How to start a lucrative phone repair business in Nigeria

Have you ever experienced a phone issue and you decided to take it to a phone repairer? Can you still remember the amount you were billed? Personally, the last time I took my phone to a phone repairer, I was charged 1000 naira just to fix the charging point of the cell phone I am using. Now think of it, how many phones are in use in Nigeria? How many of them are being fixed on a daily basis?

The minimum amount phone engineers do charge in my town is 500 naira and if in a day a phone repairer gets ten customers with that minimum of 500 naira each, that is to say, he is getting a minimum of 5000 naira on a daily basis. But the truth of the matter is that they rarely do 500 naira work.

For example, to fix your screen, they can charge 2000 naira. If your phone is dead, they may charge you more than 5000 naira depending on how severe the damage is.

During the course of this post, I am going to elaborate on the opportunities that lye in cell phone repair business in Nigeria, how to acquire the skill, how to establish a standard shop, and how to get more customers. Without further ado, let’s dive into the topic.

1. The opportunities in phone repair business in Nigeria

• The number one opportunity in phone repair in Nigeria is the population. We are over 195 million and more than 81 percent of the population use phone that is more than 150 million are using phones on a daily basis. This tells us that customers will not be the problem if you know the work.
• You are your own boss: Nothing makes me feel fulfilled if not working for myself. You decide how to handle your business.
• The Income: You get more income than a Nigerian average worker. let us say you are getting a minimum of 5000 naira daily, that 130000 naira monthly.
• Extra Income: phone repair comes along with other benefits like phone selling, or the sale of phone components. A customer may ask you to sell his/her phone for him and you end up getting a commission from the customer and a margin from the sale.
• Selling of London used phones: This is another opportunity that is attached to the phone repair business. You can decide to start selling London used phones and It is easier to get customers to buy those London used phones if you already have a large number of customers that do come to repair phone in your shop. What you need to do is to let your existing customers know that you are selling London used phones.

2. Get the skill

To become a phone engineer, you don’t need to be a computer guru. What it takes is the willingness to acquire the skill. Once you are determined to learn a new skill, you really can.

Here are the steps you need to take to acquire the skill:

• Ask around in your area: Ask people you know to guide you in getting someone that really knows how to repair phones. It is not all about learning how to repair phones for the sake of learning, but getting the best knowledge. Ask people to know “the best phone repairer” in the area.
• Enroll as an apprentice: After getting a center or the best phone repairer in the town, enroll as an apprentice.
• Practice: If you want to master the work fast, do well to be practicing what you are learning. Get scribed phones or use your own phone to learn and practice more.
• Go online: At times, you may need to google the net to get more information on how to fix certain phones. This will also help you to see different methods people are using to fix the same problem. I also use youtube a lot.

3. Get a shop

Needless to say, you will need a shop to start fixing people’s phones. Without a shop, hardly people will trust you and hand over their phones to you to fix.

In case you don’t have money to get a shop, use your immediate resources to get your first customers. That is your friends and your friends’ friends. In time, you would be able to raise a sufficient amount to get your own shop. But keep this in mind. It’s not all about getting a shop but getting a good one at a good location.

4. Importance of a good location

Getting a good shop at a good location is paramount for the success of your cell phone repair business. Remember the simple packaging of your shop can help you get rich clients willing to pay a high price for your service. If your shop is not packaged, definitely you will be getting customers that like bargaining.

Another thing that is also important besides the packaging of your shop is the location. Make sure your shop is located in a busy place, not an isolated area.

Below are some factors you need to put into consideration while looking for a shop:

• Accessibility: How easy would it be for people to access your shop? Can car owners get access to your shop?
• The rent: Is the shop too expensive?
• The competition: How many phone repairers are already there? Can you stand out from the crowd easily? How good are you to compete with the already established phone repairer?

5. How to get your first customers

The purpose of starting the phone repair business is for you to get some money. This goal cannot be achieved unless you have clients. How do you get your first clients?

• Your friends: Start with your friends. Propose to them to fix their phones at a cheaper rate. Ask them to refer you to others in exchange for a commission.
• Online marketing: Your prospects are on social media. You may decide to run some ads on social media to get your first customers.
• Offline marketing: Use banners or flyers to get the attention of people in your area.
• Offer cheap service: Since you are just starting the business, I will recommend offering cheap service in order to get your first customers.

