Hi Alex, Now I understand why you haven't responded to my message I sent on your system two months ago. I'll share it here since I couldn't find another place to share it. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi Alex, I just had to reach out to celebrate the time I've spent watching and appreciating all your RUclips videos. It's been quite a journey diving into your content, and I must say, the effort and dedication you put into crafting these videos truly shine through. To express my appreciation for your dedication, I'd like to make a donation alongside this message. However, I couldn't locate a donation link on your website. Could you please provide instructions on how to proceed? Please understand that the value isn't in the amount but rather in the sincerity of my gratitude for your efforts. As someone who's watched every single video of yours, I feel I can offer some honest feedback on what I believe are the highlights: Your generosity in sharing the tricks and techniques that drive your business is incredibly inspiring. It's not just about problem-solving but also about fostering a culture of collaboration and mutual support. The length of your videos is just right-not too lengthy or too short. They hit that sweet spot that keeps viewers engaged. Your content is always spot-on, delivering valuable insights without unnecessary fluff. Your videos possess a captivating charm, much like the joy that emanates from you when overcoming technical hurdles. I feel a genuine connection with you, whether you're expressing sadness, or your eyes are gleaming with accomplishment as you fix a device. The production quality of your videos, including visuals and sound, is outstanding. Incorporating videos from various sources, such as a side camera, a microscope, or a thermal camera, holds equal importance to other elements in the production process. Sharing glimpses of your daily life and success stories adds a personal touch that resonates with many. Despite occasional challenges, your customer service approach reflects a level of care and professionalism that's commendable. It's evident that you warmly welcome customers and readily take calls even when occupied with other tasks. The teamwork dynamic within your business, sets a great example of respect and cooperation. I could go on, but I'll keep it concise. Wishing you and your team continued success, and I hope we get the chance to meet in person someday. Feel free to share this message in your videos if you'd like-it's my way of saying thank you for being such an inspiration. Best regards, Abdulqader (Iraqi Canadian)
My donation is nothing compared to what I have learned. Believe it or not, I watch the videos again when I feel upset to absorb some of your positive energy. I hope to meet you in person someday if I visit California.
The customers were in the right tho, the root cause of his angry customers is him failing to meet very common expectations. He then took that feedback and improved his business with it. The customers who challenged his practices made him a better business for it. Listen, if you can't handle criticism then you are a narcissist, I surround myself with the people that tell me what I don't want to hear about the products and services I offer because that is where perfection can be found.
I had a small computer shop. An incident that sticks with me is around 2012 or so, a woman knocked on my door demanding her money back for a pc, she said it had stopped working. I said "Give me a moment, I'll look up the serial number." It was a Pentium 3 that I had sold her for $15 six month earlier. Pentium 3 was already antique in 2012. I didn't argue, I was kinds in shock that someone would go through the hassle of bringing back a $15 pc they bought six months earlier. She was very loud and demanding and acting like I had ripped her off SO I just gave her the $15 back and she left without the pc. Out of curiosity, I opened the pc and looked around it, changed the video card out and that was the problem, the video card had died. I then taped a sheet of paper on it that said: "$50 Retro gamer special". It sold a week later and I never saw it again. Some people have a LOT of nerve.
😂😂😂 I'm not surprised at all because i hv had same experience before (with a female) i thnk all women have similar thought process because only women act these way even in my country (Nigeria)
I really liked this video. I worked as a surgeon fort 37 years. I could write a book on the interactions I had with patients and their family members! You cannot make everyone happy no matter how good you are in your work. Do another video like this one soon.
That's one area of expertise that can be very difficult... People with medical issues always have a lot of emotion attached to said issue. The way I see it. As long as a medical professional gives me respect, tries their hardest to help, and listens attentively to my issue, then I see no reason to ever be disrespectful to a medical professional. Most medical professions are understaffed and in high demand. People have little empathy these days and are very selfish. More people need to be selfless and kind, for they would find happiness each and everyday.
I often watch your channel, we are colleagues by profession. I have been through the same situations as you many times. I wish you success in your future work, this is a very nice and difficult profession. You are doing it very successfully. Thank you.
if a shop after a long argument told me "I don't make up the price from my ass", I'd think okay this guy is not even charging me to be nice anymore because this frankly is his bottom price 😂😂
We opened in 2003 and it took me 10 years to learn to catalog all customer repairs. This old dog is stubborn but willing to learn. Congrats on your success Alex!
i started a bike repair shop in 2019. very quickly i needed a better system to keep track of customer bikes and data other than writing it down on paper, so i asked my friend who is a computer science student to create one for me. he said "no thats a lot of work to maintain into the future etc, but ill teach you how to make it" so that day he spent 12 hours teaching me the fundamentals of programming, and after a few weeks of trial and error i had a working CRUD program for my database (create, read, update, and delete). he then reminded me that the same programming language i created my database viewer in, i can make video games with. so i spent a lot of time making video games and learning more about programming. now every couple months i rack up a list of changes for my program to make it more efficient to use, and implement them all.
Had a several mechanics do the same for me. Each one showed me different parts of the system, and the different testing procedures. Men are guilty of giving free advice because someone else shows interest.
