a day (which is probably more than you would expect if just doing it part time?), then you'll be working for £5 a day or something silly.

bledd · 25 Jun 2009 at 19:18

charge £40 minimum, maybe £20 if it's a ~10 minute job

may seem a lot, but you'll just be putting yourself out otherwise, trust me on this!

buy 5x power suplies, 5x ide drives, 5x sata drives, and a few 1gb sticks of DDr1/DDr2

best to get a laptop (any old cheap one will do), and a 'slax' cd

Felix E · 25 Jun 2009 at 20:03

cheers for the advice guys.. I'm only in a small town in devon with various villages surrounding it and there's just one small and expensive IT shop, so I figure it's worth an ad in the local paper at least!

thanks for the help

Felix

philstanbridge · 25 Jun 2009 at 20:05

I charged £45-£60 an hour and would sometimes make a couple of hundred a day, but the work was quite inconsistent. Word of mouth is the best way to get work, and to start out I printed some business cards and advertised in local stores.

GreatAuk · 25 Jun 2009 at 20:12

hmmm don't know anything about it, but seems an interesting idea.

bledd · 25 Jun 2009 at 20:13

Felix E said:
cheers for the advice guys.. I'm only in a small town in devon with various villages surrounding it and there's just one small and expensive IT shop, so I figure it's worth an ad in the local paper at least!

thanks for the help

Felix

st davids is tiny, and I have work coming out of my ears if I want it, I don't even advertise...

word of mouth & free advertising in places like the post office are your best friend

Pestilence · 26 Jun 2009 at 00:52

I know my neighbour would be recommending me to everyone under the sun if I hadn't told her not to.

After doing it in work all day the last thing I want to do is spend my days off doing it again, lol. I do often wonder whether it'd be better to set up my own business though. If you live in an area with a few small villages within proximity it's ripe for the picking.