Is Custom PC Building A Practicle Occupation?

[wasabie2000]

Ive been considering going into a business where i could make buying a custom computer really easy. So like comment on it!:)

[audiyoda]

Well, before any of us comment:


What qualifications do you have for the job at hand?
Are you fully willing to offer support for the systems you build?
What background do you have to support this endevor?
Is there local competition and are you willing to beat their price/service/products?


Giving us some background on your abilities/quaifications will certainly help those of us in the business as well as those of use who have delt with people in this business help you determine your possible success/failure.

-Craig

[reboot]

IF, and only if, you're willing to NOT compromise on quality...of either parts, or service.
I sell ONLY the best (Asus mobos, IBM drives, Creative sound cards, etc.), and that way I can support what I sell, and fix what breaks.
I will NOT sell 3rd rate hardware in a system that I have to warranty, no matter HOW MUCH they complain about price.
If customers are too price concious, instead of quality conscious, I tell them to go to Future Shop/BestBuy. It's not worth selling crappy stuff to demanding customers. It will surely come back to haunt you.

[Statica]

I dont know about where you are from, but out here custom built computers & stores are the <b>ONLY</b> way to get a good computer. So yes, that is the only place to go.
Reasons why anyone who doesnt make their own computer goes to one of these stores
1) It is as the name suggests CUSTOM, to fit their needs, no need to have ComCrap tell you what sort of crappy soundcard one should have in a half decent system
2) High quality of products & a decent amount of testing.
Places that sell custom built computers usually do take a week or so, in which time they do decent burn-in tests, if nothing else a complete installation of an OS is at times the best bet. I've seen people with computers-in-a-box that dont even come with the installation completed (my laptop I purchased with Win98SE had it installed to the point where the Plug n Pray devices were detected after I entered the license key from the CD they provided, at first boot). Places like Comcrap, HP etc, dont do decent burn-ins. They use parameters to infer that the h/w is sound. For example, they assume that a certain type of mobo goes well with a certain type of RAM and a certain type of ... etc. It is up to the customer's misfortune, to be one of those unlucky ones to get a defective hard drive.
3) Knowledgeable staff.. if u've ever been to a big name electronics superstore and have seen that gawking kid in his tie try to talk to you about a computer, you just know that last week he was over at the audio CD counter looking cool in the midst of the Shaggy CDs. Custom built selling stores on the other hand, have that real techie feel, where customers believe that they will be stopped in time before buying RDRAM to put into a VIA KT133A mobo.
4) Additional customization doesnt cost a thing. Esp when I build computers for people, I dont charge them if they want to bring me a CDRW from a previous computer to throw in there.

As Reboot mentioned, you have to key in on <b>value added services</b> on creating the niche that the Future Shops and the Best Buys dont offer, and go heavy on it. Upgrade your working knowledge on whats the best product out there, and above all give honest opinions not the ones that will bag u the highest money. When it comes to computers, the customer isnt always right, more often than not, most people are ill researched on what to use with what.

& lastly, dont hesitate to dispense out free advice and trouble shooting tips. The guy may not buy the computer he is looking for from u then, but sure enough he will come back to you when he feels that he has wasted his money elsewhere.

Good luck

[HAL9000]

I agree completely with Reboot on this one. I helped a guy start a business and he fell into the trap of the only way he could compete was to be the cheapest. This meant cheap parts. Those machines spent more time on my bench than anywhere else, and if you're doing warranty all day, you're not making money. Very much like 'boot does, we only use known good quality, brand name parts. As soon as I hear someone complaing that they can get it cheaper elsewhere, conversation over, go buy it then. At our shop, we are definitely not the cheapest game in town, but I don't have a bench full of failures every day either.

[troysvihl]

Have you guys seen the rates they charge at Best Buy for their computer "service"? I thought it was a joke when I saw their sign saying I can get my ENTIRE harddrive (not just half of it mind you, the ENTIRE HD) defragged for only $50. That's right, a low $50. (this was a while ago, so the price may be different now)

If they can dupe people into that, then there must be some money to be made. OTOH, small computer shops have a pretty pathetic track record of profitability. But if you enjoy the work, give it a try.

