At 07:51 PM 07/04/2000 -0400, Brian wrote: >I know it's probably an odd time to inquire, since many are likely on their >way to the convention... > >I was wondering to myself just how other techs deal with the customer who >only tunes their piano once per decade whether it needs it or not. Do you >continue to call them or send post cards every 6 months or once a year? Or >do you simply stick them in the 'they'll call when they're good and ready' >file.? Hello, Brian Well, this may not seem very businesslike or impressive, but I only call them by request. That is, if they want to make appointments ahead of time, or have me call them, I will. Otherwise, it's up to them. I seem to be in the black, and at certain times of year I have a hard time getting through everything. I know I'm not the world's fastest or steadiest worker, but a more easy-going way of doing business suits me, and I think that my chances of burn-out are far reduced. I just don't like spending time and money trying to convince people to have their pianos tuned more often than they feel like it. It helps that the climate is benign here, and pianos often sound quite decent even after a couple of years without attention. In the 22 years I've been in business, I have never mailed one reminder card. Life's too short, and postage adds up. I find that the best source of good, high-quality, steady business is referrals from happy customers and other tuners, and they have been abundant. I may meet pianos in awful shape, like a 12-year-old Korean "Weber" grand I tuned the other day: tenor 100 cents flat, bass 20 cents flat, in the sun. I lectured about drapes and Chinese screens, removed extra music from the bench, got incredible noises out of the bench by using VJ lube where the legs meet the case, fixed pedal noises, tightened flange screws, glued lots of loose hammer heads, removed an unmetered (plugged in) damppchaser from the action cavity, did two passes of tuning, then collected a tuning fee plus repair charges and extreme gratitude from an owner who now knows whom to call, and will tell her friends. She thought she was just going to get a tuning. Her previous tuner died about 10 years ago. She'll probably call me in three months or so, which is when I suggested she have another tuning done, but if she doesn't, it won't bother me. It's fun when a piano which really isn't too bad but is very neglected springs back to life after only a couple hours of work. I'd rather do work like this than two six-month tunings on pianos which really didn't need them, where I could hardly tell the difference. There's that open-eyed excitement when the owner first hears and sees what has happened. I suppose in some parts of the world there may not be enough new work to go around, but I think in most places there is piano work going begging. So .... why go lockstep twice a year for people who don't want it? Happy 4th of July, everyone. Susan
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