All things gizmo and becoming a ‘gizmoprenuer’

Computer support company gizmo , talks to its co-founder and Executive Director, about all things gizmo and becoming a ‘gizmoprenuer’.

Danny Gilligan is the co-founder and Executive Director of computer support franchise company gizmo. He shares why he started gizmo, how the business has grown over time, and why he believes gizmo makes an excellent choice for those interested in running a computer service franchise business.

How did gizmo come about?

After spending a large part of our careers working in the consumer technology industry (particularly telecommunications), Brett Chenoweth & I ventured out on our own to do something more entrepreneurial – but close to our passion for consumer technology. We looked at a range of ideas but soon realised that the common requirement of all future opportunities in consumer technology was a more professional, accessible service industry. We called the original concept “digital plumbing”, in recognition of a new and recognised trade that needed to be developed.

How is gizmo performing and where do you see the mobile franchise in a year’s time?

gizmo has grown at a fantastic rate since we launched in August 2006 - growing from nothing to 140 employees by April 2009. In that time we have also revolutionised the technology services market and secured partnerships with some of the leading technology providers in Australia. Most satisfying though, is that throughout the exponential growth we have experienced, we have maintained an incredibly high level of customer satisfaction, which validates the high quality approach to service we have taken.

A year from now, we hope to have firmly established gizmo as the largest, most recognised and most trusted provider of technology services to Australian households and small businesses, if we aren’t already there today.

Who are gizmo’s key partners?

gizmo has been chosen by some of Australia’s (and the world’s) leading providers of technology to provide service to their customers. These partners include Telstra, Dell, Microsoft, Harvey Norman, JB Hi-Fi, Clive Peeters, Next Byte, Toshiba and the Car Clubs of Australia (RACQ, RACV etc). All of these organisations have one thing in common – they want their customers to have the highest quality service experience and regard gizmo as the partner of choice.

Why is gizmo now franchising

To date, gizmo has only provided on-site service to the major metropolitan areas. We are required to grow our business into regional Australia on the basis of both customer and partner demand. Franchising is the perfect model to do that as it enables us to align the interests of the individual franchisee and the overall requirements of the gizmo business – flexibility and control from the franchisee’s perspective and quality and consistency from gizmo’s perspective.

Why choose gizmo as a franchise?

We think that in the same way that gizmo has revolutionised the technology services industry in Australia, we have revolutionised the traditional approach to IT services franchising. We offer a unique combination of centralised resources (systems and process, national operations centre, training, business development and marketing) and franchisee autonomy (service area, hours of operation, local area marketing, and local partner relationship management). This gives franchisees the best possible opportunity to build a successful services business in the shortest possible time.

What are the qualities and attributes you are looking for in a ‘gizmoprenuer’?

For the most part, we are looking for the same qualities as we do in every part of our business – a passion for customer service and a passion for technology. At the end of the day, the difference between a successful franchisee and one who isn’t will be determined more by the quality of the relationships they build with customers and partners than it will be by their technical proficiency. Over and above that, we are looking for gizmoprenuers who have the drive and marketing capability to grow their business locally at the same rate as the overall gizmo business – with gizmo’s help and support, of course.