[Paul Victorey]

Well, you kinda picked a bad time -- at the moment, hardware is selling dirt cheap because few people are buying. So the markup on computers at the moment is ridiculously low, meaning you have fewer customers and lower profits on each.

And yes, computer repair a la Best Buy is insanely expensive. IMO you can probably make a career out of REPAIRING computers for lower prices than other places. You can charge half of what Best Buy charges and make a tidy profit.

[MITotaku]

I repair computers for people. I don't really make that much, but it's all because of advertisement. I have 0 so most people learn about me through friends or family.

Best Buy charges a lot to just do simple optimizations that anyone can do. I charge for it too. $10 for optimization and I teach the people how to do it as I work and i give them a little pamphlet I made when I finish. Makes up for that $250 Maintenance seminar I went to and learned stuff i basically already knew.

Also I only charge gas money (for driving out there) if it's something really simple. One guy didn't have his monitor plugged in and I didn't charge him at all.

Make sure you have the proper tools; Compressed air, non-magnetic screwdrivers, etc.

[mairving]

Is Custom PC Building A Practicle Occupation?

I would say no way. You won't make that much money building PC's unless you cut corners. That is not to say that you shouldn't do it. There is money to be made but it is mostly on the service end. Let's say that you build someone a $700 computer. The parts probably cost you at least $500 (more likely $600). You have 2-3 hours time invested in it. Plus you have the inventory investment which can tie up a bit of cash. You have to outlay $500-600 in just materials. That can bite you in the butt. Now let's say that someone brings in a PC for repair or you go to their business. You spend a couple of hours and charge $100 or so. Well you have made the same amount of money with a lot less capital investment. Service work is the way to go. Only build PC's to get yourself in the door.

[wasabie2000]

Thanks a lot. Ive really appreciated your advice(s) so far. Youve been really helpful! Now, ive been looking for some documentation on extremely specific ways to build "custom" pcs and amazingly, ive found none! now not to say that there's none out there but in case anyone has any good references i would like to know!

Thanks again.

[HAL9000]

That was a point that I missed in my previous post. Is custom computer building a practical occupation, not really, not a whole lot to be made on a system anymore. The service that you can tack on afterwards, yes, that's where money is to be made. I would say don't get too carried away with your rates until you develop a good rep, after that, people will be willing to pay more to get a job done if they know it will be done right. Don't charge too little either, it gets you all the cheap buggers that want you to do a complete overhaul for ten bucks, then when they screw it up the next day, it was your fault for not doing it properly and that you should do it over, no charge.... yea... whatever.

[MITotaku]

Do you guys think $10 is too little for optimization?

[HAL9000]

Probably. I like to go to my business client's sites every 6 months to open the machine, blow out the dust, delete garbage, scandisk, defrag, etc. I charge $35 to come out, $65 per hour. It usually works out to roughly $40 per machine.

[MITotaku]

Wow. See I don't think anyone would really trust me if I charged that much. I'm only 16 so they are always looking right over my shoulder asking me if I know what I'm doing. The only reason they get me I guess is because I'm so cheap. So I guess now I'll jack up the prices and lie about my age.

[HAL9000]

The pricing I have given is probably average for my area. I can charge this because my clients know they don't have to worry about what I am doing. There are others in my area the charge up to $85 an hour. You have to play with the number over a period of time to find out what you can get, but don't undersell yourself.

[Paul Victorey]

Wow, that's a lot of cash.

When I do misc work for people, I usually charge $25/hour plus parts. The big places out here charge $50/hr and that's outrageously high. If I ever did this for a living I'd probably charge $35/hr.

[bob]

If you know how to do it then get a job at a company. You may just be making $50,000+ per year plus benifits if you can work your way up a notch.

[Xayd]

This reminds me.

Just out of curiosity for the general level of common sense out there, I put an ad on E-Bay awhile back. Listed a machine, with each component spelled out, including a link to a positive review of each component, all mid to high end gear for a home PC. Listed links to pricewatch prices as well, and started the bids at the price of the parts, OEM.