It's difficult to set up a repair shop system to track repairs. I worked at a shop where the wife booked in the work and the husband distributed the work depending the type of device and who in the shop was most familiar with that device. We would report back to the husband the issue and what was needed to repair the device . In turn, he would speak to the wife to note on the ticket the issue, parts cost and labor cost. She would contact the customer and get the okay to repair. As parts came in, the date was noted on the ticket and the device was put back into the queue for the technician performing the repair. When the device was repaired, it was cleaned and wrapped up. The ticket was given to the wife and a copy of the ticket number was stapled to the bag the device was wrapped in. The system worked well.
Hey Alex, this video really hits home with me. I got really busy and disorganized when I first started mail-ins, my head was spinning. So many mistakes were made by not being organized. Thanks for sharing :))
LMAO! You could go do a part 2, part 3, or more. I'd be right here listening to your business experiences. Yes, sometimes we say dumb things, after all we're not perfect - we're human.
we don't just enjoy your stories Alex, we learn a lot from them and really appreciate you telling us your day-to-day 'incidents' 😊🙏 much respect for you guys at shop 🙏
Nice video! Thanks for the honesty. Being a 1 man show is stressful, you can only wear so many hats, we're all human and have limits. Imagine trying to do this without help from your family? When you deal with the public, there are always a few of 'them' you'll encounter - sometimes they are obvious, sometimes not. I've learned to avoid 'rush jobs' unless it'll pay a handsome reward, they just aren't worth the stress it can cause because everyone is in a hurry. If I get behind or need to order a part, I'll always let the customer know with a phone call & it seems to keep the peace. When in business for yourself - you can't please all the people all the time, that's just how it is and that's when patience & empathy can come in handy. You've come a long way, congratulations on your success.
I watch your videos to learn - not just repairs but also "General thought processing and troubleshooting". You have little clever nuggets here and there - words or expressions that you use in the moment - and over time those small phrases become "standard operating procedure" for a lot of us! My favourite phrase is "BETTER THAN FACTORY" - because of that phrase - I try hard to perform above standard... For that - I say thank you sir!
it's really refreshing to see you make a video of how you fixed your problems compared to you fixing other people's problems (devices). this is a really good video and hoping to hear more interesting stories, experiences, and other challenges that you overcame. keep up the good work and i wish you all the good things for you and your business!
Hi ALEX, Thanks for all you do. i really want to say you have been more of a role model to me ever since i discovered your channel, am not just learning about tech from you but am also learning real life experiences on how to navigate through my tech career. Am a Nigerian, and am 3yrs into mobile phone repair, and funnily I've had some of these experiences with customers. i currently seek for an uprgrade in my skills and i hope to get there someday. CHEERS.
Man, this is pure gold. I'm actually planning to open my own shop after almost 4 years working on another person shop, and I think this saves me even years of experience. Now I at least know what to expect when I work for myself. Thank you very much for this! Regards from Argentina. PD: Yeah... I still miss the old ending tune... hehe.
Honestly, as a repair company owner myself in the same field, I like these videos the best. You're one of the best repair technicians on RUclips, but you're definitely the best businessman. Long time subscriber and customer of your equipment sales ...
That's cool to learn things on the life of a good repairman. You should do more videos where you tell stories of problems you had with customers. I'm pretty sure it's something people are liking.
It's going through the things you go through that get you where you are today. So it couldn't be all that bad or you wouldn't be where you are today. The good thing about starting at the bottom of the ladder is that it builds character and ethics as you work each rung in that ladder and make your way up. It is always wise to stop and take a moment to just remember where it all began and what you had to go through to get where you are. doing so helps keep one grounded. Congratulations on your success Alex, you got what you deserved! Cheers!
This video makes me grateful that my previous workplaces had a ticket system set up from the get go. The work itself isn't that stressfull. What's causing stress is chaos and lack of order while customers are being impatient.
I sub & watch you because you are like a Scarecrow, "outstanding in your field". When I used to fix PC's I quoted a price and it I had to have more money into fixing it than quoted, I ate the cost. I did the same thing when I quoted a construction job. The customer always knew how much it cost and would always pay me more than the quote for my honesty. People do shop around, and don't always go with the low bid. They go with word of mouth more. Honesty defines you and sets you apart.
Hi Alex, I love your content and iv always come back to your content to replenish my knowledge on electronics and also the entertainment. You are in a place that id like to get to with electronic repairs, it just amazes me the stuff you can do. i have 2 graphics cards that i am going to try fix a GTX 960 (Series fault) and a RTX 2060 (Memory error error 43) thanks to your videos i will be replacing the Memory chip on the GPU i managed to work out the faulty memory chip reporting faults and will give that a go, keep putting up the amazing content, i just repaired a laptop today for the 2nd time very basic repair power jack replacement but the person re-dropped it and damaged my nice soldering for a second time keeps me busy thanks alot i also fixed 4 LG screens from my workplace that were destined to go to the BIN, (Capacitor had blown on all 4)
Thanks for all your videos and the generosity in sharing your knowledge and stories I'm sure you can see how much I have watched, wish I could afford to give you more! You certainly deserve it
i've been doing repairs for 30yrs, but not at component level like yourself. I still use post-its with customer contact details, reported fault and date it was brought in :-). I don't have enough business to have your issue of too many things to keep track of, but I enjoy your pragmatic approach to customers and repair. thankyou for your channel.
