discounts

[Barrie Heaton]

I disagree,

After all I pay yellow pages for advertising my services so why
shouldn't I reward my music teachers where the bulk of my work comes
from.

The way I do it though I informorm my music teachers that if they
provide me with referals, I allow them one free tuning per year on
condition they have there pianos tuned three times a year including the
free one.  This has two advantages

1. If you charge $50.00 and you give a discount of $5.00 when a client
asks your music teacher how much  is it to have your piano tuned they
forget that they are getting a discount and tell them it is $45.00 This
makes life difficult having to explain why you give a discount.

2. Because the music teacher is having their piano tuned three times a
year, it makes life a lot easier for me as a tuner.  Secondly, when
their client asks them how often do you have your piano tuned, and the
music teacher says three times a year.  Its a lot easier to persuade the
rest of the great unwashed to have their pianos tuned twice a year.

I monitor where my customers come from,  I use codes YP for yellow pages
MT for music teacher and WOM for word of mouth at the side of this box
there is another reference for the teachers account number.  I monitor
each teacher at the end of the year to see who has performed and who
has not.  If I feel the teacher hasn't performed enough,  giving me at
least ten referrals then I inform them that I will be taking them off
the scheme.  The music teacher doesn't suffer any financial penalties
they just lose their free tuning.  I have even got one music teacher who
was so used to having it done three times a year,  actually paid to keep
the third tuning up.  only 4 out of my 15 mt are on the scheme most have
been on at one time. I got 65 referrals  of my MT last year and 25 from
YP the rest came from wom 47  total new clients 137  yp cost me last
year £475.00 4 free tunings £120  off course the YP bring in the big
money. with major repairs


Regards,

?Barrie.


In article <199703292324.RAA01093@thor.inlink.com>, James Grebe
<pianoman@inlink.com> writes
>I agree,
>       We should not give discounts for what should be considered as normal
>maintenance.  I would rather charge more for people who don't tune as often
>as they should.
>       As to teachers who say they can't afford to have you tune their piano
>and
>expect you to give them a discount, do you get any remuneration when you
>send them students!
>       Tuning costs to a teacher are a valid business expense.  Do we get a
>discount from the gas station because we buy so much gas?  Assuming that
>they are keeping track and paying taxes on this income,  I find many
>teachers that I ask for their business cards to give to enquiring
>prospective students and many will not print cards fearing that they will
>get caught by the IRS.
>       What do you think,
>James Grebe from St. Louis
>pianoman@inlink.com
>





--

Barrie Heaton                                  |  Be Environmentally Friendly
URL: http://www.airtime.co.uk/forte/piano.htm  |  To Your Neighbour
The UK PIano Page                              |
pgp  key on request                            |  HAVE YOUR PIANO TUNED