Joshua Feinberg .net

You can’t expect to be an overnight success when it comes to your computer repair business.  The following two tips can help you make plans for when you will bring in some decent profits.  

Tip 1:  Computer Repair Business Marketing is a Systematic Process

If you’ve joined some organizations, gone to your first networking meeting this week, have participated in venture capital groups in the computer repair business  and IT field and have been giving out your business cards everywhere, why are you not getting any response?

The answer is “time.”  You will need to wait about six months to really see payoffs from your efforts.  Joining an organization will not bring instant results.  But if you have been active for six months and still nothing is happening, you may want to try another organization.  

Tip 2:  Your Computer Repair Business is Built on Personal Relationships

You can’t go to one or two meetings and get a $25,000 account.  Sometimes an opportunity will arise that you weren’t expecting with huge payoffs, but most of the time you need to really work on building the “know, like and trust” of personal relationships.

If you have a warm personality and are friendly and charismatic, you will be able to build great personal relationships.  The computer repair business is about people, so you can’t be a loner and expect success.  

Remember how important first impressions are with your computer repair business.  Build a rapport with the people you meet.  Dress nicely and build on chemistry.  And make sure to send business their way if you find someone that needs their services.  

Added By:  Computer Consulting Kit

IT networking is all about getting to know a lot of different people …and getting them to trust you!  A great way to do this is by becoming active in different organizations.  There are three different types of organizations that are great for IT marketing efforts when it comes to computer consulting.  You shouldn’t join more than one of each type, but you should think ahead of time about which one might be the best fit for you.

IT Networking Group #1:  A General Business Organization

Examples of this type of group are the Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club or Kiwanis.  It could also be Le Tip or BNI or some type of lead club.  The concept is that it’s not targeted by industry or occupation, rather just a group in which to find a lot of other small business owners.

IT Networking Group #2:  A User Group

If you decide to specialize in installing Windows-based networks, a targeted user group focused on Windows might be a good idea for you.  If you have someone on staff that wants to specialize in security, you could look for a security-focused user group so you can go out and meet people with similar interests that are consultants or similar professionals.  

IT Networking Group #3:  Targeted Business Organizations and Trade Groups

This type of group will attract your ideal clients.  If your specialty area is related to the medical field, you should look at medical organizations.  Do some research and look for upcoming events such as expos or if there is a newsletter for you to read.  

IT Networking:  Are You Part of a Niche?

The main point of IT networking is getting referrals … and in order to do this, you need to get active in your niche.  When you can become an integral part of a niche, you will get better referrals.  Keep your technical skills up to speed for your chosen niche, and you’ll have it made.

IT Networking is Relationship-Centric

What will really determine the quality of the relationships you build through IT networking will not be your technical skills.  In fact, you can have mediocre technical skills … but if you have great relationships with partners, subcontractors, vendors and clients, you will be more likely to succeed.  Without them, your company won’t last!

Added By:  Computer Consulting Kit

When you are conducting an IT marketing direct mail campaign, you need to make sure it’s targeted to suit the needs of a very specific group of people.

Are you overwhelmed when you think about IT marketing?  When you are just starting out in computer consulting, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed; you have about 30 IT marketing tasks that you can do at any given moment.  However, you need to look at the list and figure out the 4-5 ones that most interest you and work on no more than these at one time.  You should have more than one IT marketing task going on at once … but not more than that!

Tip 1:  Choose Your IT Marketing Task

You can choose outbound telemarketing, postcard mailings to a specific group along with a follow-up mailing every other week or direct mail letters.  You can also try trade shows, expos or holding your own seminar.  Choose your IT marketing tasks wisely and do what you can do make them work.

Tip 2:  Diversify, Diversify, Diversify!

You should be hitting different areas of IT marketing and find a way to measure and track your choices.  Determine the type of leads you are getting and weigh it against the time and money invested.  You need to look at what is working and what is not working so you can do more of the good and less of the bad.  

Tip 3:  Evaluate Every Quarter

No matter which IT marketing strategies you choose, you should try them for about two or three months to get a real idea of how they are working.  Once this quarter of trying is over you can stick with the ones that work, get rid of those that didn’t and add some new ones to the process.  

Remember – IT marketing is an on-going concept and takes time to refine.

Added By:  Joshua Feinberg

Anyone involved in computer consulting is going to come across some freeloaders that can cause major problems for their firm.  Here are three things you need to know to protect yourself against these moochers.

Item 1:  The Cause of the Problem

Where does the problem originate when it comes to computer consulting moochers?  It really starts when prospects have unrealistic expectations about what professional computer consulting services should cost.  

You have to be able to convince prospects that hiring your small business computer consulting firm is an investment and not an expense.  You need to provide proof that the tangible benefits of what you are delivering are greater than any out-of-pocket costs.  They are not going to invest in your computer consulting company if they think the costs outweigh the benefits.    

Item 2:  Think about the Prediction Tool for Small Business Computer Consulting

You are selling highly specialized computer consulting services, so your sales message will be very different from that of your competitors (or should be, if you want to sell yourself).  If you pay attention to the following prediction tool you can tip the scales in favor of your firm and avoid moochers.  

Simply look for small business decision makers that are used to paying for highly professional B2B services – accounting services, legal services, public relations services, marketing consulting, etc.  These people will already be investing in very skilled $100+/hour professional services, so hiring you as a computer consulting firm will not be confusing.  

Item 3:  Work Smart

You will have an easier time and be more efficient if you go after qualified leads and prospects than you will if you try to talk unqualified leads or prospects into something they don’t think they need.

In your local area alone, there are probably tons (hundreds … maybe even THOUSANDS) of qualified leads and prospects with real consulting needs that are used t paying for professional computer consulting services and have fairly realistic expectations about what they should pay.  

Don’t waste time on moochers when marketing your computer consulting business; instead, focus on those that are used to paying top dollar for sophisticated services.

Added By:  Joshua Feinberg