It ran for five days as a featured auction and got zero bids. People don't want a good machine, they want crap for an email and web-surfing appliance on average from my experiences with them.

Xayd

[bob]

Yep. I only upgrade when a new game comes out. Well still using a 200 but monitor is 20"

Need to watch TV too so a small wait means nothing. :)

[archie]

[As for cost/hr mentioned by Hal and Paul, keep in mind that HAL9000's are Canadian $ and Paul's are American. $40 CND = $25.US approx]
Personally, I don't see building custom PCs a good business to get into in the short term nor the long term. In the short term, there is already a lot of competition and most customers are looking for the lowest price regardless of what would in the long run be a better deal. In the long term, computers will cost less and be easier to put together or at least acquire ... could one-piece system or some type of modules.
As custom as these computers may be, there would be some cost/support issues when too many choices were made available, not to mention the extra decisions to be made by your potential clients. Keep in mind that not only are they choosing from items that you provide, but other options as well ... including those provided by Dell, Gateway, etc.
Other than that, as enjoyable as it is to build your very own custom system, the feeling tends to fade as your building the same old boxes over and over.

[padawan]

I charge $40 an hour + parts, minimum of one hour to do service. People are more than willing to pay it, too. I don't think it is a rip off, since the local shop charges $50 an hour, and you have to bring the machine to them.

Granted, this isn't my job, but I do it to make a little extra cash. I'm working on getting a little part-time action at the local Vo-Tech, where they pay $20 to teach adult computer education. I have an MCSE and an MCP+I, so I can talk semi-intelligently about most topics, especially when the students don't know what a "Double Click" is. I want to see if they will let me run a Tweaking and Optimization course for advanced users and gamers, which would kick ass. Teach a little overclocking...fun fun.

I used to build computers for friends, but I made almost no money. We are talking, maybe $50 per machine. It's not worth it. I had to front the money, order parts, install everything, get the bugs out, etc. Screw that.

[Omletteboy]

You make very little money building and selling computers, it's the service that makes you money. I also charge $40/hr CAD for fixes but like padawan it's not my day job.

[mbossman2]

Having dealt with computer resellers for the last 8 years of my life (5 years at a master distributor and the balance with a manufacturer), the majority of the successful resellers no longer build custom PC's as their main source of profit as there is so much competition out there it is extremely difficult to make any margin on systems.

The successful resellers, while some do build PC's, build them only as a way into a customer, then they make their really money on service (of PC's, LAN's, WAN's and the associated hardware) and consulting on the newer emerging technologies (IP telephony, Enterprise wireless, security/VPN, Content Delivery etc) which can generate huge margins. IT departments may understand the concept of these new technologies, they generally have little or no idea as to how to implement them or where they fit into their overall IT strategy. That is the kind of value add that a reseller/consultant can turn a high quality margin/profit.

HTH

[LawyerRon]

For sure, the money to be made is on the service end, ie, solving problems. It's more challenging and interesting too IMO.

What nobody mentioned, and is a good niche IMO, is becoming "factory authorized" for the brand names like Compaq, HP, Dell, etc. Some techs around here only work on the "clones" but there's one guy that's authorized to work an the brand name machines and he stays quite busy fixing and replacing parts in Compaq and HP's junk boxes.

I don't know what's required to become authorized but it seems like a good idea to me.

[mbossman2]

Becoming an HP and/or Compaq factory authorized service center can be difficult.

The 1st step with Compaq is to be come an authorized reseller(see Compaq's wed page for that), then meet these requirements:
http://www4.compaq.com/csndocs/marcomm/csnmarketing/0,1626,web_page_id~15039_3,00.html#Q9

I would assume that HP has a similar track for their resellers.

Most of the mahor manufacturers have similar programs.

[mairving]

That is true. You can't just sign up to become a factory service dealer. You have to spend several hundred thousand dollars to get that little sign. Nowadays it is even more difficult. Compaq is about the worst. They will force you to buy all of their product at prices above what the discount places pay. Which makes selling that product and making money very difficult. Quite a racket.