Start Your Own Computer Business: Building a Successful PC Repair and Service Business by Supporting Customers and Managing Money

Bottom-Line: "Start Your Own Computer Business: The Unembellished Guide" a good starting point from which to gather information about the computer service and repair business, from a veteran of the business.I have been dabbling at the edges of computer consulting for quite some time, while holding down a full-time job. I have been building PC's from scratch for family and friends, putting together small networks here and there, and servicing PC's for friends of friends for years now. But it wasn't until I entered into a formalized agreement with a client, who agreed to a fixed monthly retainer in return for my services did I apply for a shingle with the county and make it official. That was some two years ago; I still have my client and his business, and I have garnered more, but I really didn't have a strategy in place to grow the business.Did I want to open a storefront, or continue to operate out of my home office? How would I or should I advertise, and if so through what outlets? Should I bother with building PC's for clients from scratch, and if so how cost effective would it be given the warranty considerations? How much capital should I accumulate before advertising my services? Should I keep inventory on-hand, and if so how much? Should I open a separate business account and how would I keep track of expenses? Questions, questions, questions and very few answers presented themselves readily, so turned to advise from someone who had been in the business for a while and could provide answers I sought. That someone was Morris Rosenthal and his stellar book "Start Your Own Computer Business: The Unembellished Guide."Whether you are planning to start your own computer service and repair shop, have already hung out your shingle, or you have doubts and or concerns about how to best run your business, this book will get you started in the right direction. Most of the questions I needed answered were presented by Rosenthal in well though out prose, written from the perspective of a person who has lived the life of a computer service and repair professional.As good as "Start Your Own Computer Business: The Unembellished Guide" is though, it is relatively small book, checking in at only 160 pages. And while Morris does not embellish the truth, such as his views on spending money and time on the much ballyhooed computer industry credentials, stating: "You're going to need all the cash you can get your hands on. Don't waste it on pieces of paper nobody will read to frame and stick on the wall. That's a game for people who want to be somebody else's employee..." I would have appreciated more in-depth information then he chose to deliver on some subjects.More information on marketing the business would have been useful for instance; as it is, the book only skims the surface, not offering any concrete strategy for how to market a computer services and repair business. Here, his real-world experience would have proved invaluable; as it is very little outside of how to sell yourself and your services to customers, is touched upon. Marketing in my estimation involves a lot more then that.I did however find Rosenthal's advice and insights on working from the home very useful. He starts out the chapter (Infrastructure), thusly: "Looking back over a lifetime of handing out unsolicited advise, I think the worse steer I ever gave somebody was pushing a friend with whom I'd built a successful small computer company (over a million dollars a year sales) to move out of his house and into commercial space...[T]he biggest single expanse a computer business is likely to generate, after employee salaries, is renting commercial space."That opening sentence had me hooked. Why? Because I had bee giving serious consideration to opening a commercial storefront not too far from my home--walking distance really--with visions of hiring a full-time employee to run the shop while I continued to work for someone else full-time. This chapter along with the chapter on money management gave me a sobering does of reality, and ultimately persuaded me to change my mind about the commercial space; my business will continue to operate out of my home thank you very much.Rosenthal goes on to explain the subtle nuances of renting commercial space and the hidden cost associated with such an undertaking. Costs such as telephone, and DSL, I had anticipated, but hidden costs, such as garbage removal, property taxes, landscaping, snow removal, insurance, and even association fees is some cases. "Start Your Own Computer Business: The Unembellished Guide" goes into a rather involved and appreciated explanation how rental space is calculated for lease, and the difference between triple net, and double net leases and the costs that can be associated with both.As it turns out--after further investigation--the commercial space I was dreaming of hanging my shingle on would, on the surface, have been inexpensive, but hidden in the fine print was a host of add-on's including a mandatory $0.75/sf increase a year, and a hefty per month cost for the maintenance of the common grounds. These costs would have made my desire to work the business only half a day, untenable.At the end of the book, Rosenthal offers a handful of useful websites that any aspirating person might use as a resource to start a new business, or expand an existing one. These include The Service Corp of Retired Executives (SCORE), Small Business Administration, IRS, National Business Incubation Association, as well as his own Computer Business support group located at Yahoo.com.Conclusions"Start Your Own Computer Business: The Unembellished Guide" is a general outline for how you might want to conduct your business; the fine minute details are left to other more involved books on the same subject. Rosenthal tents to paint in broad stokes designed to speak to a diverse group of individuals. But these generalities work for those--like me--who are looking for information about the business we are looking to expand or break into. Overall I found "Start Your Own Computer Business: The Unembellished Guide" a good starting point from which to gather information about the computer service and repair business. The book offers practical first person advice from a well seasoned veteran of the business.