I enjoyed this video very much, the story of your growth was humble and has tremendous value to those who may consider following in your footsteps as a business owner.
I live in the UK, love your videos, it must have been hard in the early days of your business I'm glad to hear your business is doing well now I don't know how you keep so cool with some awkward customers I've got a short fuse when people push me to far, some of the customer stories made me laugh, you've got a brilliant family who work for or with you, wishing you all the best in the future
This was a great video, keep on going with these stories! Anytime someone calls me and says "X,Y,Z does it for this price (lower than I do)." I always say "It sounds like you know where to take it then." Keep in mind, the competition they mention is hysterically horrible and you get what you pay for. They see my 5* reviews (I have all 5*'s compared to the 2.8* or worse competition). I've worked way too hard over the years to earn my reputation and provide the service that I do and I'm not going to race to the bottom to appease a cheapskate. I do not negotiate, nor do I pull random prices out of my ass either, Alex. Again, I can relate and please keep going with these stories as they are great to hear from a fellow successful technician/business!!
Great video, I recently took over the family business and I am never feeling like I am getting on top of the work even though I am. Your video reminds me that progress is about solving problems and moving forward. Thank you.
With all the experiences you've made and the personal development you obviously went through, I could listen to you all day and learn something for myself and my own life - business or private.
I have learned a lot by watching you work and I have always been interested in repairing electronic devices. Right now I repair gaming controllers but basic things and I also customize them.... My question is, if I wanted to do this professionally, what type of schooling would be best to take? Love your channel, I'm from Toronto Canada ✌🏻
I have people argue with me about price sometimes too in heating and air. I have a normal rate for my area. Sometimes if I think a customer might be struggling I will lower my price but if someone is demanding and smart with me I just matter of factory tell them the price is the price. I am very good at what I do. If they don’t recognize that then they can go somewhere else.
You are totally right brother, things happen to me too when I deal with customers, but it is a part of developing your business. If you don’t fall you won’t know how to stand. I really appreciate you. I’m learning a lot from you. May Allah bless you and protect you
Make a part 2 video please. I am thinking of starting up a business and it has a good chance of electronics repair so it would be informative for me and probably entertaining to others.
you could do something useful logistically : get a list of used parts for the last year, compare it with your current inventory and order the shortage qtys, this way you always have the most frequently used spareparts . I also can develop a system for what you need
I enjoy hearing about the personal side, they can encompass so many things, challenges, growth, wisdom, and they can be funny, too. Thanks for sharing!
I used to do PC builds and repairs for people as a side job. It was a lot of work and I did it for maybe a year. What burned me out is I had a few customers that I built PCs for that would contact me every few weeks or month or so and complain that I did bad work for them. Every single time I’d look at the computers and it was always something that they did to the computer. Usually nothing technically was wrong with the systems, but it was stupid things they were doing in Windows or they just didn’t know what they were doing but blamed the PC because it didn’t do what they wanted it to. Crappy internet connections, malware and viruses, etc. were also root causes but people just blamed my PC build for the issue. I just couldn’t keep up with hand holding so many computer idiots, so I stopped building PCs for others. Since then I occasionally will help a friend here and there but that’s it. People suck and are quick to blame when 99% of the time it’s their fault they are having computer problems.
Fantastic video. It actually dispels the notion that business owners are just taking their sweet time. The reality is we're working harder than most people. It's just that people don't see it.
PART TWO!! PART TWO! PART TWO!! how long till part two? lol. Thank you Alex, I have been blessed with a Dolly email, she is great! Alex you have transcended just being a RUclips teacher, you are a RUclips entertainer too! FYI when my friend would pull stuff from their ass, I would tell him hes getting it from the Assernet.
I own a business and when I first took it over from my dad and I had to sell.. I was AWFUL at first. It was embarrassing. Luckily I was young (20-22) during my rough patch and my older customers worked with me and understood. Some of my customers who were older business owners even gave me tips while I was talking to them. Finally, I sucked up my pride and got my dad to teach me instead of acting like I knew everything. On the flip side, we do have to deal with scammers occasionally. BUT one of the BEST parts of owning a business is that you don't have to put up with scammers or irate customers. You can promptly tell them to leave and have them legally banned. Furthermore, I can actually stand up for myself and tell scammers or insane customers to promptly fuck off. It doesn't hurt your business, because you don't want their business and anyone they are friends with will be just as crazy as them because crazy attracts crazy.
Businesses will have some growing pains, especially explosive type of growth you experienced. I think you found success by trying to do right by the customer and having the RUclips channel helps see the human side of the business. I also fix electronics for myself or friends/family but if I ever get stumped on something I need to fix I'll probably send it your way....hopefully I never send a hiroshima... haha. I struggle with micro-soldering because I have muscle tremors but I do my best.
