Hey Everybody in Portland Computer Repair Land,

Happy Hamster Computer Repair directly influences the purchases of hundreds of computers each year, and indirectly influences thousands as our advice is repeated to friends and family. Given that, I often wonder why the major computer builders (and minor ones) do zero outreach work to shops like mine. My recommendation is worth a lot of money, but as a rule Dell, Sony, Asus, Gateway, etc treat us as an annoyance when we need help. The treatment we receive from computer builders directly influences our recommendations to customers, so I want go over here our aggregate experiences dealing with each of these guys, from worst to best.

Gateway/Acer/Emachines – If you need a part or help from this company (it’s just one company with 3 brands) forget about it. You’re done. They have no phone number, they have no support, help desk tickets take days to be responded to, they have no parts repository you can order from…just quit. Luckily, we can always get these parts used, since their computers break so quickly and often.

Average time invested to get correct part – Infinity.

Sony – I can’t count the number of departments that Sony has to order parts. You wanted an LCD hinge? Oh, this is the LCD BEZEL department, you need to call another number, no, I can’t transfer you. They also, at least 25% of the time, will ship you the wrong part, and the other 25% of the time, a broken part. They provide no product tracking, they can not tell you when your part has shipped, and it arrives “eventually.”

Average time invested to get what we need – 1  – 2 hours.

Asus – Basically the same as Sony, except instead of sending you the wrong part, they are out of stock on *everything.* For example, yesterday I needed to order a part for a 2.5 year old computer, and they said they no longer make parts for that model! They told us to throw it away and buy a new one.  Sadly, because they build so few computers, their parts are rarely available used.

Average time invested to get what we need – 1 – 2 hours.

Dell – We have never called Dell for parts, which is awesome. The thing is, because they build so many of the damn things, we can *always* get Dell parts from one of our used parts dealers. I know their warranty support is “decent” we have dealt with them a few times. They are hard to understand, but they do what you want most of the time, and they ship their warranty parts overnight delivery.

Average time invested to get what we need – 30 minutes.

HP – HP is our gold standard here. HP has a website, http://partsurfer.hp.com/ where you can put in the model of your computer, and it will pop up every last piece that went into it, and how to order it. I mean really tiny detail stuff, like individually ordering the rubber feet, or the left hinge. Stuff ships reasonably quickly, they give you a tracking number, and about 90% of the time you get the right item. The hard part is dealing with them when you get the wrong part, or when they ship the wrong part, but they are no worse on the phone then anybody else, and their website means we don’t have to call them very often to begin with.

Average time invested to get what we need – 15 minutes.

Keep that in mind the next time you’re buying a computer, some of these guys are a lot easier to work with than others.

-Zac

Owner

Happy Hamster Computer Repair

Hey Everybody in Portland Computer Repair Land,

I am going to go two for two in actually following up on a topic when I say I will. We started to talk last time about the whole customer experience, and how it contributes to overall satisfaction. Unlike many computer repair stores that focus on nothing but the repair, Happy Hamster focuses on the entire interaction set. I’d like to go over a few steps of how we achieve that to give you a sense of how deep it goes.

1) “Happy Hamster Computer Repair, this is Zac, how can I help you?”

It starts with the phone. If you call Happy Hamster Computer Repair your call will be answered in an average of 2.7 rings. That means we usually answer the phone after it has rung only twice. Everybody in the shop has been trained to answer the phone (yep, phones are a trained skill) and you’re going to hear the same two pieces of information – who you called, and the technicians name. Nothing is worse than calling a company and getting, “hello?” It always makes me feel like I might’ve dialed incorrectly. I hate having to say, “uhm, is this Alex’s Apple Emporium?” I also like to know to whom I am speaking, it makes the experience more personable, and then if I call back, I can ask for the person who already knows my issue.

2) The traffic cone

We work in a huge bright orange building (the traffic cone, affectionately) right on the major North/South artery of inner NE Portland. I made us very, very easy to find. Nothing is more frustrating that trying to find a hidden away location and making wrong turns any which way.

3) The guardians

We paid a good bit of money for two 3 foot tall heavy duty A-frame signs that guard the corners outside the store, it takes work to not see them.

4) The buzzer

Unlike most shops, where the person you interact with at the bench also has deadlines and computers to fix in back, at Happy Hamster one of our technicians stands door duty at all times. When the buzzer goes off, it is that person’s responsibility to drop what they are doing and go see to the customer. We often intercept people at the door, especially if they are carrying towers, and grab them.