6. How to promote your business  

This point is something many people do neglect, especially in Nigeria. Remember big companies like coca-cola, Pepsi, Facebook, Google, Microsoft … are still marketing. That being said, who are we not to take marketing as the number one point for the success of our business?

There are many ways you can use to promote your business.

• Social Media Marketing: Needless to tell you that your potential customers are on social media. Almost everybody has a Facebook account. Only Facebook has a total of more than 2 billion active users every month, which is to tell you that your prospects are likely on Facebook.
• Offline marketing: this method is still effective. Try to use the most effective ones. TV ads, flyers, etc…
• Affiliate: this consists of clients referring you to other clients in exchange for a commission. Generally, this is done via a website.
• Referrals: This is the same thing as affiliate marketing. We can say it is the offline affiliate marketing. Basically, your existing customers will refer their friends, relative to your shop in exchange for a commission.

7. Type of phone to repair

In Nigeria, many people use android phones more than iPhones. That being said, you will be fixing phones like Tecno, Infinix, Itel, HTC, Windows phones, etc… Besides these types of phones, you need to learn how to fix small phones like touch Light phones and iPhones.

8. Tools needed in cell phone repair

You will need the following tools or machines in your shop to start fixing your clients phones:

• Suction Cup Pliers: This tool is used to pry up the screen in order to get access to the phone components
• Heat Gun or Hair Dryer: You will need this tool to remove IC and other components
• Magnetic Mat: The mat is useful in the sense that it helps you keep your screws in one place to avoid loss.
• Guitar Picks: This tool helps you to detach the calibrator from the screen.
• Old Credit Cards: It serves the same purpose as a guitar picks
• Magnifying Glass: This tool serves as a microscope.
• Desk Lamp: Very useful to illuminate your table
• Cleaning brush: You will need it to clean your panel, that is the circuit board
• Screwdriver: Needful for removing screws
• Tweezers
• Soldering iron: Used to solder
• Multi-meter: To test and detect broken circuits.

9. Attitude and skill needed to succeed in cell phone repair

Phone repair requires certain attitudes.

Human management resource: Remember you are going to be dealing with people of different background so you need to be patient, listen more carefully, be sharp, be precise in order not to damage someone’s phone. In case of any issue, learn how to resolve it amicably because remember the same clients that can help you grow your business can easily run down your business if they start spreading bad reviews about you and your service.

Computer savvy: You need some computer knowledge if you want to get the most from your business. Besides the hardware, you also need to get some software skills. This will help you to flash or upgrade a phone.

Management skill: One key factor for the success of your cell phone repair business is to be a good manager. Many African companies fail because of a lack of good management.

10. Extra income in cell phone repair business

As we have already mentioned in the opportunities, a cell phone repair business brings many other avenues to generate extra income.

• Sell of phones: As you are repairing phones, you can as well sell phones. Go for London used phones that might not be working. Buy them and fix them in order to sell them. The margin is always great. You can get more than 40 percent gain.
• Phone accessories: Start selling chargers, batteries, ear-peace, screen guard, etc… as you are fixing phones. We have a post that talks about phone accessories business.
• Phone components: You can start selling phone spare parts like screen, circuit board, daughterboard, Ic, etc….
• Software services: You can get extra income by flashing and upgrading your customer’s phones. Some may need music and films.

11. The software aspect of cell phone repair.

Phone repair is not limited to the hardware alone. Many phones do have software issues as well. You might be wondering to know what software issue really means.

Have you ever tried to use an app and the app fail to open? or your phone is working fine and all of a sudden it refuses to turn on or you see this notification saying “Unfortunately,  app name has stopped working” or your phone becomes very slow or is overheating … Those are some common software related issues our phones do develop.

As a matter of fact, your phone is not the only one that had developed such a problem. There are many phones out there having the same issue. Can you fix them?  If yes, add it up to your normal phone repair services.

You will make an extra income from it. Software repair most time does not take much time. Maybe 10 minutes or less and within that 10 minutes you will be making 1000 naira.

Conclusion

Based on the things we have considered during the course of this post, you will agree with me that the cell phone repair business is indeed a lucrative business. One thing that is required from you is the humility to learn and boom, you will start making more than 150 thousand naira monthly. Is this not better than working for someone else?