Missed appointments

[Jim]

Dear Ted:

I may get about 1 or 2 no-shows in a year.  I always just kindly accept
their appology and reschedule.  The PR value of handling it this way is
of more value to me than the missed bucks at the time.  This customer is
more likely to give me referrals than if I treat him/her roughly.  If the
wasted time really bothers you, why not stop by your church or other needy
client and do a free tuning for them,  You'll feel much better.  Please
believe me, I've tried all the other responses.  I don't like feeling bad.
I don't like having unhappy customers,  I don't like wasting time.  My
time is my life.

Jim Coleman, Sr.


On Mon, 16 Sep 1996, Ted Simmons wrote:

> Dear List:
>    You have all been helpful to me in the past and I know most of you are
> University Techs and maybe don't do house-to-house tunings.  Anyhow, I'd
> like to pose this problem with you:  How do you handle no-shows?  I arrive
> at the appointed time and the customer is not home.  I leave my card in the
> door and leave after waiting 10 minutes.  Later that evening I get an
> apologetic call from the customer who wants to re-schedule.  I've lost the
> price of a tuning that day because of the customer's forgetfulness.  Do I
> passively comply and give the customer a new date or do I tell him there
> will be an extra charge? I'm talking mostly about first time customers. I
> readily comply for customers whom I have tuned for for years and this is
> their first violation.  Any comments?
>
>    Ted Simmons
>    Merritt Island, FL
>
>
>