I tell my customer on quick repairs it's a 48 hour minimum unless I am pretty confident I can do it in 1 day like my PS5 HDMI ports I can do those in 1 day. Also impatient customers I would say it's so an so extra for rush service.
I'm a retired 41 year cable tv/internet tech. After the first ten years in the business I got really good at telling customers they were stupid without actually saying it. I can't believe the sh!t I got away with. I made them feel so stewpid that they never called in to complain.
At one point, one lady brought a computer that was noisy. It only needed some good cleaning, but I said to her something like: " I do believe you also feel better when you wash your feet after work." 🙄 And she just left, shocked... I wonder why. 🤔
I agree that it never improves the situation by yelling. The second story reminds me of situations at my job. It's like people think you were sitting around doing nothing until they contacted you. Lol. I can understand the first customer's frustration, but all he needed to ask is why is it taking so long? 3 months is insane, but if he had simply asked why, you could have told him the part was coming from China and it usually takes a month, but with covid, you have no way to know how long it will take. He could decide, based on that, if he wanted to continue waiting.
i got known for fixing electronics as a hobby where i live, but the easy problems. one day i had a customer with a dead screen on a cd player and i told him let me try to see if i can fix it before you spend money on parts ,, it took me a feew months because i do it on my free time.. and tried and tried for several hours per night trying to save him money.. at the end i told him im sorry i couldn't fix it but the next person you reach will ask you to replace all the motherboards i tried to save you from just because you were on a rush....because the typical answer is I NEED IT URGENT.
Mail-ins are the way to go, every shop I have worked at walk in traffic is minimal but have made big money on mail-ins, Louis Rossman's store included, dealing with the public sucks.
I fixed a desktop computer for a guy I knew once.. I remember when I saw the computer, I thought it was odd the side cover was missing. fine, I'll fix it for $20 or something and move on with my day. a few days later he complains to me about the missing side cover, claiming I still had it..... I'm not dealing with this any more. I don't do windows, I'm not a window washer, I'm not touching it.
I was so waiting for like a screaming match or something haha.... you have a lot of self control. If clients complain about pricing, I tell them straight up to go elsewhere. And when clients complain about the price or attempt to bargain, i let them, but my price slowly increases to a special price just for them lol ... every time they try get me to lower, i raise by $10 until they give up and agree to the original price or leave. One of the biggest things you get after time is the ability to pick and choose your clients - not the other way around. The client is not always right and I will hang the phone up on you if you dont stop shouting or screaming if i ask you to calm down. I will then proceed to ignore your calls if I need too. So as a business owner, I 100% feel you. and congrats on getting to where you are now. that is a massive achievement! the mud you went through over the years helped you with experience that cannot be bought. 🎉🎉🎉 also, massive props for being so calm when under so much pressure
I'd like to another video or two of crazy happenings at NorthRidge Fix. In particular, how about stories of people wanting to fix junk because they can't let go. My Brother in Law is like that, my sister is always catching him hiding things (almost everything) in hid shed. Just because he so cheap.
Hi Alex,
Now I understand why you haven't responded to my message I sent on your system two months ago. I'll share it here since I couldn't find another place to share it.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Alex,
I just had to reach out to celebrate the time I've spent watching and appreciating all your RUclips videos. It's been quite a journey diving into your content, and I must say, the effort and dedication you put into crafting these videos truly shine through.
To express my appreciation for your dedication, I'd like to make a donation alongside this message. However, I couldn't locate a donation link on your website. Could you please provide instructions on how to proceed? Please understand that the value isn't in the amount but rather in the sincerity of my gratitude for your efforts.
As someone who's watched every single video of yours, I feel I can offer some honest feedback on what I believe are the highlights:
Your generosity in sharing the tricks and techniques that drive your business is incredibly inspiring. It's not just about problem-solving but also about fostering a culture of collaboration and mutual support.
The length of your videos is just right-not too lengthy or too short. They hit that sweet spot that keeps viewers engaged.
Your content is always spot-on, delivering valuable insights without unnecessary fluff.
Your videos possess a captivating charm, much like the joy that emanates from you when overcoming technical hurdles. I feel a genuine connection with you, whether you're expressing sadness, or your eyes are gleaming with accomplishment as you fix a device.
The production quality of your videos, including visuals and sound, is outstanding. Incorporating videos from various sources, such as a side camera, a microscope, or a thermal camera, holds equal importance to other elements in the production process.
Sharing glimpses of your daily life and success stories adds a personal touch that resonates with many.
Despite occasional challenges, your customer service approach reflects a level of care and professionalism that's commendable. It's evident that you warmly welcome customers and readily take calls even when occupied with other tasks.
The teamwork dynamic within your business, sets a great example of respect and cooperation.
I could go on, but I'll keep it concise. Wishing you and your team continued success, and I hope we get the chance to meet in person someday.
Feel free to share this message in your videos if you'd like-it's my way of saying thank you for being such an inspiration.
Best regards,
Abdulqader (Iraqi Canadian)
Thank you for your kind words and the donation you made earlier. Iraqi's are some of the most Generous people I know.
