What to tell clients

[PAULREVENKOJONES]

"If you want to know the truth, stop having opinions" (Chinese fortune cookie)


In a message dated 08/11/07 08:17:04 Central Daylight Time, formsma at gmail.com writes:
Paul, 

It is hard for us to think about charging Mrs. Jones when her piano is 
dead.  But, my appliance repairman charges me a service call when he 
tells me he can't fix my washer and it would be cheaper to buy a new 
one.  And, doctors still charge when their patient is terminal.
I, of course, know all that. Yet I can't do it. It's the most unbusiness-like behavior, I know. It's only occasional, so it doesn't hurt me. I sleep better? Yes.


Hey, it's tough...I know, because it's hard for me to do it, too. 
But, I have made it a written policy that my minimum fee to walk in 
the door is $XX.00.  (I wrote that policy to myself so I could 
strengthen my own resolve. <grin>)  I'm comfortable with that. It 
covers basic costs of doing business.  I am short-changing myself if I 
don't charge for EVERY service call. 
Being short-changed is certainly an operative phrase, but not necessarily an economically compelling one if I can feel that there is value in my action. And I have the same written policy!


Having said that, I reserve the option (if I'm in the area anyway, and 
can stop on my way home to look at a piano), to not charge for a 
service call.  Let's say I open the top lid to Grandma's BOU (big old 
upright), and see broken hammers and strings, and play down through 
the bass break to hear the bass bridge is separated.  I can simply say 
something like, "This will cost at least $XXXX.00 to properly repair." 
If I can say that, and be out the door in 10 minutes or less, I 
*might* not charge full price,  And I might not charge anything. 

On those occasions where I don't charge anything, I've had people want 
to give me money anyway.  So they are expecting to pay.  (Which, I 
might add, is our expectation when we hire a serviceman.)  And I've 
also found that once I'm ready to go, people sometimes get full of 
questions.  If I have to stay there 10 minutes telling them what's a 
good brand, or a good dealer, I've just ended up losing my time and 
getting paid zilch.  Not so good, except for customer relations. :-) 
This really does become a judgement call. I've had the same instances where I was going to walk away from a dead piano, become involved in more discussion, and felt better about charging for the visit. This is exceptional, though.


I do try to ascertain on the phone if the piano is a BOU, because I 
don't work on them anymore unless they are already in my customer 
database, or they are a good name piano like Steinway, M & H, etc. 
(Or if they want a rebuild, which rarely has happened with me.) 
I do everything I possibly can on the phone to qualify the customer and the piano, giving away lots of "free" advice. But the word "karma" comes into play here, John. What goes around does come around. I can't gauge the payback, and it's not my motive, but it happens anyway. 

Paul


JF 

On 8/11/07, PAULREVENKOJONES <paulrevenkojones at aol.com> wrote: 
> When I have to condemn a piano, I tell the customer about the lives of 
> pianos, and how this piano has lived it's useful life, but has reached its 
> end (barring sentimental restoration). I have found in 30+ years that I have 
> never once charged a client for this information. I just can't do it. I know 
> it's probably un-business-like, but I can't tell someone that their piano is 
> dead in one breath and in the next ask for money, even though it's 
> professional information. 
> 
> Paul 
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