5) Emphasizing the importance of point #4

I just want to go over point #4 again, because this is one of our biggest differentiators from other shops. The job of person who you talk to when you walk in is to talk to you, work with you, and figure out whats going on. That person has no responsibility, time line, or rush, to work on or fix anything else in the shop. This gives us our legendary customer service attitude, because our only focus is on you, not on 15 other things we “should be doing if only this damn customer will get out of the way.” The customer is the job.

6) The check in process

Our process for getting a computer into the system has been honed by two years of experience and constant tinkering. On a single page we include every detail necessary to your repair, and double check every single line of it with you so that you know precisely what you have signed up to pay us to do.

7) My favorite line on the form, and the one for which we get the most compliments, is the preferred contact method. We offer text messaging, e-mail, and phone calls, and I have been shocked by the huge number of people who select text and e-mail, and are grateful for the choice. I know that I personally always prefer to deal by e-mail, but I had no idea how wide that preference goes.

Everything else. I hope this has given you some sense of just how much time and effort I personally spend on every single detail of what we do to ensure each customer has a complete and satisfactory experience. No system in our store exists by rote or chance, every footstep has been carefully considered to provide my customers with the kind of experience that I myself would like to have.

Thanks everybody!

-Zac

President

Happy Hamster Portland Computer Repair

Hey Everybody in Portland Computer Repair Land,

A few weeks ago I went out to do some secret shopping. While out, I had the “basic” experience I have pretty much every time I go secret shopping. An indifferent guy who did not acknowledge me when I walked in, stared at his computer the entire time we spoke, and offered short, unhelpful answers to my questions.

The primary explanation most people have for this sort of behavior goes something like this, “oh, you know, he is a computer nerd, and those people are anti-social and don’t know how to deal with people and just want to play with computers all day.”  I disagree with this assertion. While it may be true that some people fall into this category, I think most are simply guilty of cramming for the test the night before the exam.

Allow me to explain. For me, I find that customers yelling at me ranks #1 on the list of least pleasant things about my job. Inevitably, when such yelling occurs, it comes at the end of a job when a customer comes to pick up their computer. Usually some expectation of the customers, stated or unstated, has not been met,  (we missed the time line, we did not do something they wanted, it cost too much, we did not communicate the way they wanted us to, they do not understand us, etc) and they let us know, vocally. This occurs less than once a month, yet I dread its occurrence more than any other by dint of its sheer unpleasantness.

As this usually occurs at pickup, some naturally assume that the behaviors one engages in immediately prior to the pickup are to blame for the customer being upset at pickup. (If I put on green socks, and then walk out of my house to get by my a car, clearly green socks cause cars to hit me.) Not sound logic, but very human. The guy talking to me behind the bench, frantically working to finish a computer due that day, thinks like this, “this computer in front of me is due to a paying customer today, so I will ignore this potential new customer, because even if he drops off his computer, he won’t be a problem for a week or so.” This logic ignores the common sense factor that really, the entire relationship determines the final outcome. Everything from the way we say hello to the language we use in our phone conversations determines if we get yelled at. Proper communication means, even when everything goes completely purple sided, customers are often completely understanding. If you keep people fully updated along the way, they tolerate delays and problems much more readily.

This longer focus, on the whole relationship with the customer, starts from the first phone call and goes all the way until pickup. We do not cram for our final exams, rather we start studying the moment you walk in and we keep working at it until we hand in our final papers. Too many shops only focus on the final product – is it fixed? And ignore the larger consumer interaction.

I have more thoughts on this, but we’re already running log for one blog, so i’ll continue on in the next post by going over how we control the customer interaction from the first moment.

Thanks!
-Zac

Happy Hamster Computer Repair

Hey Everybody in Portland Computer Repair Land,

Every once in awhile somebody will bring in an old computer to get their data from it, pictures, music, etc. Often these computers have sat in the basement for years, or in the closet. Always they worked when last shut down. Unfortunately, many find themselves surprised when we tell them that their data is now damaged and difficult or impossible to retrieve. Hard drives, like cars, do poorly when sitting for a long time. Even when not in use, they and their data continue to degrade. Try sometime putting your car on the street and not turning it on for a year, the next time you go to use it, it will not start, and likely will have additional issues beyond a dead battery.

If you are storing a computer somewhere and want the data, make sure you constantly back it up to new sources, and always back up in two locations. Burned CD’s will degrade after 2 – 5 years, floppy discs are already dead, and external hard drives have a shelf life of about 5 years. Unfortunately, at this time, there is no good/permanent long term way to store data, you just have to keep it moving!