My donation is nothing compared to what I have learned. Believe it or not, I watch the videos again when I feel upset to absorb some of your positive energy. I hope to meet you in person someday if I visit California.
😅
This video is too long though.
As a fellow tech support i can wholehearted feel your pain from customers trying their absolute best to piss you off.
The Truth sets you free
The customers were in the right tho, the root cause of his angry customers is him failing to meet very common expectations. He then took that feedback and improved his business with it. The customers who challenged his practices made him a better business for it. Listen, if you can't handle criticism then you are a narcissist, I surround myself with the people that tell me what I don't want to hear about the products and services I offer because that is where perfection can be found.
I had a small computer shop. An incident that sticks with me is around 2012 or so, a woman knocked on my door demanding her money back for a pc, she said it had stopped working. I said "Give me a moment, I'll look up the serial number." It was a Pentium 3 that I had sold her for $15 six month earlier. Pentium 3 was already antique in 2012. I didn't argue, I was kinds in shock that someone would go through the hassle of bringing back a $15 pc they bought six months earlier. She was very loud and demanding and acting like I had ripped her off SO I just gave her the $15 back and she left without the pc. Out of curiosity, I opened the pc and looked around it, changed the video card out and that was the problem, the video card had died. I then taped a sheet of paper on it that said: "$50 Retro gamer special". It sold a week later and I never saw it again. Some people have a LOT of nerve.
W
😂😂😂
I'm not surprised at all because i hv had same experience before (with a female)
i thnk all women have similar thought process because only women act these way even in my country (Nigeria)
Well that was lame of you should of checked it and told her.
Business is a series of problems and successful business is overcoming those problems. Excellent synopsis to a successful business.
I really liked this video. I worked as a surgeon fort 37 years. I could write a book on the interactions I had with patients and their family members! You cannot make everyone happy no matter how good you are in your work. Do another video like this one soon.
That's one area of expertise that can be very difficult... People with medical issues always have a lot of emotion attached to said issue. The way I see it. As long as a medical professional gives me respect, tries their hardest to help, and listens attentively to my issue, then I see no reason to ever be disrespectful to a medical professional. Most medical professions are understaffed and in high demand. People have little empathy these days and are very selfish. More people need to be selfless and kind, for they would find happiness each and everyday.
I often watch your channel, we are colleagues by profession. I have been through the same situations as you many times. I wish you success in your future work, this is a very nice and difficult profession. You are doing it very successfully. Thank you.
Nice. Alex. So nice of you to share your experiences
Share more of it. It helps many to be a better person
if a shop after a long argument told me "I don't make up the price from my ass", I'd think okay this guy is not even charging me to be nice anymore because this frankly is his bottom price 😂😂
We opened in 2003 and it took me 10 years to learn to catalog all customer repairs. This old dog is stubborn but willing to learn. Congrats on your success Alex!
I really learnt alot and i enjoyed it, please Part 2
You were young.
you had no idea how to run properly. But you did something, you learnt with pain.
Thank you for sharing your story.
i started a bike repair shop in 2019. very quickly i needed a better system to keep track of customer bikes and data other than writing it down on paper, so i asked my friend who is a computer science student to create one for me. he said "no thats a lot of work to maintain into the future etc, but ill teach you how to make it" so that day he spent 12 hours teaching me the fundamentals of programming, and after a few weeks of trial and error i had a working CRUD program for my database (create, read, update, and delete). he then reminded me that the same programming language i created my database viewer in, i can make video games with. so i spent a lot of time making video games and learning more about programming. now every couple months i rack up a list of changes for my program to make it more efficient to use, and implement them all.
Wow! 🎉
Had a several mechanics do the same for me. Each one showed me different parts of the system, and the different testing procedures. Men are guilty of giving free advice because someone else shows interest.
It's difficult to set up a repair shop system to track repairs. I worked at a shop where the wife booked in the work and the husband distributed the work depending the type of device and who in the shop was most familiar with that device. We would report back to the husband the issue and what was needed to repair the device . In turn, he would speak to the wife to note on the ticket the issue, parts cost and labor cost. She would contact the customer and get the okay to repair. As parts came in, the date was noted on the ticket and the device was put back into the queue for the technician performing the repair. When the device was repaired, it was cleaned and wrapped up. The ticket was given to the wife and a copy of the ticket number was stapled to the bag the device was wrapped in. The system worked well.
Hey Alex, this video really hits home with me. I got really busy and disorganized when I first started mail-ins, my head was spinning. So many mistakes were made by not being organized. Thanks for sharing :))
LMAO! You could go do a part 2, part 3, or more. I'd be right here listening to your business experiences. Yes, sometimes we say dumb things, after all we're not perfect - we're human.
we don't just enjoy your stories Alex, we learn a lot from them and really appreciate you telling us your day-to-day 'incidents' 😊🙏 much respect for you guys at shop 🙏
Nice video! Thanks for the honesty. Being a 1 man show is stressful, you can only wear so many hats, we're all human and have limits. Imagine trying to do this without help from your family? When you deal with the public, there are always a few of 'them' you'll encounter - sometimes they are obvious, sometimes not. I've learned to avoid 'rush jobs' unless it'll pay a handsome reward, they just aren't worth the stress it can cause because everyone is in a hurry. If I get behind or need to order a part, I'll always let the customer know with a phone call & it seems to keep the peace. When in business for yourself - you can't please all the people all the time, that's just how it is and that's when patience & empathy can come in handy. You've come a long way, congratulations on your success.
