An open letter to Marshall

[pianotune05]

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and the point of this post is?
Marshall
  ----- Original Message -----=20
  From: Pianofxrguy@aol.com=20
  To: pianotech@ptg.org=20
  Sent: Sunday, January 22, 2006 1:21 PM
  Subject: An open letter to Marshall


  I would make this a private e-mail to Marshall, but he has been very =
public in his comments:

  Marshall,
      This is John, one of the other South Bend tuner/techs.  I am a =
lurker on the list, because I only get to check every couple of days and =
by the time I could make a comment on a topic it has usually been well =
commented on by everyone else. I greatly value the information shared =
among piano technicians on this forum and find that it echoes the =
general helpfulness when techs get together in person.
      I feel that you need to chill out a bit in your opinion of this =
area and the current piano business atmosphere. The "one" local dealer =
has survived because he concentrates on selling pianos and being of =
service to his customers instead of bashing other dealers and their =
products the way the rest of the, now defunct, dealers in this area have =
done. I have done floor tunings for him for over 30 years, and there are =
2 other tuners who also tune at the store part of the time.  I don't =
know, but I suspect that having yet another tuner coming in would be a =
bit of overkill.=20
      If you recall from our conversation a year or so ago, I told you =
that I didn't have time to do a mentor/apprentice thing with you but =
that the Potter course would be a good start and then you should get =
further information from someone with knowledge about the particular =
things you would need to learn as a sight challenged tuner. I also told =
you that I would be happy to answer any questions that you had, but that =
following me around on the days that I tuned in the store would be =
inconvenient for my work and a little uncomfortable for the dealer. Most =
dealers don't want people wandering around the store who aren't either =
customers or doing some sort of work. A store is a place of business, =
after all. If you had come in once a month or so, as I suggested, there =
was some work, for instance de-stringing a grand piano in the back room, =
that I was going to hire you to do. It would have been good experience =
for you, kept me doing what I am mainly there to do, and the dealer was =
fine with the arrangement. You never came back. I didn't know whether =
that meant you were not all that interested in learning the business or =
if you took offense at something I had said. I can now assume the =
latter.
      In our area, every piano tech that I know of has come in and taken =
a couple of years to get up and running with a business, working other =
jobs at first to make ends meet and some finally going full time. Each =
one has built up a client base and developed their reputation and has =
worked hard to keep their business afloat. I don't think that any of us =
is "hogging" piano customers, and I know that none of us is wealthy =
enough to stop taking on new ones. Unlike most other service businesses, =
tuners from time to time call another tuner to cover for them at a =
particularly busy time of year or if there are scheduling conflicts that =
can't be overcome, but we call on people whose tuning skills we are =
familiar with and whom we trust with the piano of one or more of our =
valued customers. You have been in the business a month or two and none =
of us knows anything about your work. You may be a fine tuner, but it is =
unlikely that I would recommend you to someone who trusts my judgement =
until I know that you would do a satisfactory job. If you screw up, I =
get the blame.=20
      I think you need to work on your attitude toward the other tuners =
in the area, every one of which has been in some measure willing to talk =
to you and answer questions as far as I know. Regarding our area; I have =
lived here all my life and love this area, even with its artistic =
deficiencies, but if I hated being here, I think that would show in my =
relations with my customers. If you are truly wanting to get started =
around here, it would be to your benefit to work well with others. No =
one owes you a start in this business, but if any of us can send =
something your way when it seems appropriate, it is likely we would do =
it once we know who and what we are dealing with.=20
      I have, perhaps, been a little free with the terms "we" and "us" =
since I haven't talked to anyone else about this. In fact, I only know 4 =
other tuners personally, but from my understanding of the ones that I =
know and from what I know about the others, I think we're a pretty laid =
back bunch and fairly easy to get along with given a little effort. Call =
any tuner you wish and offer some suggestions about how to demonstrate =
your skills and I think you might pick up some referrals, but it would =
be best not to assume that a tuner has a lot of time to chat in the =
evening as he/she is either making business calls of their own or trying =
to spend a little time with their family. Brief and to the point makes a =
good call, maybe set up a mutually agreeable time to have a longer =
conversation. I would not suggest that you make this your primary source =
of customers, however, because other tuners are in the business of =
building their own customer base and it may be that they would only have =
something for you once in a while. You have had excellent advice from =
others on the list on the topic of starting to build a client list, =
including several things that I wish I had heard of 30 years ago.=20
      It all comes down to you and the effort that you want to put out. =
If you are seriously considering moving, you would probably not be =
working with a mind set of long term customer relations and that might =
effect the way you go about it. I would encourage you to sell your =
skills and personality rather than trying subterfuge to gain business. =
Keeping a reputation of honest dealings is more valuable in the tuning =
business maybe than in some other service related fields.
      I am pretty sure there are plenty of pianos in the area if you =
have the desire and perseverance to stick it out through the difficult =
times.=20
      Sorry for the length of this e-mail, you should see the stuff I =
left out.
      Still available for consultation and question answering,
          John Stroup =20
     =20
      
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