Thanks,

-Zac

Owner

Happy Hamster Portland Computer Repair

Hey Everybody in Portland Computer Repair Land,

As many of you know, speed plays a big role in our reputation. People are often shocked at how quickly we can repair their computers. Where other shops promise weeks to return, we frequently get things fixed in 24 hours or less. Usually we promise no longer than 48 hours. Unfortunately this does us poorly in lean times and very busy times. If you promise a few weeks to return a computer, it’s easy, when things get slow, to simply work through the back log, and when things get busy, to build it back up. At Happy Hamster though we often find ourselves in a situation where we have nothing to repair for a day or two, and then 15 machines due the next day.

Tomorrow, Friday, is one of those days. I just finished out the schedule, and we have 11 computers promised for delivery tomorrow, yipes! Wish us luck, we’ll be starting at 6 AM to try to get through them all.

-Zac

Hey Everybody in Portland Computer Repair Land,

So last week we talked about the assumptions that people make that lead to problems in the repair process. Today I want to talk a bit about the steps we take to avoid those assumptions -

1) A lack of trust.

We discussed last week how a lack of trust can cause problems. Now, the easy answer here is not the correct one. The easy answer is, “make sure you introduce sufficient uncertainty into the estimate process so the customer knows additional charges may follow.” Well, yes, of course that must be done, but it does not really help the problem if the customer simply doesn’t trust you.  All you have done is taken away the argument of “you never told me it could get more expensive,” but as anybody who works in customer service knows, the untrusting customer has far more in his arsenal. The real key lies in attacking the problem at the root, and making sure the customer trusts you with their computer before they leave the shop.

We establish trust in a few ways. First, we make sure we engage the whole customer, not just their computer. For example, if we see a picture of a puppy on their background, we might ask about their pets, or tell them about ours. Second, we make sure they see us as people too by talking about ourselves, our work at the shop, and other things beyond simply the computer. Finally, we let the customer decide when they are ready to leave, we let them ask all of their questions. Then we double check we have answered them all. Then we answer a few questions they didn’t ask, but probably should have asked. A customer who feels rushed is far more likely to feel like the wool has been pulled over their eyes.

Obviously one allows the customer to guide the depth of these interactions, some customers like to talk for 10 or 20 minutes about this that and the other, others are in a hurry and need to get in and out with a minimum of fuss but we let the customer guide the pace of the interaction.

2) A lack of understanding

When it comes to understand, the key really is the process. Unlike above, there are no malleable mushy ideas here. To reduce understanding, write it down, repeat it, underline it, and have the customer sign for it. Our estimate forms explicitly state the scope of work to be completed, the warranty on the work, when the customer can expect to get their computer back, and every other detail we  have ever had anybody get confused about. We go over with each customer at least 3 times what will be done to their computer. First when we chat about their problem, then when we type up the form, and finally when we go over the form. This rigorous adherence to systems has largely eliminated this sort of problem in our shop.

3) Misjudgement

I really have very little to say here, aside from the value of a full on personality lobotomy. One of the great things about running my own shop is getting to allow all of my humor, life and love to flow out into everything I do. Sometimes that goes over the top, and the best I can offer is that I try to moderate myself according to my perceptions of our customers. For those of you who have been offended, sorry! I’m working on it.

Thanks,

-Zac

Owner

Happy Hamster Computer Repair

Hey Everybody in Portland Computer Repair Land,
Sorry about the computer repair website being down a bit the last couple of days. Server issues have been resolved and we will return our regularly scheduled computer repair programming here shortly.

Thanks,

-Zac

Owner

Happy Hamster Portland Computer Repair

Hey Everybody in Portland Computer Repair Land,

When a customer walks in the shop, they are not a blank slate. Every customer comes in with a set of assumptions about what the experience will be like, they base it on fears and hopes, previous customer service experiences, previous visits to computer repair shop, and a host of other internal factors. We, the employees of the shop, similarly have a set of expectations about the repair experience, and customer service based on past customers and our own past experiences.

There are 3 major challenges to making the two sets of knowledge match up, and making everybody involved happy.

1) The two parties don’t trust each other

Last month a customer came in, we’ll call him Andrew, and a quick look at his computer showed that he had viruses. So, we took in his computer for a basic virus removal. Now, before we do any work, on any computer, we test the internal components to make sure there are no other latent issues with the system. In the case of Andrew, our testing indicated that, in addition to the viruses, he also had a failing hard drive. This leads to an unpleasant phone call I need to make about once a month in which we have to tell a customer to take on faith that there computer has a deeper issue needing repair, and that suddenly their estimate has doubled.

That call, most of the time, goes smoothly, with a trusting customer who says “okay, go ahead and do the additional work.” Once every 3 or 6 months, though, a customer will get irate, and insist that we caused the extradamage, and whats more, we had better fix it or they’re calling the police, BBB, my boss, etc. Quite simply, they do not trust us to be honest.

