Your Own Telephone Installation Business

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Should you find that your test phone works but the customer's doesn't, the problem lies inside your client's telephone, and suddenly you have an excellent opportunity to expand your range of services. No, you don't have to fix the faulty phone yourself (unless you feel qualified to do so), but you can actually make money by having it done.

In effect, you can farm out such work to a qualified service shop. Many TV repair businesses are now taking in telephone repairs as an added source of income, and it shouldn't be hard to strike a deal with a firm in your area. Have them fix the defective phone, and you can reinstall it when it's repaired. Your customer will be happy with a job well done, the repair shop will be pleased about the extra income, and you can add a service fee to your bill.

PRICES

The amount that you'll be able to charge for your services will depend on the prevailing rates and competition in your area. For the time being, your only competitor will be your local phone company, so you can set your rates according to their schedule.

To give you an idea of how charges run in my area, I called my phone company and was given the following figures: They'd charge $50.66 to install one jack in my home as a new installation. However, $23.00 of this fee for turning on the switch in the main office s so they'd actually charge only $27.66 to install the jack, while their extension jacks would be billed at a flat $19.91. This means that a normal installation, with one extension, would run the customer $47.57, exclusive of the turn-on fee.

Now, performing that sort of installation should take you about an hour and will require approximately $7.00 worth of materi als. A gross income of $40.00 per hour isn't bad, but you'll also have to consider your overhead—such as travel time, gas, tools, etc.

You can either match or beat the phone company's service prices. If your local company is trying to keep costs to customers down, you'll be forced to follow their lead in order to get much business. On the other hand, if they've decided to jack up their rates because they figure they're the only game in town, then you can give both your customers and yourself a good deal.

Whatever price structure you choose, your next step will be to let the public know that you can do the job. Telephone work has been Ma Bell's exclusive territory for so long that it's second nature for most people to contact the phone company to request service. It'll be your job to educate your customers . . . to let them know that you can do the work and that you can probably do it better.

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