I love small businesses and run a couple of my own. This is a post about a local small business that recently started in Fargo by a friend of mine.

Ruben Lozoya started Speedy PC, a Fargo/Moorhead computer repair company. Ruben and I used to work for SEI The Devil about 4 years ago. Both of us used our past job as a stepping stone to do better and bigger things. I have no doubt Ruben’s business will be a hit.

Computer repairing goes to my core. I started in computer repair myself about 10 years ago and still love tweaking my machines when necessary. Now I can bring all of the big or little computer problems to a friend (within walking distance of my place) and support the non-Geek Squad businesses.

Ruben opened up his shop in the retail space at a grocery store, and I couldn’t imagine a better place. Granted North Dakota didn’t go through the big real estate boom and bust like the rest of the country, we still have our fair share of empty retail space. I’ve noticed a lot of buildings that went up two years ago on new land and have yet to fill the space.

Picking a high-traffic location to set up shop is always an awesome idea. Ruben staked his claim inside a grocery store and is in front of thousands of people a week all waiting in line with nothing better to do than stare at his shop and sign. Talk about an awesome form of branding and advertisement for a service most people need or could use just about any time of year. I have no doubt 6 months from now a frequent shopper will have a computer problem and will remember where to find just that service.

If you are in the Fargo/Moorhead area and are in need of PC repairing, I highly recommend SpeedyPC.

I encourage you to check out his site fmpcrepair.com and keep him in mind for your next pc repair needs. Speedy Repair also has a Facebook Page that makes asking questions super easy.

Keep up the good work and best of luck, Ruben!

Quick vid about how Dunn Bros Coffee in Fargo is doing all of the right things. Social media isn’t easy and doesn’t happen overnight. Having gone to Dunn Bros in Fargo since they opened I have been pleasantly surprised by how well they are managing their business and social media.

The Dunn Bros brand is active and involved, not to mention their coffee is great. I didn’t mention in the video that their WiFi is free unlike Starbucks. For that reason I tend to use Dunn Bros from time to time as my remote office. Please don’t get greedy and change that it would probably hurt more than help. Enjoy!

I don’t call a lot of businesses out when I see poor customer service, but my experience with Curt’s Lock and Key of Fargo is a good example of one business that missed out on gaining a new customer.

I needed to make a copy of a house key and stopped into Curt’s Lock and Key in Fargo as it came recommended by the person who lost my spare keys (Justin). I had never been to Curt’s store before, so I had no expectations.

I walked in right behind another couple looking to get some keys made. I stood patiently behind them waiting my turn. There were two employees behind the counter, one helping the customers in front of me, the other buried in a book of sorts probably lock related. There was one more guy moving around in the back room going about his business and another one standing 4 feet from me in the showroom talking with a customer (probably a regular).

The man in the showroom seemed to be the manager or possibly the owner. I have no idea what his position actually is, but judging by the lack of dirt on his clothes compared to the others, he must be important.

After about 5 minutes of listening to and watching these two men talk, I assumed business is so good they must not need my business. So I left.

I know they aren’t going to miss their monthly budget because they didn’t make me a set of spare keys, but what they did do is fail miserably in the customer service department. I can imagine 15 different ways they could have had a loyal customer for life who would pass along word of their excellent service to family, friends and blog readers. But not one of those things happened.

There was no “Hi, I’ll be right right with you” or “Is there anything I can help you with?”

It was clear that B.S.ing with a customer was more important than someone standing there needing service.

I would think proper customer service would be standard and even more important than ever when money is tight. With customer service, I tell people to treat everyone like they are Bill Gates. You never know who could be around to pass along any shortcomings.

I doubt this post has any effect on Curt’s business or client base, but I sure hope if the employees read this they will consider changing how they respond to customers.

Cheers.