Geek House Calls... Again

from the yes,-but-can-you-make-money? dept

The idea of "geek house calls" isn't new. In 1998 I knew some people who set up just such a company, and there were plenty of similar offerings around at that time. Stories have cropped up here and there about similar offerings over the years. However, most of them haven't gotten very far. Best Buy got into the business recently with their Geek Squad offering, which they've quickly expanded, and now it's getting some attention from the press. What still hasn't been shown is whether or not any of these operations can actually make money. In the case of Best Buy, it looks like they're less concerned with that, compared to convincing people to buy more stuff, as they send their Geek Squad team out with a trunkful of Best Buy equipment for sale to help fix your pesky computer problems.
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  1. identicon
    Jonathan Snook, 1 Nov 2004 @ 2:08am

    Nerds on site

    Around these parts we have Nerds on Site. They've been around for years so I assume they must be doing reasonably well. Like Geek on wheels, they all drive a specific model of car so they're highly recognizable.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    Nicole Barnes, 11 Mar 2005 @ 4:01pm

    Can you make money?

    I know two people that own a Geeks On Call franchise and they are doing great. With the franchise model, they are able to share overhead costs (call center, advertising, tech support) which makes this business a success. Plus, almost everyone has at least one computer now and many can't do anyting beyond surfing so the business model makes sense now. Just thought you'd like to know. Not a new idea but an idea that is finally ready to flourish.

    link to this | view in thread ]


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