Training is an important part of any cellphone repair shop operations. Without training, you’ll be struggling to catch up on repairs for new phones, and therefore, business. You and your technicians need to be up-to-date on how to effectively repair devices. However, there’s a lot about training that most people either don’t understand or overlook.
To be able to effectively train your people, you need to first understand what training is about. This also means learning the challenges of training and how you can best overcome them. Luckily, we’ve done most of the heavy lifting and looked into everything related to training, so you can be better prepared. Here are some of the challenges with training your repair shop staff and how you can overcome them.
Check out our podcast with Nicole Russell, CEO of Cellbotics, on how your cellphone repair shop can be better with training.
The Importance of Training
The mobile repair industry is constantly evolving and new devices keep coming into the market. This means that new tech will require new means of production, and by extension, new standards of maintenance. That’s why it is important to constantly be learning and receive specialized training.
Most cell phone repair is done through trial and error. People often take apart devices and study their components to make repairs easier. Part of the reason this happens is that schematics and manufacturing documents aren’t readily available to repair technicians. So they have to rely mostly on guerrilla tactics and make little headway on their own.
As your repairs grow from being a hobby to a business, you’ll need to learn how to do things better. With a training expert, cellphone repair shop owners and technicians will be able to learn much faster. By being trained to run a repair shop and perform fixes on cell phones and other devices, you’ll be able to increase efficiency and provide better service. All this culminates in you getting more from your business and generating more revenue.
The Common Misconceptions & Their Answers
Giving your staff the adequate knowledge and expertise to repair devices is a great thing. However, training itself isn’t all that easy and there are many misconceptions about it.
Myth: training wastes time
If you’re one of those business owners who believe training your staff is a waste of time – please stop!
Training does take time, but the return that you get out of it is so much more beneficial. Your employees become more proficient and can handle complicated repairs and procedures, allowing you to pursue new avenues for your business. Train someone in micro soldering, for example, and now you can start accepting jobs for intricate board fixes and IC replacements.
The cell phone business is always moving at a blinding-fast speed and your people need to keep pace with it. Giving them adequate is the best way to do it. It’s an investment that you’re making in your human resource that makes it easier for them to handle their responsibilities. This way, you can begin delegating more important tasks to them once they’re trained enough. That leaves them with a clear idea of where they are headed and you with more time to work on growing your business.
Myth: all your internal problems can be solved by training
A general theory is that training will often solve all internal problems for people and that they can do it on their own time. This is unfortunately not the case. While training your staff will yield great results, they often do not fix every problem internally. To be able to resolve an issue, you first need to understand the root cause of it and whether training applies to it or not.
It could be that your problem lies elsewhere and you’re shopping in the wrong place. Having an inherent problem with your cellphone repair shop software won’t automatically be fixed because your technicians are going to trainers. Therefore, it’s important to get down to the root cause of the problem.
Myth: you need to hire expensive people for training
Training doesn’t always have to be about spending money. It doesn’t even have to be about hiring people, either. You can help train your repair shop staff by incorporating some simple practices that can be very effective. Establish a peer-to-peer learning program that helps others share information. Create mentors among your people who can impart their knowledge to others. Have round-table meetings where everyone gets to contribute. Most people forget that community is an important aspect of learning and that group discussions also help. Try having your oldest employees share their wisdom with others.
You can also provide your team with learning material for the job. Books, videos, and manuals really help in this regard. Get them to take the initiative and recommend things they want to try to improve their skills and see if you can facilitate it somehow.
These are some of the stereotypes that you need to be able to break at your repair store. Once you see past the supposed drawbacks (and why they’re actually myths), you’ll be able to train your staff much better.
The Challenges You Will Face & How to Overcome Them
Now that you’ve understood how vital training is and what are the common misconceptions, it’s time to talk about the challenges. Cellphone repair shop owners will probably find it daunting trying to get their people the best training possible. That’s where a little bit of knowledge and insight into the process comes in. By understanding what troubles you’ll face, you’ll be better equipped to solve them.
Who should do the training?
Ideally, you want an experienced trainer to handle the entire affair. Trainers can assess what your staff needs and how to best provide it. They also have pre-arranged plans and guides to take people through the entire process. Getting in touch with a trainer would be a great start.
If finding the right trainer is tough, consider having your most experienced staff work on developing their own training systems. Have them hold sessions with trainees and walk them through everything. A personal affiliation has the best results in this regard. If a comfort level is established during training, it makes everything much more effective and easier.
Where do I get the training material?
There are lots of resources that you can use to fuel your efforts here. Trainers, as mentioned before, have detailed plans, guides, and assessment criteria that they can use for the job. Many books and articles (similar to this one) have been written on how you can train people better. E-learning services online can be a great source of knowledge during your own personal time. Finally, online training courses and certifications can help guide you on the training material you should be working with.
How do I know it’s good?
Most modern solutions now have a review and rating system. Whether it’s an Airbnb for your trip, your Uber around town, or a new restaurant you scoped out on Yelp, you’ll be able to find community feedback on how good it is. The same goes for repair training.
Look for what people are saying about the training you’re interested in. Talk to people who have already taken the training to know how their experience was. Get in touch with the trainers if you can and see what their process is to get a feel for it. All these things should help you determine if it’s good.
If you’ve already enrolled your staff into a training program and want to know how it’s going, have a feedback mechanism in place. Send out a short questionnaire and have weekly or fortnightly meetings with them. This will give you a better idea of how each employee is responding to the training being given and if they’re facing any troubles that you can course-correct.
My employees are trained. Now what?
Once your people are sufficiently trained, it’s time to put it to good use. See what they have learned and position them accordingly. Give them the necessary tools and the right kind of work so they can flex their muscles. This not only helps them apply their newfound knowledge and skills but also makes them satisfied with their work. They will know they are working towards something productive, and that’s the kind of team members you want to grow your business.
The Takeaway
Training your cellphone repair shop staff isn’t always a straightforward process. There is a lot that goes into it and not everyone realizes the importance or difficulties of training. That doesn’t change the fact that it is absolutely vital for you to survive in the repair industry.
Giving your staff the proper training requires a great deal of knowledge, consistency, flexibility, transparency, and understanding. Those who are able to successfully execute their trainings can take their business to the next level. And quite honestly, that’s exactly where you want to be.
