Slow Times -Reply

[Steve Pearson]

Can't resist jumping in here.  And I apologize for the length of this
missive.  Back in the old days before I joined YAMAHA, I used to have a
solid customer base, and only experienced slow times when I planned
them!  How is this possible?  Almost without exception, I scheduled my
appointments while I was at the client's home. Before I left, I set up the
day and time of the next appointment, and had the customer address the
reminder card to him/herself.  This card was sent out Tuesday of the
week prior to the appointment; far enough in advance the give warning,
but not so long as to be forgotten. ( When the customer was unwilling to
do this, they addressed a different card with "your piano was last tuned
on Octember 32th...etc".) This automatically gave me control over where
I would go, and whether there would be meat or just beans on the table
that month.  The amount of time I spent on the phone after work each
evening dropped dramatically, and I could schedule my clientele at
regular intervals, making for fewer pitch raises.  Also made scheduling
shop time or extra service time much easier.  It had the added benefit of
fewer, but steadier clients, and better maintained pianos.  It was a real
leap of faith, but as I live and breathe, it worked spectacularly for MANY
years.  People like to know they don't have to worry about scheduling
an appointment unless  they need to change it.  And it puts you in the
driver's seat.
Steve P