customer education

[Barbara Richmond]

Hey David,

If they don't want to take your word for it, perhaps you could give them
some of that convincing reading material that is available.  Just don't hand
it to them, though.  Quickly go over it and mark the stuff you want to
emphasize.  Works for me........well, that and my honest face.  ;-)

Barbara Richmond, RPT


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dave Nereson" <davner@kaosol.net>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Saturday, July 17, 2004 10:05 PM
Subject: customer education


>     I don't know how many times I've told customers, even those who should
> be more knowledgeable, such as piano teachers, that it's changes in
humidity
> that make the piano go out of tune, but it just does not register with
them!
>     It goes in one ear and out the other, or they just don't believe it,
or
> they don't believe the soundboard can swell up or contract, or they're
> convinced it's because:
>
>     they didn't play it enough,
> or because the toddler banged on the keys with a toy,
> or because they had the carpet shampooed and the steam must've thrown it
out
> of tune,
> or the dust from the remodeling,
> or 'cause they moved it across the room,
> or there was a gas leak so they had to shut off the heat for a few days,
> or maybe it's not a good piano after all,
> or because we had a real cold winter or a hot summer (was the piano
> outside?)
> or because I didn't do a good enough job last time (3 to 10 years ago).
>
>     It's amazing how large a percentage of piano owners think that playing
> it helps keep it in tune.
>     No matter how much you tell them it's changes in humidity more than
> anything else, they still think it's temperature or moving or any number
of
> other causes.  Sure, these things can throw it out a little, but not the
20
> cents that several weeks of rain can do, or 5 years without tuning!
>     Another thing they just will not believe no matter how often you tell
> them or how you phrase it is that new pianos go out of tune faster than
any
> others and need tuning at least 3 times the first year, 2 or 3 times the
> second,  and twice a year for the next few years after that.  They just
> refuse to accept that.  Then they're all up in arms two years down the
road
> when you have to charge them extra for a huge pitch raise.
>    The pianos need some kind of pop-up reminder display every six months
or
> year  (3 or 4 months for new pianos).
>     --David Nereson, RPT
>
>
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