What's a fair price to charge for tuning a piano

[A440A@aol.com]

Joseph  writes:

<< Whe I facture that sales tax, car

expenses (tolls, gas, etc.) and travel time are

deducted from the gross fee, I do not see how I can

charge less than $100 for a basic tuning.  >>

In the beginning, you will have to charge little enough to simply attract the 
customers that are price shopping. You will want to move out of this category 
as fast as you can.  You will do this by impressing enough customers so that 
word of mouth, (is there anywhere else words come from?,  uh, I know a couple 
of people that talk out their a. ahhhh, well,  I'll just let that be),  begins 
to fill your schedule. 
   As soon as you realize that you are missing customers because  you don't 
have time to get to them, you will realize that you are not charging enough.  
You will then raise your price until you have more time than customers, oops, 
charging too much?  You will know if your calls begin to drop off. (or maybe 
you let your quality slip). 
    Return customers are the lifeblood of a service business, unless you 
advertise so heavily that you don't need them, (hard to do).  Do what you can to 
make your customers feel like they got their money's worth.  Customers usually 
don't think in terms of dollars, but rather, what value they think they are 
receiving.  Also remember that 90% of communication is non-verbal, so if you are 
confident that your price and the quality of your service are equal, your 
body language, tone of voice, and general bearing will put the customer at ease. 
    A long term tech, with a large body of work and customers behind them, 
will comfortably charge more than the beginner.  In Nashville, the price of a 
tuning varies from $60 to $130, depending on who is doing it.  I have customers 
that feel much better paying me twice as much as the last tuner they employed. 
 
     If you are booked two months in advance, you are not charging enough.  
If your phone is not ringing, you may be pricing yourself too high.  The only 
way to find your comfort zone is to get in the business and learn. 
good luck, 
 

Ed Foote RPT 
http://www.uk-piano.org/edfoote/index.html
www.uk-piano.org/edfoote/well_tempered_piano.html