How much do you charge.....

daztrouk

daztrouk

daztrouk

Associate
Joined
24 Dec 2005
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811
Location
London
for helping people with their PC issues? Someone has asked me to have a check of their system in a couple of days, they want to upgrade it, but by the sounds of it a new build is in order. Someone else's PC brings up an error message when XP loads. How much would you charge, and how would you work it out? By the hour, or depending on what work needed doing?
 
My business charge approximately £30 per hour but I always give a rough quote prior to any work.

If I am there 1 hours 15mins then I will only charge them £30.

If I am there longer but under 2 hours I will add on another £10-£15.

I would like to think I run a fair business.
 
I charge 10 per hour or part there-of.
I charge £25 to do a system upgrade and £50 for a full build, £40 to setup a network.

I am often told this is too cheap but thats enough for me in my own time.
 
Penny a peep, twopence a look, threepence a feel and fourpence a ............ :eek:






vintage 1956 I think :D
 
For PCs I've built:

If it broke while in warranty, I fix it for free.
If it broke out of warranty, £20.
If I can prove that they broke it whether in warranty or not, an extra £25 on top of whatever needs fixing.

The threat of "Idiot Tax", as I like to call it, seems to reduce the number of calls I get from people who have done something incredibly stupid :)
 
daztrouk said:
for helping people with their PC issues? Someone has asked me to have a check of their system in a couple of days, they want to upgrade it, but by the sounds of it a new build is in order. Someone else's PC brings up an error message when XP loads. How much would you charge, and how would you work it out? By the hour, or depending on what work needed doing?
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Sounds like your reffering to friends/family maybe someone you work with.
I would'nt charge these sort of people if it's only gonna be a one time thing, there will be a time when you need a favour returning.
If it's purely business then yeah, ignore me :D
 
If it's for friends or family then I wouldn't charge. It's always better to have someone owe you a favour than a few quid in your pocket.
 
YoungBlood said:
Sounds like your reffering to friends/family maybe someone you work with.
I would'nt charge these sort of people if it's only gonna be a one time thing, there will be a time when you need a favour returning.
If it's purely business then yeah, ignore me :D
Click to expand...

Thanks for all the quotes so far guys :cool:

Pretty close.....The PC with an error is for an acquiantance (sp?), hardly know them, but don't want to charge them the earth as there mates with a good friend of mine. The PC upgrage/build is for a family member who lives 30 mins away yet i've never met before lol. I want to charge them as obviously it's my time there taking, but at the same time i don't want to overcharge them as word of mouth counts for a lot and future business is more than welcome :D
 
Sometimes if I get a little job for a friend or something I just give them loads of cards and leaflets and say if you dish all of these out then we can call it quits.

If you friend says to you I know someone who is excellent at XYZ if you get a problem then use them.

Chances are you will hold onto their card and use them when need be.
 
i charge 25 first hour and 15 every hour arfter that.

if its for family i dont charge.
but always end up with a crate of beer :D
 
I don't charge close friends and family

for others ( I try and avoid doing stuff if possible ) , I charge £60+ for a build and a case of beer for a small repair

call me out through work and they will charge you £165+vat an hour ( min 2 hours ) , if it is outside of normal business hours then there is a £500+vat surcharge :D
 
I charge £30 an hour or I provide a service where I take the PC away (or do it there if they prefer), backup documents, favourites, settings and software and charge a flat £50 fee for re-install of Windows.
 
Hi guys, i know it's going a little off topic, but can you lot give me any advice about getting into this kind of work, ie upgrading and repairing computers.

I've built a few pc's over the years and would love to move into this sector.

Any advice or tips would be good.

Thanks.
 
custom1 said:
Hi guys, i know it's going a little off topic, but can you lot give me any advice about getting into this kind of work, ie upgrading and repairing computers.

I've built a few pc's over the years and would love to move into this sector.

Any advice or tips would be good.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Yeah, you have to have the patience of a saint, and be ok with people looking over your shoulder even though they have no idea what you are doing.
 
1) Let friends/family/colleagues know you do this kind of thing.

2) Get a mobile which you will only have switched on hours your willing to work (even a pay as you go job will do) and put your "on call" hours on the below.

3) Get some cards printed - or do your own.

4) If 1-3 doesnt get you started add to that a small ad in the local paper.

I would say be VERY careful its worth your while and that you can do a consistantly good job. Make sure you have a good "toolkit" (software being more important than hardware usually, spyware/virus problems are way more common than hardware faults with the general public). Id include a good bit of "free" software depending on your business ethic (e.g you could go to a spyware problem, fix it, install some free anti-spyware software and show them how to use it, stick a firewall on and show them how to use that or you could just clear out the spyware....). The former option will likely get you more business overall and save you hassle and problems.

Make sure you have portable HDD full of tools with plenty of space for backups. Try and make it a firewire/usb/external sata - basically as many ways to connect up as possible.

The above should certainly get you well and truely started :)

Things to think about are registering as a small business as this gives ways to protect yourself if you make any costly mistakes (allows some nice tax dodges if you know what your doing too). Add accounting at a later point so you can do you own books saves a pretty penny too. ALWAYS be completely clean and legit tho or expect MASSES of pain from HM customs and excise.
 
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Ron Burgundy said:
Yeah, you have to have the patience of a saint, and be ok with people looking over your shoulder even though they have no idea what you are doing.
Click to expand...

I'm fine with that, done upgrades, re-builds and windows installations, and i'm keen to work hard.
 
I've looked at doing this before as £30ph is quite attractive, but do any of you guys really get enough business to survive on it, or is it mainly an on the side after the 9-5 type thing.
 
Very much on the side at the moment but its always at the back of my mind if I could push a bit more and get more business :D

Considering if it was only possible to get 20 hrs a week - thats still 31k a year. Its worth starting as a sideline and see how you can grow it. Have a look at the local rates and undercut them by a little see how much business there is. Im in Sheffield so it can be reasonably brisk :)
 
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