2) The two parties don’t understand each other

Lets take customer Betina who came in with a bad motherboard, and a few missing keys on her keyboard. While discussing her computer option, the technician and customer discuss the possibility of replacing the keyboard. The technician comes away from the situation understanding that the customer does not want the keyboard replaced, the customer thinks she has requested the keyboard be replaced.

These sorts of minor league misunderstandings and communications cause the vast majority of unsatisfactory customer experiences. Although usually easily and quickly fixed, the customer feels like the technician did not listen to them.

3) The two parties misjudge each other

We run a fairly boisterous shop, and we tell a lot of jokes and have a lot of fun while we work. Depending on the customer, I will sometimes engage in jokes and bantering with our customers. While most of the time I guess right, or let the customer lead the banter, once a month or so I do something dumb. This dumb thing usually involves making a joke to somebody who just wants to engage in a pure business transaction.

Next post, we’ll look at some of the things we do to counter these major assumptive issues.

Hey Everybody in Portland Computer Repair Land,

I am, for once, actually going to continue a series I promise to continue. We started last time with the topic – the idea of being condescending. I am going to stay on topic, but stray from narrative form, by taking this opportunity to give you all an example from my own life of how difficult it can be to avoid being condescending.

First, I need to start by saying that I own a bike, it’s a 1960-something Schwinn I got from a friend. It has a problem, the fenders have rusted and flattened at the bottom, so it’s impossible to  fully inflate the tires without them wearing against the bottom of the fender. I took my bike to my local bike shop, explained the problem, and told the mechanic that I would like to have the fenders replaced.

Now I am going to diverge and tell this story twice, one from my perspective, and once from his -

The mechanic told me that he thought it would be too expensive to replace them, and that we could try to just bend them back into shape. I asked how much it would cost to replace them, and he assured me it was very expensive and not a good idea. I asked him to humor me, and get the price. He looked it up and told me it would cost about $80 to replace both with manufactured originals, or $35 to replace with black plastic. He then informed me that plastic would be a better idea, because metal would just rust and bend again, and plastic would hold its shape; thus, if I wanted to replace them I should use plastic. He then started over, reiterating his point that it was a bad idea to begin with, and I should just deal with them. Finally I gave up, I asked him for a brake adjustment I needed, which he did, quickly and efficiently, and I left. I was extremely frustrated with the entire situation, I wanted my damn fenders replaced, I thought $80 was a fine price to pay, and that condescending know it all mechanic wouldn’t let me just make that choice without feeling like an idiot.

I would now like to tell the story again, this time as I can imagine the mechanic may have written in his own blog -

Today a guy came in with a really old, rusty bike worth maybe $50. The gears didn’t change correctly, the front wheel was dented and really needed to be replaced, and the thing weighed more than a small car. He started going on about how what he wanted was new fenders. I tried to explain to him that the fenders cost more than the bike is worth and then a good whack with a wrench would probably solve the problem. He kept insisting on new fenders, so I suggested plastic, way cheaper, would reduce the weight of the thing by 5 pounds, and would last much longer. He kept trying to insist so I tried to explain again, obviously he just did not understand me. Finally he realized I was right, got his brakes adjusted, and rode off. I am very glad I stopped him from making a poor decision with his money.

Tomorrow I’ll come back to talk about how we ended out in a situation where the customer is unhappy despite the technician doing his best.

Hey Everybody in Portland Computer Repair Land,

For me, this blog exists so I can tell you things that I hope you will find interesting. Also to give my parents a way to snoop on me without having to call me and ask, “So, how are you?”

The topic I’m going to address the next week or so will probably be the most difficult I’ve ever tried to form a coherent blog about, because everybody on earth has a completely different perspective on the issue. This one word carries an enormous weight in the minds of every customer, and every employee, and yet people spill its blood far too willingly and frequently, without regard to the value of it.

I am going to write a few posts this week about one, single, difficult word -

Condescending.

I am going to start by telling you a few of the reasons that various customers have called me or a staff member by The Word in the past year -

1. Talking too quickly.

“I could barely understand what he said!”

2. Talking too slowly.

“What am I, an idiot?”

3. Asking too many questions.

“You’re the computer person, why are you asking me what happened?”

4. Not asking enough questions.

“It worried me that they didn’t ask me about all the background of the computer, isn’t that important to figuring out what happened?”

5. Making too many suggestions.

“Why are you giving me so many choices? You’re the computer guy, you tell me what I need!”

6. Not making enough suggestions.

“Wait, why didn’t you ask about X option? My brother in law said I should do X!”

7. Working too quickly

“I couldn’t even see what he was doing!”

8. Working too slowly

“I don’t want you to show me, just fix it!”

In the next few posts I’m going to talk a bit about the extraordinary difficulty of this problem, and what we do to try to avoid it.