But hiring emplyee, they will steal your goods and customers
I watch your videos to learn - not just repairs but also "General thought processing and troubleshooting".
You have little clever nuggets here and there - words or expressions that you use in the moment - and over time those small phrases become "standard operating procedure" for a lot of us!
My favourite phrase is "BETTER THAN FACTORY" - because of that phrase - I try hard to perform above standard...
For that - I say thank you sir!
Perhaps the extra $10 was for medical treatment.
hahahahahahahhahaah
it's really refreshing to see you make a video of how you fixed your problems compared to you fixing other people's problems (devices). this is a really good video and hoping to hear more interesting stories, experiences, and other challenges that you overcame. keep up the good work and i wish you all the good things for you and your business!
its ok boss
24:05
Best one so far.
Make more of these Alex, they are hilarious and informative at the same time.
Hi ALEX,
Thanks for all you do. i really want to say you have been more of a role model to me ever since i discovered your channel, am not just learning about tech from you but am also learning real life experiences on how to navigate through my tech career.
Am a Nigerian, and am 3yrs into mobile phone repair, and funnily I've had some of these experiences with customers.
i currently seek for an uprgrade in my skills and i hope to get there someday.
CHEERS.
Man, this is pure gold. I'm actually planning to open my own shop after almost 4 years working on another person shop, and I think this saves me even years of experience. Now I at least know what to expect when I work for myself. Thank you very much for this! Regards from Argentina.
PD: Yeah... I still miss the old ending tune... hehe.
I follow each video religiously… this shows how a genuine person you are… one of my bucket list is to visit you hopefully 2026
Honestly, as a repair company owner myself in the same field, I like these videos the best. You're one of the best repair technicians on RUclips, but you're definitely the best businessman. Long time subscriber and customer of your equipment sales ...
That's cool to learn things on the life of a good repairman.
You should do more videos where you tell stories of problems you had with customers.
I'm pretty sure it's something people are liking.
It's going through the things you go through that get you where you are today. So it couldn't be all that bad or you wouldn't be where you are today. The good thing about starting at the bottom of the ladder is that it builds character and ethics as you work each rung in that ladder and make your way up. It is always wise to stop and take a moment to just remember where it all began and what you had to go through to get where you are. doing so helps keep one grounded. Congratulations on your success Alex, you got what you deserved! Cheers!
It's inspiring to learn about other people's struggles. Thank you for sharing with us.
This video makes me grateful that my previous workplaces had a ticket system set up from the get go. The work itself isn't that stressfull. What's causing stress is chaos and lack of order while customers are being impatient.
You're a passionate honest person, who doesn't have time for idiots. I respect you a lot m8.
I sub & watch you because you are like a Scarecrow, "outstanding in your field".
When I used to fix PC's I quoted a price and it I had to have more money into fixing it than quoted, I ate the cost. I did the same thing when I quoted a construction job. The customer always knew how much it cost and would always pay me more than the quote for my honesty. People do shop around, and don't always go with the low bid. They go with word of mouth more. Honesty defines you and sets you apart.
COOL STORIES😅SHOULD DO A 3HR 😅😅VERY ENTERTAINING
KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK
A nice change of pace episode. A learning experience; yes, would like a part 2 if you could :)
Thank you Alex for sharing your success story.
Hi Alex, I love your content and iv always come back to your content to replenish my knowledge on electronics and also the entertainment. You are in a place that id like to get to with electronic repairs, it just amazes me the stuff you can do. i have 2 graphics cards that i am going to try fix a GTX 960 (Series fault) and a RTX 2060 (Memory error error 43) thanks to your videos i will be replacing the Memory chip on the GPU i managed to work out the faulty memory chip reporting faults and will give that a go, keep putting up the amazing content, i just repaired a laptop today for the 2nd time very basic repair power jack replacement but the person re-dropped it and damaged my nice soldering for a second time keeps me busy thanks alot i also fixed 4 LG screens from my workplace that were destined to go to the BIN, (Capacitor had blown on all 4)
So much honesty. I just love listening to it. You’re doing a great job Alex. Keep up the great work!
Thanks for all your videos and the generosity in sharing your knowledge and stories I'm sure you can see how much I have watched, wish I could afford to give you more! You certainly deserve it
Thanks, Really appreciate it.
i've been doing repairs for 30yrs, but not at component level like yourself. I still use post-its with customer contact details, reported fault and date it was brought in :-). I don't have enough business to have your issue of too many things to keep track of, but I enjoy your pragmatic approach to customers and repair. thankyou for your channel.
I enjoyed this video very much, the story of your growth was humble and has tremendous value to those who may consider following in your footsteps as a business owner.