What I liked about it:I really like the brutal honesty that Rosenthal brings to the book. The curse of many "Start Your Own..." books out there is that they take an overly rosy outlook on starting something that, in reality, is a challenging and often less-than-rewarding experience, just to sell more books. This becomes apparent right from the start, with the first sentence of the book being: "Do you need your head examined?"I also appreciate that the book is written for the beginner who is starting a business from scratch. For example, a good chunk of time is taken to explain the process of buying wholesale to make sure his readers realize that it's tough for non-established businesses to get what they need to succeed right off the bat. Because of this small business focus, I found many useful nuggets throughout the book that I feel will benefit me in my venture. In particular there is one section in which he mentions that direct mailings can be a successful marketing technique, but only if used to target businesses that are big enough to have a few computer systems, but small enough top not have a full-time IT staff. He emphasizes starting small and working your way up to bigger and more complex undertakings as you gain experience and money, which is in line with the approach I'm taking to start my business.Round all of that out with some solid advice on business structure and accounting and you have a very useful book that really gives the budding computer guy a serious and practical look at what lies ahead for him and his business.What I didn't like about it:The same brutal honesty that intrigued me at first begins to seem more pessimistic as the book continues on. While I don't mind a spoon full of real life every now and then, the attitude began to hinder certain points the author was trying to make. At one point the word WRONG in all caps was packed into one short paragraph 6 times! Rosenthal has been through the ringer in the computer business and he isn't afraid to let you know it. The problem is, I think the author's sarcasm may turn off some people who are excited and enthusiastic about starting their own computer business.The book goes into a bit of detail surrounding computer sales and commerce, which is not what I'm interested in doing. As such, I found about 1/4 of the book did not apply to me. This is no fault of the author's, as he was trying to cover as much ground as he could and he seems to have had extensive experience in commerce. He also went into the process of renting office space and hiring employees which again doesn't quite apply to me at this stage. But it will definitely apply to other readers, and his stories make the sections that don't apply to you an entertaining read none the less.Finally, I didn't quite understand the purpose of the comic strips that were inserted at random places throughout the book. They attempted to illustrate some of the authors points in a humorous context, but served more as a distraction. In my opinion the author's anecdotes were much more entertaining than these poorly drawn comic strips. This, of course, is a minor detail, but one that kind of struck me as odd and out of place.The final verdict:Start Your Own Computer Business: The Unembellished Guide is a must read for anyone who is debating if they want to take their passion or hobby of tinkering with computers and turning it into a full-time, self-sustaining business. Morris Rosenthal does a great job at giving personal real-world examples of what you'll face as a business owner. The author doesn't sugar-coat anything and sometimes his approach can be harsh and off-putting. However, at it's core, Start Your Own Computer Business is a refreshing change of perspective from the normal "for dummies" type of books that are currently flooding the market, and will surely give any budding entrepreneur a sense of what it takes to be successful in this business.

This review is for the 2002 version, this latest edition seems to have been released after Amazon sold me the book in February - oh well, I'll assume that the tone and content is broadly similar!Maybe I missed the point, but it's quite possible that, after reading Morris Rosenthal's guide, you'll abandon the idea of starting your own computer business altogether and go to work for someone else.Don't get me wrong, much of the advice in this offering is pertinent, interesting, and useful: it's just that Rosenthal manages to suck all of the joy of being your own boss while he's dispensing his wisdom. At times, I found myself wondering why he had ever bothered working for himself if it was so much trouble.There's a couple of other matters also worthy of mention. Firstly, this book is ten years old and it's starting to show its age. I'm sure that modem cards still do cause users problems, but I doubt that is as frequently as it once was! Secondly, this is an American (US) book aimed at an American audience; much of the discussion about tax affairs will be incomprehensible to anyone outside of the US, particularly the references to various tax forms (probably already superseded). Nonetheless, I still recommend reading through these sections: the implications of tax write-offs are universal!So, why four stars?Well, Rosenthal's advice is pragmatic and it does a great job of forewarning potential proprietors of the pitfalls of starting your own business. Although some of it is dated, much has stood the test of time and remains relevant to anyone providing a service. I figure that if I also need someone else to provide my enthusiasm, I probably shouldn't be considering a change of career!

Rosenthal's book gives invaluable advice to those thinking of starting out in the computer business. But it doesn't just stop there because this book could be the saviour of many who've already started the process but need a helping hand.The author's style is engaging and highly readable as he takes you step by step on an often amusing journey of discovery. You learn about what it takes to succeed along with many of the pitfalls that could lead to failure.Rosenthal's experience, humour and pathos along with a sackful of intelligent and constructive comment makes this book a must for anyone looking to start - or kickstart - their own computer business.

very informative read, highly recormended

Oh yes , oh yes.We'll worth a read. This guy knows the business. Doesn't believe in certification, just getting the job done.

highly recommend if your looking to become a tech engineer