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  1. #1
    Mobileprinter
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    Newbie asking for advice

    Hi everyone,

    I am just starting out as an independent service technician (office equipment such as printers, scanners etc) and will concentrate on urgent / short notice requests.

    Doing my training right now, but so much to learn and would highly appreciate any pointers of what are the most common faults / jobs / works you should expect at the average office? I expect most of the work will be on larger office business printers (HP and Lexmark).

    Thx in advance for helping a newbie :-)

  2. #2
    Service Manager 1,000+ Posts kingarthur's Avatar
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    Re: Newbie asking for advice

    first of all good luck...it might have been better to introduce yourself in the "newbie" section though

    think you might find it a bit difficult to concentrate on "urgent/short notice requests"....life isn't that easy...as for what to expect in the average office, mainly operators who haven't got a clue what they are doing, badly loaded paper/consumables & poorly located machines....or machines that are on their last legs, that the customer expects you to perform a miracle by resurrecting them for little or no money....as i said before...good luck
    Tip for the day; Treat every problem as your dog would.....If you cant eat it or f*ck it....then p*ss on it & walk away...

  3. #3
    Technician 500+ Posts
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    Re: Newbie asking for advice

    Are you just going to sale printers as well? Are you doing copiers as well? I'm thinking if we know more about what you will be doing, we may be able to give you an accurate picture. Let us know. Also, have you been in this business prior to now?

  4. #4
    Mobileprinter
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    Re: Newbie asking for advice

    Hi CopiMan,
    Thanks for the feedback. I won't be selling printers. Planning on "just" doing "light" / urgent printer and other office equipment repair. I will advertise a really short response time, so if their usual person can't make it, I can step in. I have had an indication that there is a market for this around me :-)
    So looking to see what to concentrate on first in my education (have not been in this business before). Is it cleaning the print head or what are the most common problems in offices with their equipment?
    Just a general overview would be highly appreciated.
    Thx :-)

    Quote Originally Posted by copiman View Post
    Are you just going to sale printers as well? Are you doing copiers as well? I'm thinking if we know more about what you will be doing, we may be able to give you an accurate picture. Let us know. Also, have you been in this business prior to now?

  5. #5
    Technician 500+ Posts
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    Re: Newbie asking for advice

    First of all, if you have not been trained on printers or small copiers (all-in-one), I don't see how you can make it. It will show very quick and then your done. If you get thru the training aspect, which by the way never ends, there is the experience factor. Once you pass that, now comes the reality of what your up against. Bottom line is that in order to get the service business, you will have to either save the customer money or provide them with something they do not presently have. In my 30 yrs in this business, I have seen alot. Mechanical issues, electrical issues, computer issues, network issues, and user issues. Sometimes just a cleaning. Sometimes a part(s) need replaced. Sometimes a mechanical and/or an electrical adjustment. Then there is software and firmware. Some good days and some bad.

    Not sure if this was what you were looking for. Keep in mind that this is just my opinion. You need alot of opinions. Also, if your going to be a one man band, I would get with others that do the same thing and work together to help each other. Kinda like what we do on this website. I wish you the best of luck in your quest.

  6. #6
    Senior Tech 250+ Posts
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    Re: Newbie asking for advice

    Now, I wish you all the luck in the world, but....

    If I find out that one of my contracted customers hires anybody else to work on my machines...I ain't happy. It sounds as though you are attempting to provide faster response times than a customer's existing service provider, "so if their usual person can't make it, I can step in". If you are specifically targeting machines that do not have contracts: awesome. However, if you are trying to work on contracted-machines, I would be wary. I am not sure how other companies handle this, but it would certainly breach our maintenance contracts. If I am the service provider for a business, I do not want to spend time cleaning up after another technician's mistakes. At the very least this will result in an additional bill-able call, and possibly even result in voiding the maintenance contract.

    I always get an odd sensation when I see a stranger tearing apart one of my contracted-machines. It is a peculiar mix of overly-protective anger, and then giddiness as I calculate the inflated invoice that I will type up. Usually, I just sit down next to the "tech" and watch silently...waiting for them to ask me what I'm doing. Sometimes, if I really feel like an ass, I will give them helpful suggestions - "oh! it looks like that cover has another screw holding it on." But always, and I mean always: I bill the customer more money. Much more.

    It is not just that I am unaware of the "tech's" training and ability, but that is a large part of it. It's also that I will have no records of what service they performed, what parts were replaced, or which areas I should investigate when undocumented labor is performed on some random part of the machine.

  7. #7
    Service Manager 1,000+ Posts
    Newbie asking for advice


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    Re: Newbie asking for advice

    I echo the above sentiments.

    You are underestimating our industry.

    What if (when) your "urgent call" is because the customer needs a board or a fuser, you are not an authorized dealer so you can't get that.

    They will never call you again and word will spread.

    You're better off specializing in something, like HP printers. Everything's available through PartsNow\

    I don't think you're going to find the pointers you're looking for, and probably just more negativity because of your comment about working on our equipment.

  8. #8
    Master Of The Obvious 10,000+ Posts
    Newbie asking for advice

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    Re: Newbie asking for advice

    I'm afraid I'll have to rain on your parade also.

    Even if you just focus on tabletop MFPs and printers, there are 15+ brands, and to provide any kind of "urgent" service you'll need to stock parts. The big question is how wide are you going to cast your net? One brand $2K to $3K in parts. Ten brands $20K to $30K in parts. And how will you carry it all? That Aveo just won't carry it all. More like a box truck.

    From a practical point of view You'll need to narrow your focus, or do a lot of paper clip and rubber band repairs. =^..^=
    If you'd like a serious answer to your request:
    1) demonstrate that you've read the manual
    2) demonstrate that you made some attempt to fix it.
    3) if you're going to ask about jams include the jam code.
    4) if you're going to ask about an error code include the error code.
    5) You are the person onsite. Only you can make observations.

    blackcat: Master Of The Obvious =^..^=

  9. #9
    Service Manager 1,000+ Posts
    Newbie asking for advice

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    Re: Newbie asking for advice

    The rain continues. I've been in this business 33 years. You're always learning. If you think you can start a repair business with no knowledge of the equipment, no sources for parts and supplies and no network of others to help you, you're sadly mistaken. Go try to latch on with a manufacturer or dealer and learn, learn, learn. You may find your take home pay is higher.

  10. #10
    The Wolf 2,500+ Posts mojorolla's Avatar
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    Re: Newbie asking for advice

    Best piece of advice I can give: expect the unexpected!! As stated above, this is not a self taught type of industry. Nothing will help you more than experience.
    If you feel HP and Lexmark are "larger" printer....you ain't seen nothing yet. Best of luck to you.


    Failing to plan is planning to fail!!!

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