[pianotech] more on discounts

[Gerald Groot]

There is a time and a place for all discounts.  I agree with what you state
Dean.  

 

I have a very close 'friend' (technician) that discounts to all churches,
schools and any other organization just because, they are an organization.
Basically, he is running the majority of his tuning business on discounts.
While he states that he is actually charging XXX fee, he is in all reality,
charging 10 % less than that actual figure because that is what his discount
amounts to regardless of if it is a tuning, or if it is only a repair and a
service call.  What incentive do his clients have in having more than one
piano tuned?  None whatsoever.  He gives the same discount for one tuning or
for 15.   Consequently in his case, he frequently receives calls for only 1
tuning and in 3 weeks, another tuning elsewhere etc.  

 

I do discount but, I will only give a discount for pianos located in the
same building or, well, okay, across the street in another building is close
enough for jazz if I do not have to drive there but, it has to be 2 more
pianos before I give any discount at all and even then, it is still the same
discount for 2 or 10 tunings.  That encourages them to tune more than one
piano and does add up eventually to a small amount of savings over time.  

 

Now, with my college on the other hand, where I do 300 tunings a year, I
give them a considerable discount on tunings by comparison to the rest of my
clientele and I think, for good reason.  Although, I do not give much of a
discount at all on concert tunings.  My family has been servicing for them
since 1926.  That is not why I give them a discount, nor is giving them a
discount why they continue having me service their pianos.  Our relationship
is the reason along with of course, the quality of service, obviously.  But,
in this case, a nice discount to me, at least, is a sign of a continued
"thank you for your support and repeat business" and a sign of respect.  

 

Jer Groot

 

From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf
Of Dean May
Sent: Friday, April 02, 2010 10:06 AM
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Subject: [pianotech] more on discounts

 

This week I was at an elderly housing unit tuning. The piano hadn't been
tuned in 5 years and I gave a reminder call to the director. She relented
and scheduled the tuning. I say this to point out she was not predisposed to
spending money on tuning. While I was there a resident asked if I could also
tune the piano in a different room that he played. He apparently went off to
talk to the director about it because she presently came up to ask how much
money is was going to cost. I gave her the price and she said no thanks. I
then volunteered that I do give a $4 discount per piano if more than one are
tuned. After a brief hesitation she said go ahead. 

 

Points to consider: 

 

It isn't her money she is spending, so she isn't really emotionally attached
to it. She just needs a reason. I gave her one: she was going to "save"
money by having 2 pianos tuned instead of 1.

 

It isn't the amount of the discount, it is that there is a discount. A $10
or $15 discount would not have been any more effective in closing this sale.
This lesson was especially driven home to me when I had a retail store and
sold pianos. People need a reason to buy. My tendency was to discount the
pianos too much thinking this would give people more incentive. But selling
price is not the biggest issue for most customers. It is about comfort. If
their comfort level is high enough, price really is no issue.

 

For most of us, there is a marketing cost for every appointment we book.
This cost is considerably larger for a first time customer. My brother, in
the carpet cleaning business, is willing to spend $50-$75 to get a first
time customer. Offering a discount for multiple pianos is a simple
acknowledgement of this cost and passes on some of the savings to the
customer. Since time is money, whatever time you spend in booking an
appointment (not counting any promotional campaigns, yellow pages, phone
costs, etc.) represents a real cost. If you get two tunings for the same
amount of time spent booking the appointment, your costs are lower. 

 

Dean

Dean W May                (812) 235-5272

PianoRebuilders.com    (888) DEAN-MAY

Terre Haute IN 47802

 

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