Why You Should Start a Small Business as an Independent Computer Consultant

It has never been as easy or low-risk for a talented computer consultant to start a small business of his or her own than it is today, thanks in large part to the development of affordable and reliable network monitoring and remote computer support utilities.

The new, affordable utilities now available allow an Independent Computer Consultant to serve a small, but very profitable customer base on a model of flat-fee, proactive support, which simply wasn't possible just a few short years ago unless this budding consultant had a boatload of cash to invest on start up.

When small businesses are looking for a means to maintain and support their network and computer systems, they have several options available to them. They can have one of their technically savvy employees to perform dual functions, working both their primary job and also act as the in-house tech. They can of course hire a full-time, dedicated in-house network admin. Or they can outsource their network support needs to an MSP, a large IT Support provider or to an Independent Computer Consultant.

In today's market, I believe that the Independent Computer Consultant represents the best possible support model for serving the needs of the small business customer. And I firmly believe that any computer professional with the skill-set for maintaining a small business network should strongly consider starting a small business of his or her own.

In the early days of computer support (and still to this day for many consultants), the break/fix, hourly-billing service model was the standard. Wait for something to break, call the computer consultant to come out and fix it, he sends a monthly invoice... Repeat as required.

Isn't it obvious how this support model puts the needs of the computer consultant directly at odds with the needs of the customer?

The customer becomes accustomed to viewing the computer consultant as an unwanted expense, to be reduced wherever possible. If the consultant is on-site, it's likely because something is broken, which is costing the customer money... both in lost productivity and for the support costs.

Under the hourly, break/fix support model, it's understandable why the customer would want to see the computer consultant as little as possible.

Unfortunately, this works directly against the needs of the consultant, who's simply trying to bill enough hours each day to earn a living.

If the hourly support model represents a lose-win proposition (the greater the pain felt by the client, the more money the computer consultant makes), how can we develop a business model where both parties win? For us to do this, let's take a look at what everybody wants:

The Computer Consultant Wants:

• To make a reliable, consistent (and probably a substantial) salary.
  
• To have a high level of job security.
  
• To be able to work with, learn and be challenged by new technologies.
  
• To work with a diverse group of customers and computer systems, keeping things varied and interesting.
  
• To work a reasonable amount of hours and enjoy a balanced professional and personal life.

The Client Wants:

• They want their systems to operate reliably.
  
• They want ZERO unexpected downtime.
  
• They want problems prevented from occurring whenever possible.
  
• They want an immediate response from their computer consultant whenever a problem does occur.
  
• They want small issues identified early, before they develop into larger, more costly issues.
  
• Their computer consultant should be able to address and fix problems remotely, providing instant response to support requests and minimizing productivity losses.
  
• They don't want any surprisingly large invoices (and a large invoice is ALWAYS a surprise).
  
• They want up to date systems (even if they don't always appear to want to pay for it).
  
• They want a computer consultant who has a thorough understanding of their systems and their technology needs.
  
• They want to have confidence in their computer consultant's abilities for supporting their network, supporting their users and to guide them in making good choices for future network growth.
  

When looking at the list of what the customer wants, it's clear to see what the computer consultant needs to provide:

Automated System Monitoring
This will minimize or even eliminate unexpected downtime
Provides for early problem identification
Can provide useful Asset Management and Inventory reporting

Help Desk
Allows for immediate communication and response to customer service requests
Provides instant remote computer support for end-users and server issues

Personal Attention
Customers want a dedicated consultant who knows their systems well. They don't want a new face sent from a dispatch center every time a service request is made.

Low Cost
Smart small business owners aren't necessarily looking for the LOWEST rate available. They do however expect to receive a fair and competitive rate.

The Managed Service Provider (MSP) support model is designed to meet the above-listed customer "wants" by using today's available support products and services to serve larger numbers of clients while requiring fewer internal resources.

The support utilities available today that provide remote monitoring, preventative maintenance and remote computer and server support, have become affordable and reliable, where they now provide the means for computer professionals wanting to start a small support business to now enter the market without the need for massive amounts of startup capital.

These inexpensive utilities now help IT support providers of all sizes to serve their clients faster, easier, more efficiently and for lower, more predictable fees than was ever possible under the previously standard hourly support model.

With support becoming easier and more cost-effective to provide, many well run and well funded companies are now competing heavily for the Small Business Support market. They're working to establish brand recognition and looking to carve out a dominate segment of the market for themselves. As regional and even national companies continue to expand and as the current market leaders that provide technology products to small businesses, such as Microsoft, Dell, CDW, etc. enter the small business IT Support market, it can seem inevitable that the day of the Independent Computer Consultant is coming to a close.

Absolutely NOT!

There is not a single item required by today's small business customer that YOU, as an Independent Computer Consultant cannot provide reliably, inexpensively, and just as well as any large company!

YOU can monitor your client's systems, identifying or preventing potential problems.
YOU can minimize or eliminate unexpected downtime by monitoring for system or service alerts.
YOU can improve customer's productivity levels and reduce problems by monitoring their asset inventories and tracking the age and performance levels of your customer's equipment.
YOU can provide your clients with professional, real-time service reports, asset inventories and system performance reporting.
YOU can provide remote computer support to your customer's end-users INSTANTLY from ANY location, providing you have an available Internet connection (easily accomplished with a broadband-enabled laptop).
YOU can provide your clients with the reliability they want from a dedicated computer consultant who is intimately familiar with their network, their employees and their technology needs.

And you can provide ALL of these items, but with less overhead than your larger, corporate competitors, which will result in an easier sales process, higher profitability and excellent growth opportunities for you!

Because the utilities required for providing proactive network monitoring and remote computer support have become very inexpensive or even free, the major barriers to entry have been eliminated and a qualified computer professional aiming to become his or her own boss and support a small, but very profitable client base is a very achievable reality.

By providing remote network monitoring and computer support, the Independent Computer Consultant is able to move away from the outdated and ineffective hourly-support model and on to a profitable, flat-fee, proactive maintenance model.

By charging flat rates for support, the computer consultant is able to calculate in advance the exact number of base customers that will be needed to achieve a desired income level. Once the consultant is able to secure this initial client base, any and all concerns for finding enough billable hours in a month necessary for survival can be completely eliminated.

And because this proactive support model is designed to reduce and prevent problems from occurring, a flexible schedule is achieved, creating additional time for a motivated computer consultant to go out and acquire even more clients to increase the income level and bolster the security of the business.

By following the correct model of flat-fee, proactive monitoring and remote computer support, there has never been a better time for an Independent Computer Consultant to pursue the goal of starting a small computer consulting business and becoming his or her own boss.

It's definitely a worthy and rewarding goal to reach for.