Cost to set up mobile business cutting car keys?

[tomasfuk]

60% of customers calling for car keys balk at the price.
Have you found that to be true, approximately 40% success rate?

Difficult to say. Depends on how high are your prices.
But just another idea:
It seems to me that the orientation only to car keys will address only a small segment of the market. I drive my 11th motor vehicle now, I have never needed new key for them, but I did need many new usual door locks and keys.

[2octops]

One additional question, another locksmith I talked to said that typically the ratio of successful car key calls is 40%.
60% of customers calling for car keys balk at the price.
Have you found that to be true, approximately 40% success rate?

There are to many variables for anyone to answer that question for your market. Price is NOT everything contrary to popular belief.

We do not publicly advertise and do very little work for the general public. If someone that is not a dealer calls us, then they have already tried everyone else and couldn't get it done.

When we DID advertise and worked with the public a lot years ago, probably 40% or more of ALL calls were people checking prices on everything...automotive, commercial, residential and safes. I would suspect that those numbers would be true today if not higher since everybody is trying to get the cheapest price they can find. Those are not the customers you can make a good living from.

[tomasfuk]

... everybody is trying to get the cheapest price they can find. Those are not the customers you can make a good living from.

Oh no. Those are people who NEED something, HAVE the money and WANT to spend it. The only problem is how to give them a feeling they pay a fair price for a quality which they need and get. Simply, to SELL it.

[dll932]

I'm not in the car game anymore, but 40% wouldn't surprise me. Dealer work would likely be the best way if you can get enough. I know a guy who did all the local AAA work...til he got tired of the way they deal.

[Squelchtone]

Lets see FOR me my cost was around
$7000.00 = 3d Pro
$1500.00 = Bravo 3
$10,00.00 = Tcode Pro
$5000.00 = TKO
$500.00 = Dart Machine
$500.00 = NGS
$1800.00 = j2534 PASS thru
$8000.00 in Keys & Remotes
$3900.00 = ITL950c
$17000.00 = to establish a web presence (1st Year) - WEB site - SEO - Google Adwords

Chicago Market

[d_Random]

What is the average PROFIT per car key job?

[DangerDane]

Key programming doesn't have to be that expensive. Provided someone has a remote key with transponder inside then I can code it to most VAG vehicles for no extra cost other then the initial investment for VCDS and the older Dos based version. And with that I can supposedly code most newer but also all older VW, Audi's, Seats and Skoda's as long as they were made by VAG. I think the cost for both tools with attached cables etc, runs less then 2k USD, but does require some skill to use.

But if you are not going to be doing mechanics work etc then its not that "hard" to figure out the only bits that you need to work with . Obviously the actual remote key isn't exactly cheap, unless you can accept a chinese knockoff.