Sumthin’ for Nuthin’
Let’s image you are having a problem with your car. We’ll pretend it makes a funny noise when it’s cold. Now in this scenario, we will pretend you don’t have a regular mechanic that you know and trust, and the dealer isn’t an option for whatever reason. So what do you do?
Well, you probably start calling around to find someone to fix your car.
Who do you choose? On the phone, one mechanic tells you if your car makes a funny noise, it probably needs a new engine and it will probably cost about $1000. The next one tells you to bring it by and he will tell you what is wrong for free right there in the parking lot, while you wait. He can’t be sure but it sounds like a broken knuter valve which costs $400. The third one tells you to bring it by and he will do a full diagnostic on the car for a low diagnostic fee but it will take a day or so to give you the answer. He won’t guess at a price, but he guarantees you will not be obligated to anything but the diagnostic fee.
Which one is right for you?
In my humble opinion, you can not get ‘sumthin for nuthin’. The only thing that makes sense is to have a full diagnostic done, get an exact price, and then make a decision based on the facts. Bad things come when you skimp on the front end of a transaction and then hope that it all works out.
I remember when I was a kid. My Dad had a 1969 Cadillac and it was making a thumping noise going down the road. Dad took it to the shop where he told them it had “a bearing noise in the engine”. A week later he picked the car up and paid $900 (about $3000 in today’s money). They had replaced the bearings in the engine.
On the way home the car started making the noise again. He turned around and took the car back, the mechanic took it for a drive and said “Oh your muffler is loose and is banging on the floor. I’ll pull it around back and tighten it up for you.” They charged him another hundred dollars or so and sent him down the road running smoothly and quietly.
That day I learned two things:
1. Don’t tell your repair man what to fix, tell him (or her) the symptoms.
2. A diagnostic is worth every penny; make sure your technician does a complete one.
So what is my point?
My competitors locally are of the type that will diagnose your computer over the phone, or (quoting from one competitor’s website) “will provide you with a FREE Computer Checkup, while you wait!”
I find this amazing, because I constantly get surprised by computer issues that we have spent an hour or more trouble shooting. How can a company stay in the repair business when 80% to 90% of their diagnoses are wrong? In the case of the guy who tried to sell you an engine over the phone, maybe he gets by because if you replace everything, you are bound to include most of the problems. But when he charges you for a new engine every time, you might start to be suspicious.
At The Village Geek we charge $25 to diagnose your computer issue. At the end of the diagnostic we will tell you what you need and how much it will cost. Exactly what it will cost. You have no other obligation past the $25 if you feel the repair isn’t worth it. In the end, if you don’t have it fixed, you at least know exactly what you need. No guessing.
~Steve
