In a message dated 97-02-11 08:08:23 EST, you write: >While tuning a Kimball Grand for a first-time customer, I immediately >realized that the piano was on average about 40 cents flat. The piano >was manufactured in 1994, and the owner claimed that the piano had been >tuned within the last 12 months. The owner also expressed >dissatisfaction with her previous technician, claiming that the tech, >while tuning her piano, had removed the fallboard, and while in the >process, had broken the slow-fall mechanism on the fallboard. I have >several questions: > 1. How difficult is it to repair the fallboard? > 2. When confronted with a piano requiring a pitch raise, and the >owner refuses to pay charges beyond a standard tuning fee, do you (a) >refuse to do the work, (b) tune the piano at current pitch (c) spend >the extra time and do the job right for the standard fee? > 3. How does one handle customers when they speak ill of other piano >techs, especially when it is obvious that the previous work was >performed poorly? > > JIM > > > Jim answers to questions 1. I was not aware that Kimball made a slow falling fall board. I thought only Yamaha had one of those. 2. When I find a piano below pitch, I inform the customer of the situation, and explain what needs to be done, and why. I then ask her permission to do the extra work, telling her in advance what the charge will be. If she does not want to spend the extra money, I tune the piano where it is. 3. This is a personal decision on your part. If you know the tech, and you know he does bad work, don't correct the customer, but don't agree with her either. If you know the tech, and you know him/her to do great work, explain that perhaps he/she had a bad day. If you don't know the tech, just say so. In any case, instead of agreeing or disagreeing with the customer, get her off the subject, and assure her you will try do a better job, but that if she is not satisfied, to be sure to call you back. In my class on Service Management, I point out that 90% of dissatified customers never tell the service person of their dissatisfaction, but they will tell 9 other people about it. Therefore, it is in your best interst to ask the customer to call you if there are any problems. Remember that the complaining customer is your best customer, because you want the customer to complain to you, not 9 other people. Willem Blees RPT St. louis
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