pitch raising-was "reply"

[James Grebe]

----------
> From: EugeniaCar@aol.com
> To: pianotech@byu.edu
> Subject: Re: pitch raising-was "reply"
> Date: Monday, March 24, 1997 5:16 PM
>
> James and all,
>
> One piece of advice my teacher gave me was "always remember it is not
your
> fault that the customer hasn't had his piano tuned. And it will take you
> longer to tune it since you must do a pitch adjustment if you want the
piano
> to sound good after you leave." This was one of the hardest lessons to
learn
> but it finally did sink in. And, thanks to LaRoy, I finally learned to
> schedule the next appointment while I am still at the customer's. Since I
> make it very clear that I will call to confirm before coming the next
time, I
> almost never have a customer cancel out on me.
>
> In most cases I recommend tuning every six months and schedule it right
then.
> However, with a new customer whose piano required a pitch adjustment, I
> schedule the next appointment for three months, assuming in either
situation
> that I want to continue to service this instrument (or work with this
> customer!). If I don't, I do not mention the next appointment.
>
> For a pitch adjustment, I have always charged my regular tuning fee plus
a
> pitch adjustment fee which is 1/2 my tuning fee. All the explanation has
been
> done prior to arriving at the customer's home; I always question very
> thoroughly when setting the appointment so that the customer is prepared
for
> the larger fee. My explanation includes: "when pianos are not serviced
> regularly, the pitch almost always drops over time and one tuning will
not
> bring it back to a stable pitch." My explanation also defines both the
need
> for the additional work (pitch raise usually) this time and the three
month
> time limit for the next appointment.
>
> One key element to consider, when we all started in this business we made
> concessions and offered innovative approaches to increase our customer
base.
> This is just good business sense and I applaud you who are continuing to
do
> so. Just remember that as your reputation and expertise grow, you can
demand
> a better profit for yourself. That too is good business sense.
>
> Gina Carter
>
> PS If the piano is over 50% flat, I do a double pitch raise and charge
for
> each plus the normal tuning fee.
Dear Eugenia,
If you voice is sincere and effective as your text I'm sure you have good
results.  You are right, the time you spend on the phone with the original
call explaining you policy is time wisely spent and you have pre-sold
anything you have to do with their piano.
James Grebe from St. Louis
pianoman@inlink