I live in the UK, love your videos, it must have been hard in the early days of your business I'm glad to hear your business is doing well now I don't know how you keep so cool with some awkward customers I've got a short fuse when people push me to far, some of the customer stories made me laugh, you've got a brilliant family who work for or with you, wishing you all the best in the future
Ya zalame shu b7eb hal channel..
So much to learn from you Alex ❤
This was a great video, keep on going with these stories! Anytime someone calls me and says "X,Y,Z does it for this price (lower than I do)." I always say "It sounds like you know where to take it then."
Keep in mind, the competition they mention is hysterically horrible and you get what you pay for. They see my 5* reviews (I have all 5*'s compared to the 2.8* or worse competition). I've worked way too hard over the years to earn my reputation and provide the service that I do and I'm not going to race to the bottom to appease a cheapskate.
I do not negotiate, nor do I pull random prices out of my ass either, Alex.
Again, I can relate and please keep going with these stories as they are great to hear from a fellow successful technician/business!!
Great video, I recently took over the family business and I am never feeling like I am getting on top of the work even though I am. Your video reminds me that progress is about solving problems and moving forward. Thank you.
That is the best van wrap of all time.
I like these story episodes. Keep them coming.
With all the experiences you've made and the personal development you obviously went through, I could listen to you all day and learn something for myself and my own life - business or private.
Very Interesting video. Would love to see a second part.
Thanks for sharing.
amazing , i learned a lot from your story , thanks , it would be nice if you did part 2
There all are the parts of life🎉
I have learned a lot by watching you work and I have always been interested in repairing electronic devices. Right now I repair gaming controllers but basic things and I also customize them.... My question is, if I wanted to do this professionally, what type of schooling would be best to take? Love your channel, I'm from Toronto Canada ✌🏻
Awesome video. Waiting for second part. best video for how to deal with customer.
I have people argue with me about price sometimes too in heating and air. I have a normal rate for my area. Sometimes if I think a customer might be struggling I will lower my price but if someone is demanding and smart with me I just matter of factory tell them the price is the price. I am very good at what I do. If they don’t recognize that then they can go somewhere else.
You are totally right brother, things happen to me too when I deal with customers, but it is a part of developing your business. If you don’t fall you won’t know how to stand. I really appreciate you. I’m learning a lot from you. May Allah bless you and protect you
I'm very glad you made it Through the years and made it this far perio.🎉😊
Excellent, nice to know more about the background and how it came about, what made you want to get into this particular line of work?
Yes. I would love to hear more stories about incidents.
Hi Alex , thank you for sharing your experience
Part 2 please, I enjoyed this and I like your channel.
Isn't the end of the day yet 😂 Best comeback ever! Thanks for sharing Alex! Been following you since the beginning 🤝🏻
In a world full of bs, your -BS- is comforting to hear. Keep it coming. I'll keep listening.
Thank you.
Make a part 2 video please. I am thinking of starting up a business and it has a good chance of electronics repair so it would be informative for me and probably entertaining to others.
Trucks and Vans are usually issued 1 letter plates. My personal pickup has a 1 letter plate.
you could do something useful logistically :
get a list of used parts for the last year, compare it with your current inventory and order the shortage qtys, this way you always have the most frequently used spareparts .
I also can develop a system for what you need
I enjoy hearing about the personal side, they can encompass so many things, challenges, growth, wisdom, and they can be funny, too. Thanks for sharing!
I used to do PC builds and repairs for people as a side job. It was a lot of work and I did it for maybe a year. What burned me out is I had a few customers that I built PCs for that would contact me every few weeks or month or so and complain that I did bad work for them. Every single time I’d look at the computers and it was always something that they did to the computer. Usually nothing technically was wrong with the systems, but it was stupid things they were doing in Windows or they just didn’t know what they were doing but blamed the PC because it didn’t do what they wanted it to. Crappy internet connections, malware and viruses, etc. were also root causes but people just blamed my PC build for the issue. I just couldn’t keep up with hand holding so many computer idiots, so I stopped building PCs for others. Since then I occasionally will help a friend here and there but that’s it. People suck and are quick to blame when 99% of the time it’s their fault they are having computer problems.
Fantastic video. It actually dispels the notion that business owners are just taking their sweet time. The reality is we're working harder than most people. It's just that people don't see it.
No device fixed but I still learned so much…..Alex is the best!!!
Looks like a fancy database interface. You could likely export the data to a custom sql server with a custom interface tailored to your needs.
Thanks for sharing. I follow you exactly because of how real you are and how much you want others to learn from your journey.
PART TWO!! PART TWO! PART TWO!! how long till part two? lol. Thank you Alex, I have been blessed with a Dolly email, she is great! Alex you have transcended just being a RUclips teacher, you are a RUclips entertainer too! FYI when my friend would pull stuff from their ass, I would tell him hes getting it from the Assernet.
Thank you for being so honest! I wish we had someone like you here in Norway!
