If you're thinking about starting Computer Repair Business, it's a very good idea to create a business plan. The best reason is not what you think. I don't know anyone who has ever stuck with his or her original business plan. Why? Well, planning and doing is the same as hypothetical and reality. Once you get immersed in your business, you often have to modify your plan to fit real world situations.



Even the best planners can't see everything that might crop up, and being flexible is the key with any good business plan. The best thing about doing a business plan is that it makes you think about the important elements of your proposed business.

Areas to research and try to layout in your business plan would include market analysis, startup costs, necessary skills, and initial inventory or equipment. All of these areas are important when planning your business. Most business plans can be divided into common sections like these:

- Executive Summary

- Company Description

- Products and Services

- Marketing Plan

- Operational Plan

- Management and Organization

- Personal Financial Statement

- Startup Expenses and Capitalization

- Cash Flow Analysis

If financing is a part of the puzzle, even more time should be spent on presentation and documentation. You will be judged by the lending institution on the quality and accuracy of your numbers of your business plan. The two most common flaws in business plans are under estimating costs and over estimating revenue.

A good example in the Computer Repair Business is for one to assume that since there are an average of 171 working hours in any given month, that you could bill 171 hours or the total amount. Not going to happen, there is no way to bill 100% of time. Why, because you rarely can bill out every hour in the day. There are necessary activities that take away from billable hours. Now if you work 80 hours a week, you could bill over 40, but that's not the same thing.

And if you are a owner/operator (one man band) you will need to do many administrative, marketing, and record keeping tasks that all take away from billable time. In fact, some of the most effective owner/operators I know in the computer repair business are ecstatic with a 70% bill ratio.

A good example of underestimating costs for the Computer Repair business is insurance and bonding. If you do business with larger companies, they require both and this area is often overlooked. Another common area that is missed is the cost of training and technical resources like manuals and etc. Both can get expensive and necessary if you want to keep your skills up to date.

One of the biggest decisions in the Computer Repair Business is whether to go retail location, or office building, or warehouse scenario. This can be a huge start up cost and commitment. And there are quite a few associated costs like utilities, signage, furniture, and equipment.

Part of the decision making process on these different scenarios is to also consider whether you want to offer onsite service or inside service (where the customer brings in their equipment). Often this is depending on the market area, target audience, and location.

The key to making that type of decision is to figure out if the retail location can generate enough walk in business to compensate for the cost. The office building or warehouse location might be necessary if you will have multiple employees and support staff. But both those choices are expensive both in startup and ongoing costs.

Speaking of staff, unless you start your business with clients, employees can be a tremendous expense and involve more administrative time. Adding employees right from the get go with out having some type of clientele is risky at best. If you will already have service contracts or written commitments from clients, you might need employees.

A good alternative to the warehouse or office building options is to go with an executive business suite. These are companies that will provide very small spaces (like 200 sq ft) and administrative services like answering the phone, having a mailing address, using a shared conference room for meetings, and so forth. These are available on short or long term and can have little startup cost.

If you plan on providing onsite service, then you might not need anything but a mail or PO box somewhere close to home for parts and receiving mail. Especially if your onsite service is to individuals or the home market rather than commercial clients.

After determining your startup and operating costs, the marketing aspect of your new business is most important. Without sales (and revenue), all you have is a hobby according to the IRS. It's important to define your target audience and determine how you plan on acquiring customers. These methods can include classic marketing techniques such as handing out business cards to advertising in your local yellow pages.

This is where many new Computer Repair Business owners have the most difficulties. Being a good technician and knowledgeable repair guy is not enough in today's competitive marketplace. You need to sell yourself and your company. Marketing and customer skills are paramount to finding and keeping customers.

Although you should do your research and estimate your costs and revenue, the planning process should never be about having the perfect plan. I've seen people spend months (if not years) looking for the perfect plan and never take any action. Use due diligence, go through all the necessary steps, but don't get hung up in the weeds re-writing your plan over and over.

The single most common trait among successful new business owners is they take action. And the Computer Repair Business can be started part time with little risk. In fact, starting out part time allows you to learn as you go and find out what works and what doesn't.

Hey, this is the first day of the rest of your life. Having a great Computer Repair Business Plan is good, but starting your business now is what will make you successful.