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For more than twenty years, David Sabo has been the token technology geek which his family, friends, and neighbors turn to when something needs troubleshooting. Last month, he finally took the leap to turning this side gig into a real bonafide business called On Track Computers – a computer repair and support service serving residential customers and small businesses throughout Caroline County and surrounding areas. “I've been doing side hustle computer work for over 20 years now,” Sabo said, “[I am] just trying to make it more of my full-time job.”
On Track Computers officially launched about three weeks ago, but Sabo’s experience goes way back. His expertise combines formal technical education and training with his two decades of hands-on experience. Sabo has also held technological support roles at multiple professional companies.
Sabo understands the people as well as the computers, and said he aims to make On Track accessible for people on the Shore. That means traveling to customers’ homes - roughly anywhere within a 30 mile radius of Denton - to complete on-site repairs rather than requiring that the equipment be brought to him. He also offers remote support and appointments outside of regular working hours. Not only that, Sabo said he uses flat-rate pricing for many jobs rather than charging strictly by the hour, particularly when a repair involves waiting for a computer to complete a process, to lessen the financial burden on the customer.
Launching On Track Computers has been a longtime dream for Sabo. “It's always been my passion,” Sabo explained, saying that he has been obsessed with computers since receiving his first one at age 10, “I've been working with them ever since,” he said. But as he continues to get his ideas off the ground, he still works a full-time job to make ends meet.
“Right now, it's available in the afternoon and early evening hours to be able to support people with this outside of my normal working hours as the business builds up,” Sabo said, “[One of the] biggest challenges…just scheduling issues, trying to manage and maintain support.” Of course, to address the issue, all Sabo had to do was build a custom online booking system that allows customers to schedule appointments and handle payments directly.
Besides getting to work with computers, Sabo said his favorite part of his side-hustle-turned-small-business is “helping people fix their problems.”
