If there’s one industry that has enjoyed truly exponential growth over the course of the last six years or so, it’s the global smartphone market. Incredibly, this market has increased by more than 63% since 2013, when the global revenue produced by smartphones was estimated at $330.4 billion.
By the end of 2018, this figure had peaked at approximately $522 billion, with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 12.05% reported on the previous year’s sales volumes.
As you can imagine, the growth and sheer scale of this sector has created opportunities for several associated niches, with the smartphone repair market having become huge business in recent times.
But why else does this market continue to thrive, and what steps can you take to get your smartphone fixed effectively? Here are some considerations to keep in mind!
Why the Demand for Smartphone Repairs Remains so High
Whilst it stands to reason that the smartphone repair market should represent big business in the digital age, there are several reasons why the demand for this service is so high.
Firstly, the launch of the iPhone in 2007 introduced a new generation of compact and self-contained smartphones, which a number of sophisticated and difficult to access technological components.
Make no mistake; these devices require both knowhow and experience to repair, whilst many of the individual components are incredibly small and require specialist tools to remove, repair or replace.
Now, whilst tools such screw extractors may be available on the consumer market, they’re also difficult to use in some instances and require careful handling when attempting to repair what are expensive pieces of technological equipment.
What to Look for in a Smartphone Repair Workshop
With these points in mind, and given the cost of high-end smartphones, it’s little wonder that consumers turn to qualified and insured workshops to repair their precious mobile devices.
However, the demand for this type of service has unsurprisingly created a saturated market that’s home to numerous competitors, which means that customers must identify ways of distinguishing reputable from questionable providers. Here are some tips to keep in mind at all times:
- Does a Service Provider Guarantee Confidentiality
Let’s face facts; our smartphones can break or incur damage at any time, which in turn means that you could have any number of private or sensitive content on your device when it’s submitted for repair.
This is particularly true if you use the phone in question for business, as there may be sensitive client details that you don’t want to get in the wrong hands.
So, it’s important to find a service provider that guarantees the confidentiality of your data when they repair your phone, both verbally and in writing.
The most reputable repair firms often publish confidentiality statements, which helps to protect the interests of their clients and win the trust of new patrons.
- A Warranty on All Parts and Labour
One of the main reasons for using a reputable smartphone repair service is to avoid making the damage worse, which is always a concern when attempting to fix the problem yourself.
So, make sure that you partner with service providers that offer a comprehensive warranty on all parts and labour, with this ideally lasting for the entire lifetime of the device in question.
If you cannot find a provider offering such a warranty, try to ensure that you access a guarantee that at least covers the work undertaken for a minimum period of two years.
- Balance Value With Cost
We’d always recommend that you shop around for the best deal, but it’s important not to measure this is dollars and cents alone.
After all, a service provider may offer you a cheap, bargain basement repair, but this may mean that they use low-grade replacement parts when completing the work.
Conversely, a firm that charges slightly more is likely to utilise the best quality parts, including the tough and reinforced Gorilla Glass that’s now in its fifth iteration and is widely used in smartphones.