I own a business and when I first took it over from my dad and I had to sell.. I was AWFUL at first. It was embarrassing. Luckily I was young (20-22) during my rough patch and my older customers worked with me and understood. Some of my customers who were older business owners even gave me tips while I was talking to them. Finally, I sucked up my pride and got my dad to teach me instead of acting like I knew everything. On the flip side, we do have to deal with scammers occasionally. BUT one of the BEST parts of owning a business is that you don't have to put up with scammers or irate customers. You can promptly tell them to leave and have them legally banned. Furthermore, I can actually stand up for myself and tell scammers or insane customers to promptly fuck off. It doesn't hurt your business, because you don't want their business and anyone they are friends with will be just as crazy as them because crazy attracts crazy.
Businesses will have some growing pains, especially explosive type of growth you experienced. I think you found success by trying to do right by the customer and having the RUclips channel helps see the human side of the business. I also fix electronics for myself or friends/family but if I ever get stumped on something I need to fix I'll probably send it your way....hopefully I never send a hiroshima... haha. I struggle with micro-soldering because I have muscle tremors but I do my best.
وراء كل رجل عظيم امرأة عظيمة .. You’re amazing in your work, wish you all the best
I tell my customer on quick repairs it's a 48 hour minimum unless I am pretty confident I can do it in 1 day like my PS5 HDMI ports I can do those in 1 day. Also impatient customers I would say it's so an so extra for rush service.
Hey we are all human, we all make mistakes...The most important part of all of it is that we learn from experience. Keep up the awesome work
Requesting a part 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ....😎
Wow thanks for sharing your journey
YES! Part II ....please?
Yes the clients always ask when will it be ready and this is urgent
True stories from a repair shop, i had to deal with incidents like that, not fun!, But that's how you learn, no choice, thank you for sharing it
These are awesome, thank you for telling these stories
Feels like I saw you on RUclips around 2008 , but I might be mistaken. Also people will always find good Art. 💯
You tell a good story . From today into the future maybe you will have a few more stories to tell about what,s been happening within the company ⭐⭐
Totally enjoyed your story telling. I was laughing hard about that last guy. I thought the same as your wife, but it ended well which is nice.
Part two please! I did phone tech support for many years and I feel like you handled these customers pretty fairly, haha!
I'm a retired 41 year cable tv/internet tech. After the first ten years in the business I got really good at telling customers they were stupid without actually saying it. I can't believe the sh!t I got away with. I made them feel so stewpid that they never called in to complain.
These stories are great, please do more!
At one point, one lady brought a computer that was noisy. It only needed some good cleaning, but I said to her something like: " I do believe you also feel better when you wash your feet after work." 🙄
And she just left, shocked...
I wonder why. 🤔
Lots of laughs in this video. Helps after a day of work outside in 35c/95f temps.
I agree that it never improves the situation by yelling. The second story reminds me of situations at my job. It's like people think you were sitting around doing nothing until they contacted you. Lol. I can understand the first customer's frustration, but all he needed to ask is why is it taking so long? 3 months is insane, but if he had simply asked why, you could have told him the part was coming from China and it usually takes a month, but with covid, you have no way to know how long it will take. He could decide, based on that, if he wanted to continue waiting.
i got known for fixing electronics as a hobby where i live, but the easy problems. one day i had a customer with a dead screen on a cd player and i told him let me try to see if i can fix it before you spend money on parts ,, it took me a feew months because i do it on my free time.. and tried and tried for several hours per night trying to save him money.. at the end i told him im sorry i couldn't fix it but the next person you reach will ask you to replace all the motherboards i tried to save you from just because you were on a rush....because the typical answer is I NEED IT URGENT.
Mail-ins are the way to go, every shop I have worked at walk in traffic is minimal but have made big money on mail-ins, Louis Rossman's store included, dealing with the public sucks.
Great stories. More would be fun to hear.
I fixed a desktop computer for a guy I knew once.. I remember when I saw the computer, I thought it was odd the side cover was missing. fine, I'll fix it for $20 or something and move on with my day. a few days later he complains to me about the missing side cover, claiming I still had it..... I'm not dealing with this any more. I don't do windows, I'm not a window washer, I'm not touching it.
I was so waiting for like a screaming match or something haha.... you have a lot of self control.
If clients complain about pricing, I tell them straight up to go elsewhere.
And when clients complain about the price or attempt to bargain, i let them, but my price slowly increases to a special price just for them lol ... every time they try get me to lower, i raise by $10 until they give up and agree to the original price or leave.
One of the biggest things you get after time is the ability to pick and choose your clients - not the other way around.
The client is not always right and I will hang the phone up on you if you dont stop shouting or screaming if i ask you to calm down.
I will then proceed to ignore your calls if I need too.
So as a business owner, I 100% feel you.
and congrats on getting to where you are now.
that is a massive achievement!
the mud you went through over the years helped you with experience that cannot be bought. 🎉🎉🎉
also, massive props for being so calm when under so much pressure
Great video from Alex yet again ! 🙏
I'd like to another video or two of crazy happenings at NorthRidge Fix. In particular, how about stories of people wanting to fix junk because they can't let go. My Brother in Law is like that, my sister is always catching him hiding things (almost everything) in hid shed. Just because he so cheap.