Do you want to pay for “attempted” computer repair?

2010 brings with it our third year at our new location. A monumental occasion, especially in a recession, it has also inspired me to revisit what makes us stand out from the competition.

I was reading through a price list for another computer repair and sales company in Barrie. An interesting theme started emerging. “Our technicians are highly trained…” yet each segment was “our technicians will ATTEMPT to…starting from only $xx.xx”.

As always, my wheels started turning. If someone is so highly trained, why the lack of confidence in one’s services? I was presented with an interesting analogy by Bob Cassels that has stuck with me ever since. He sat down on a chair and challenged us to tell him to try and get up. “Try to get off the chair” someone said. Well, he struggled, moaned and groaned, but never got off the chair. “There, I tried” he said. “Now tell me to get off the chair”. “Get off the chair” someone called out. Immediately he stood up.

If you’re confident in your ability, you won’t “try”. You *WILL* do it, or you won’t charge for it.

Do you want to pay for someone to “try” to repair your computer? Do you want to pay someone to tell you “we can’t fix it”? Unfortunately, this sense of entitlement prevails in the industry. You don’t want to pay for an “effort”, you want to pay for a solution.

That is what will continue to define our computer repair service in 2010. We WILL fix your computer…or it’s FREE! (some exceptions apply). We are so confident in our computer repair abilities, we guarantee that we will repair your computer. If your computer is not repaired to your satisfaction, we will do whatever it takes to make it right at no additional charge (parts not included). If, despite our best efforts, we’re not able to repair the computer we will refund your money.

Our promise to you:

Friendly, courteous service
Fast turn around times
Our industry leading guarantee. We will fix it or it’s free.

We value your busines, we love what we do, we’re confident in our ability to deliver. Let us show you the difference. When you want great service and fast, guaranteed results, it’s Northern Protocol Inc.

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On Boxing Day, beware the “extended warranties”!

Big retailers are desperate to move product this year. Sales have been slumping, evidenced by aggressive pricing long before Christmas ever arrived. The consensus is that this will put a damper on Boxing Day as they’ve already trimmed what they can.

The downside for the consumer is that they will see a lot of sales that aren’t really sales, and worse there will be greater pressure to purchase “extended warranties”.

MSN just published a great article on these warranties. Profit margins on them are very high. They make up for the shortfall in the aggressive pricing of the product. They’re an easy sell to unwary consumers and a “hidden cost” that drives up the price (and the profits). For you as a consumer, it means a couple of things.

a) Consider your usage of the product and look for the exclusions. Extended warranties have become infamous for their exclusions, resulting in very little value to the end user. In fact, they have become so notorious that companies like Best Buy and Futureshop have landed on the Ontario Consumer Beware List as a result.

b) Extended warranties are about lining the corporate coffers, not good customer service. Consumers spend as much as 20% of the value of the product on these “warranties”. The profit margin to the retailer is almost 50%. The consumer ends up with a lower quality product and paying the same price, or more, as getting a better product and service at an independent retailer.

Small vendors like us use higher quality parts that give far superior manufacturers warranty than an off the shelf product and we back it up with our service and knowledge. If you’re considering a computer purchase, consult an independent retailer that uses the better quality products with the better warranty. When considering a price comparison, factor in the extra you’d spend on warranty or “service plans” at the box store to get the same level of service at your independent retailer included for free.

The pressure will be on for the salespeople to sell as many of these “warranties” as possible. Be informed. Be prepared. Then get the best bang for your dollar.

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Merry Christmas Barrie!

Thank you, Barrie, for our best year yet. 2009 proved to be a record breaking year for us, experiencing over 60% growth from 2008. Particularly in today’s economy that’s nothing short of incredible. We would like to thank you for helping to make us one of the fastest growing computer repair companies in Simcoe County.

It’s been an incredible journey so far. Thank you for your support and we at Northern Protocol Inc. wish you and yours a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We look forward to serving you in 2010.

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iTunes, iPhone and 0xe8000065 error when syncing

If you use an iPhone or iTouch you may run across an 0xe8000065 error when trying to sync with iTunes. I ran across the 0xe8000065 error when trying to sync my iPhone on my Windows 7 computer. Every time I plugged my iPhone into a USB port to sync it, whether on the front or back, strange things would start happening. The computer would restart, iTunes would fail with an unknown error, my mouse would stop working, etc. I also found the mouse would freeze as soon as I sent a print job to the printer. As it turns out, I have an Intel I7 processor and a P55 chipset and there’s an issue with the USB power.

There is a setting in your BIOS called C-State. It’s supposed to monitor low voltage and CPUs to save power, but it also seems to control the power to the chipset. To repair the problem, restart your computer and press Del or F2 to get into your BIOS. Once there, go into the CPU settings and enable the C-State option. Save and exit to reboot your computer. Once this option is enabled you will no longer get the 0xe8000065 error.

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Christmas 2009 business hours

Our Christmas hours this year are as follows:

December 24:  9 AM to 2 PM

December 25: Closed

December 26: Closed

December 27: Closed

December 28, 29, 30: 9 AM to 8 PM

December 31: 9 AM to 2 PM

January 1: Closed

January 2: Closed

We will resume normal office hours on January 4, 2010.

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Warcraft cards are here!

Many of our clients play Warcraft. Traditionally they’ve paid $35 and up for a time card to play Warcraft online. I’m very pleased to announce you can now buy your Warcraft time cards from us for only $32.99 cash or debit price.

Stop in today and get yours.

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