Irate Customer

[Farrell]

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.

---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment
Thanks for the input Barbara. I too like to have the pianist home for a =
first-time appt. That is why, in part, that I scheduled this appointment =
for today. The guy said the wife/pianist would be home. When I got there =
he said she had to run off to something-or-other-whatever. Buy, yeah, =
the attempt to have the pianist there was made. I wish she would have =
been there.

".....first clue that I was in the wrong place was that there was no =
piano!"

Is that anything like (for a male) walking into a restroom in an =
unfamiliar public facility and not seeing any urinals? (Then hoping =
nobody is outside the door as you run quickly back out the door of the =
ladies restroom!)

Terry Farrell
  ----- Original Message -----=20
  From: Barbara Richmond=20
  To: Pianotech=20
  Sent: Sunday, November 02, 2003 7:55 PM
  Subject: Re: Irate Customer


  Terry,

  You tuned for a private customer today, Sunday?  Like wow, man.

  Your suggested appropriate response seems reasonable.  Don't worry =
about those "distinct tones."  Be calm, explain it as best you can and =
be firm.  Good luck! =20

  I made it a rule that the customer (or the pianist, if it wasn't a =
kid) always had to be around to let me in for the first appointment so =
we could check the piano out together before I started working.  =
Although your situation isn't exactly how and why I first learned this, =
I've found after time it's still a good rule for a number of reasons, =
including----one day I walked into the wrong unlocked house (small town, =
no house numbers, and even though you don't live there, the customer =
assumes you know all the landmarks in town, etc.).   I won't go into =
details here......but my first clue that I was in the wrong place was =
that there was no piano!    :-) =20

  Another embarrassing moment (oh, that would be lesson learned) in the =
life of...

  Barbara Richmond, RPT
  what address was that?
  somewhere near Peoria, IL

  ----- Original Message -----=20
    From: Farrell=20
    To: pianotech@ptg.org=20
    Sent: Sunday, November 02, 2003 5:07 PM
    Subject: Irate Customer


    Hello PianoList folks. I'm looking for any suggestions to sooth an =
irate customer - she just called and left a message - I'll have to get =
back to her soon.

    I tuned a Yamaha GH1 today (so-so condition). New customer "graduate =
of Puerto Rico Conservatory". I sat down on bench & hit first key - =
BUZZZZZZZZZZZ. Found a half-dozen keys that made a nasty soundboard =
buzz. Found a rib I could press on while striking key that stopped the =
buzz. Lady was not home so I called hubby over to ask if wife had =
complained about buzz. He said he heard it when I demonstrated it, but =
she had not mentioned it.

    So she just calls now and said she played her piano. She is not =
happy at all. She said there were one or two keys that made a little =
buzz previously, but now about 20 notes make a big buzz and she is in =
tears.

    I had told the hubby when I was there earlier that if the buzzing =
bothered her, there were some repairs that we could try to get rid of =
the buzzing. He said he would mention it to her. It would seem to me =
that the appropriate response from me is to offer to make an appointment =
to come and repair her loose rib and charge her a normal fee for doing =
so. Her message has the distinct tone of "my piano was fine before YOU =
touched it".

    Any thoughts before I step into the fire? Thanks.

    Terry Farrell
---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/0e/21/70/cc/attachment.htm

---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment--