Television, also known as “tele” or “boob tube,” is probably the cheapest and most ubiquitous source of entertainment and has continued to serve its purpose successfully since it was first marketed in the 1930s. The television is here to stay and The question of whether your TV repair skills can still be a decent source of income can be answered with numbers. The last statistics I found were from a 2005 Wall Street Journal report that estimated the number of televisions worldwide at around 1 to 2 billion. That’s a ton of TVs considering it was over 3 years ago!
I would guess that any TV repair business would still be a profitable business if you knew how to get a slice of the pie that major manufacturers’ service centers get by offering superior service at much more affordable prices.
You must also learn to adapt to modern times and be open to learning new skills by investing a little of your time and resources to learn new things.
Recent trends indicate that common cathode ray tube (CRT) television may be on the verge of disappearing and that there is increasing growth in new television technologies. New statistics indicate that the liquid crystal display (LCD) and plasma flat panel TV are on track to achieve impressive growth! This is true even with the current global financial crisis (circa 2008-2009) that originated from the bursting of the US housing credit bubble. Now, everyone is starting to skimp on nonessential things like expensive vacations, but they have started buying new televisions for their recreational needs at home.
Declining demand for traditional CRTs means there will also be a decline in prices and profitability in that area. People who buy CRT televisions increasingly see them as disposable and prefer to buy new rather than repair malfunctioning ones.
On the other hand, the increase in demand for newer LCD and plasma screen TVs could mean that there will also be a flood of used units on the market that second-hand buyers definitely prefer. This is especially seen in developing countries, where most people still cannot afford the newer and relatively more expensive technologies and second-hand TV stores continue to thrive.
Regardless, I believe that the TV repair business remains a viable and profitable venture for anyone who is interested as long as they are willing to actively identify areas of opportunity and adapt to current market conditions.
Therefore, acquiring new technical skills is a prerequisite for staying competitive and on top of the electronics repair business. This shouldn’t be as difficult as it sounds, as there are now more ways to learn, for example LCD TV repair or plasma TV repair, without receiving formal TV repair training in a classroom. Now there are membership sites online that offer detailed step-by-step tutorials at really low fees that you could recoup on a TV unit repair job! You can get TV repair tips online and study at your own pace, but at the speed of the Internet! I know it sounds like an oxymoron, but I think it’s a pretty fair description of the convenience the Internet offers to anyone looking to learn new things.
There is definitely going to be an increase in demand for services related to the large number of flat screen televisions in people’s homes. Catch the wave before it happens and grow your TV repair business.
