Matthew , The "Felts need replacing " from a client is not usefull in diagnosis. There is no telling what the nature of her problem with the piano may be.Why didn't you engage in a conversation with her about her concerns while you were there? You write: "I can always do the work like she asks, but then, it may or may not remedy the problem she is having. " No kidding! You're the technician. Listen to her concerns, evaluate the piano ,show her where the improvements are needed ,make a proposal and get the job or not. At this point I would approach her in this manner. Ms. Smith , Since it's been several months since our last visit I'll suggest we make an appointment to take a fresh look at your piano. After evaluation we can identify any issues you are having, come up with a course of action and with your approval begin work at once. " Be prepared to start the work right then ! Something like that makes sense to me .No evaluation fees if you get the job. Or sell her a tuning over the phone since it is due and evaluate first. Matt, this ain't rocket surgery . Common sense and enlightened self interest with the customers best interest in the forefront will light the way, End of lecture. Best wishes, Tom Driscoll I had a client leave me a voicemail wanting some additional work in the future. She has in her mind that the felts (i'm assuming the punchings and/or key rebushing) need replacing, because the piano is getting harder to play. She just wants a quote so she can plan for it. Now, are there specific questions I need to ask her over the phone to get more of an idea? I can always do the work like she asks, but then, it may or may not remedy the problem she is having. I would rather be certain what she is wanting and be confident that the problem will be resolved when I am thru. I already tuned her piano several months back, so I really don't want to charge her an additional service call to come out so we can discuss options, because she did mention it to me at the tuning appointment. I would appreciate to know how to best approach this. Thanks! TODD PIANO WORKS Matthew Todd, Piano Technician (979) 248-9578 http://www.toddpianoworks.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 8.0.237 / Virus Database: 270.11.3/1969 - Release Date: 02/24/09 06:43:00 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/pianotech_ptg.org/attachments/20090224/63c015a7/attachment.html>
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