Re: Who are these guys?

["Bob La Londe" <nospam@xxxxxxxxx>]

"Roland Moore" <nospam@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message

> Why would you even want to get into that market with such skinny
> margins if your "professional" business was successful?

Skinny margins perhaps, but you can make up for it with volume... really.
Especially if you can get your vendors to drop ship everything for you.

> I can just see
> quoting a customer and then having him or her say wait a minute, "why are
> you charging me these prices when you sell the same thing on line much
> cheaper"?

Seperate the businesses.  Even if not, do you really want a customer who is
too stupid to understand that a device is worth more installed than in the
box on the shelf?  I still have guys who buy parts from me, and local guys
from time to time stop by my shop to buy parts.  Somebody buys a complete
system from me to self install I make $100-300 or more in 10-20 minutes.  I
have to work over an hour installing or trouble shooting not counting travel
time to gross the same amount in the field (and that ain't all profit).
Besides those looking to buy parts aren't going to pay me to install a
system anyway.  So its just extra profit.

> And you get a 24 hour emergency number to call too. Wow.

I never provided 24hr support for on-line customer, and I provide no tech
support for DIY installers anymore.  If they don't know what they are doing
tough.  I don't get many, but those I get do seem to have a clue.  I almost
never get any returns from these guys.  When I do there is usually a real
problem or DOA on the equipment.

> http://www.doityourselfsecuritysystems.com/index.html

I ran an on-line parts store a few years ago, and its pretty easy stuff.  My
problem was I got to the point where I would have had to spend some time
writing code and writing pages and making some shipping deals.  Time I
didn't have to take away from my physical customers.  I think I could have
easily out stripped the profit from contracting with on-line sales if I quit
contracting and worked at that full time.  The problem I had was loyalty to
the customers who have fed me and my family for the last decade+.  I could
not just walk away from them.  When I retire if I don't find a buyer for my
contracts, I'll send each customer the information tehy need to find another
alarm company who should be able to take over their service with little or
no extra cost.  Then I might look at on-line or other sales again.


--
Bob La Londe
Fishing Arizona & The Colorado River
Fishing Forums & Contests
http://www.YumaBassMan.com







--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com