Selling PC's?

Discussion in 'Employment & Jobs' started by shaggy, Apr 23, 2007.

  1. shaggy

    shaggy Byte Poster

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    Hey

    I have been considering building systems and selling them to raise a little extra income as its badly needed right now

    but i just wanted to ask a few questions and hopefully get some feedback on it

    Firstly, does anyone else out there do/ever done this? i see a lot of people on eBay doing this kind of thing, im not looking to go through the eBay route myself.

    Secondly, assuming i can source parts for a reasonable price to make any kind of profit, is there really a large enough market out there for someone like me in your opinion?

    basically, i want to know if its a good or bad idea, i guess you could say this was my first kind of 'business' so just wanting input

    Thanks for reading
     
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  2. Sparky
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    Sparky Zettabyte Poster Moderator

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    To be honest there isnt much profit as what there used to be. Also with Dell (for example) you can pick the components you want and get a three year warranty.

    I built a few PCs and sold them when I finished uni and I *still* get the odd phone call about them. I installed them in 2003! :blink
     
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  3. derkit

    derkit Gigabyte Poster

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    I agree with Sparky - even I went for a pre-built system from Novatech this time because the cost of building one with similar specs for myself (and this was a low spec PC) was very similar to what I could buy it for and build it myself. :(

    Other advantages - it came already working, and had at least 1 year manufacturer warranty.

    Good luck though.
     
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  4. Mr.Cheeks

    Mr.Cheeks 1st ever Gold Member! Gold Member

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    like what is already mentioned, its good though for experience. normally, when building pc's, you normally have to deal with all the software parts aswell, so you can get a few call backs depending on the type of problem and user involved. this ofcourse, is chargable, but the type of fee should depend on the type of problem
     
  5. BosonMichael
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    BosonMichael Yottabyte Poster

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    I build my own, but there's not much profit to be made off the normal user who isn't a techie geek. Those who are interested in customizing their components to the degree that can't already be done through Dell (as explained above) will typically know how to build a system on their own.
     
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  6. Bluerinse
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    Bluerinse Exabyte Poster

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    I don't build from scratch but i do buy bare bones systems which can be customised to my desire and sell them on but there is not much profit in it these days :(
     
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  7. Ozzie

    Ozzie Nibble Poster

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    I've looked into this several times, and know a few people who have as well. We have all said the same thing: the time spent sourcing parts and building the systems isn't realy worth the return.
    When you add up the cost you'll probably have a system that costs more than a same spec branded one.
     
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  8. shaggy

    shaggy Byte Poster

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    damn, fair enough, looks like ill have to go back to the drawing board and think of another way to make some extra cash

    thanks guys
     
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  9. BosonMichael
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    BosonMichael Yottabyte Poster

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    I do IT consulting services after hours and on weekends for a few select people. Brings in a little extra money, but it's nothing I would consider consistent (nor would I really want it to be).
     
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  10. shaggy

    shaggy Byte Poster

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    Hmmm IT Consulting, i dont know if im capable of doing that, sounds a little professional haha

    I shall look into what it entails

    Thankyou
     
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  11. BosonMichael
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    BosonMichael Yottabyte Poster

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    Not really... for example, I help my eye doctor out with whatever IT services she needs on a per-hour basis... whether it's installing printers, setting up a workgroup, installing a new PC, configuring a wireless router, installing apps, or simply providing advice on IT-related purchases. Not too complicated if you can do those sort of things! The better you are... and the more experience you have... the better service you can provide.
     
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  12. shaggy

    shaggy Byte Poster

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    Ah i thought it was more coming up with IT solutions for customers from a list of requirements and such

    Im already a 'PC Engineer' with a callout company doing those sorts of things, but work is slow and i havnt had a callout in over a week, so no callouts = no money!

    My original plan was to have my own business doing repairs, maintenance etc as im sure a lot of us here have dreamed of doing at some point

    But im only 18 and registering business' and doing taxes and hiring accountants is simply out of my budget, ive got some business cards printed out and am awaiting the delivery of some adverts i can put up in shops, but i dont really see it getting me many more callouts

    I guess i just need to get my name out there!
     
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  13. Spilly

    Spilly Kilobyte Poster

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    You need to find SME companies with up to about 30 PC's. These can't justify the cost of in house I.T. support

    Contact your local chamber of commerce to find info on target companies.

    Do leg work on posh housing estates by putting cards through doors.

    Get the smallest ad in the yellow pages, don't waste your money on anything else.

    Choose a company name that starts with A-C, gets you in the front of the listings anywhere you use your company name.

    Use your spare time to do your own books & tax.

    Look for a part time I.T. related job to supplement your income.
     
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  14. Crito

    Crito Banned

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    The "sweet spot" for independent system builders seems to be the small business server. Those guys on ebay are just resellers.

    Like others have said, margins on high volume desktop systems are tight. You're never going to be more efficient than an assembly line. So don't even waste your time trying.

    On the other end are the low volume, high priced, high margin commodity servers. Here the problem is corps buy these things more for the support contracts than the hardware or software. If you can't provide a service level agreement you won't get the sale.

    Somewhere in the middle are small-mid sized business owners who need low cost multi-purpose servers. They don't need service level agreements and they can't run their business on desktop computers (anymore.)

    Those are the ones I used to target when I sold hardware. First sell them a mid-level server with Microsoft SBS then sell them services: upgrading desktops, networking, maybe even some custom programming.
     
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  15. BosonMichael
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    BosonMichael Yottabyte Poster

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    Well, you DO have to come up with IT solutions based on requirements, even at the lowest levels. Need stuff printed to a computer? Get a printer. Need stuff printed to many computers in an office? Share the printer or get a networkable printer. *EVERY* company has IT requirements that we can create solutions for. Doesn't mean it has to be complicated. The more experience you get, the more solutions you can propose and implement on your own.

    If you're not getting callouts from the callout company... sounds like you need a different callout company.

    I don't have business cards, but then again, I don't require that extra income to put food on the table. I don't need an accountant, because the taxes are easy to do. In the US, people for whom you do business will send you a 1099 form, which you report as extra income.
     
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  16. shaggy

    shaggy Byte Poster

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    Haha yeah i would like another callout company...my own, because the one im with still hasnt given me any work since 2 fridays ago

    I mentioned needing an accountant as i read a post on here somewhere about someone starting their own LTD company and it was one of the things he needed, im not so hot at maths so figured id need one too
     
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  17. BosonMichael
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    BosonMichael Yottabyte Poster

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    Then go out and sell your services to small companies. The jobs don't come to you... you go dig up the jobs. That's one of the reasons (if not THE primary reason) why techs don't go freelance. They don't know how to sell themselves, they don't know to whom they should sell themselves, and frankly, many are scared to go out on their own due to not knowing how much their paycheck will be each week. Most would rather collect a consistent paycheck from The Man.

    No idea how tax law is in the UK, but in the US, you just go do work for companies with your own name, they send you a form at the end of the year stating how much they paid you as a consultant, and you claim it as self-employment and pay taxes on it. No company necessary (though if you do a LOT of work, it's recommended).
     
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