What do you all leave?

[Cowboybooter]

Inspired by another thread, what information do you guys leave behind when you sort out a computer issue for someone else ?

I, currently leave 3 things;

My e-mail addys,
My Phone No. in case things are that bad, :)

and,

The address of here, In my opinion the finest and fastest technical support forum on the net!

I know some things, but I learn others every day! Usually here! :)

:D

Bob

[a Bill]

Just my e-mail.

[diveram]

Dust running...warrenty is 30 seconds or 30 feet :) Just kidding.....I only help out friends who have all my contact info anyway.

[Mntsnow]

This Site of course and my business card which has my 2 main email addresses and the rest of my contact info

[OuTpaTienT]

www.google.com

[gjimene2]

My business card, and a bill.

[Mntsnow]

and a bill.
Well that is the first and formost thing of course :D

[gjimene2]

:D

For long term clients that I don't even see, I don't post a bill, I e-mail them an invoice.

Either way, it gets the money in :D

[Centurion]

uh? Mntsnow - your a man of few words?

email - phone number - and specific written instructions

C

never mind - like Mntsnow said cookie problem.

[davidamarkley]

I leave these things:

1. My email address and IM handle
2. An installation of RealVNC (http://www.realvnc.com) so I can work on and troubleshoot their computer without having to leave the office. THus giving them the best value, and least downtime as possible.(I don't have to charge nearly as much if I can fix something over the phone/'net as I do in person)
3. A complimentary copy of an Anti-Virus if they had none prior to my visit
4. A clean computer. I airdust and clean out the inside of the computer, and clean the lenses of all optical disk drives, and clean the heads of any floppy drives. Sometimes even wiretie all the IDE and etc. cables out of the way inside the case.
5. A super-secret phone number known only by 1337 customers :D
6. If I had to install/reinstall the OS then I leave them the OS disk, as well as a recovery CD with ONLY the default OS installation and the latest drivers/securityupdates at the time, nothing more, nothing less
7. Last but not least, I tell them about the FaD project and the difference that they can make with their idle CPU cycles

If someone calls in to my office and has a problem, instead of saying "I'll have to come out and take a look at it." Then charging them for the service call, I try to do what I can over the phone and then if within a short amount of time, the problem cannot be resolved, then I will make the service call, and do my absolute best to get them back up and running same-day.

It's all about having VAS, or Value Added Services. If you have something that makes them say "Wow, that service/product is great!!" then you can charge for it, and they will want it. It's the nice things that you can offer that make it appealing for the client to decide on you doing the work, instead of the average Joe down the street.

For example, I have loaner machines that have common apps installed on them already, and if a client's computer goes down, for whatever reason(hardware failure, corruption of a program, etc.) and I know I won't be able to fix it within the same day, and/or they are in a crunch on time and needing to finish a project, etc. then I will loan them a computer of mine until I have theirs up and functional. I don't rent them out, I just let them use the computer as long as their's is in the shop. That's just one example of a VAS.

It's also important to make positive mental checkpoints for the customer. i.e., Everything you do, whether intentional or unintentional makes an effect on the client's image of you. Your job is to make all those checkpoints positive ones, whether it's going above and beyond the call of service, or just simply listening and understanding what the client is saying. It ALL makes a huge difference.

I hope I'm not getting off-topic, but I just started typing and didn't feel compelled to stop. I hope this helps someone.

BTW, I'm the most expensive computer repairmen in the area. $55 minimum for coming out, and $80 an hour, but I give the customers excellent service, and make sure they get what they are paying for. And for only being 19, I can attest to the real world benefits of having value added services in my company.

David Markley
Hit D Mark, Inc.

[Cowboybooter]

Wow, David! That's Impressive service!

:)

Bob

[gjimene2]

Great service dave, but you have to watch out with all of the freebies, especially for the Anti-Virus (if it's not a free version) then can actually get you into trouble.

As for dusting the case, careful, remember that if you screw something up and you don't make them sign an agreement before you repair something, it can be courty city for you as they may cry louder than a baby pig being taken away from it's momma!

[davidamarkley]

Yeah, I've been careful not to do ANYTHING that is what you might call 'shady' business practices. Even with close friends. I've seen too many instances of people getting burned for this or that.

The Anti-Virus that I leave with them is just the latest copy of the Free virus scanner from Grisoft (http://www.grisoft.com/) called AVG Anti-Virus. It's freeware, so no problems there, and as for dusting the case, yes I am careful there too. I am totally open and honest with all my customers regardless of how much it might mess me up, or cost me. Because, in the long run, honesty is the best policy! My dad taught me that through his carpet cleaning business. I still help him out every now and then, and I do all the database and publishing stuff for his business still. But, right now his business is at the point where he's making about $200/hour through carpet cleaning, which is amazing especially considering that the area where we live, Joplin, MO, is surrounded by cheapskates and penny-pinchers. (I mean, there are THREE Wal-Mart Supercenters in Joplin, and the population is only 50,000!)

But, thanks for the reminder to me and everyone here, gjimene2! :)

David

[gjimene2]

NP man, I'm only 2 years older than you, and I know the riskyness in the business.