[pianotech] billing dilemma with pitch raises

[Terry Farrell]

Ed - "This doesn't compute.  If you charge by how wealthy the customer  
is, your rate is NOT constant, it is opportunistic, and it will only  
be a matter of time before some customers find out that they are being  
charged more because they have more."

I think you may have mis-read Paul's post. Did you perhaps  
read ......wealthy folks will still ask for me ..... so I give them my  
higher than normal (for Paul) rate......     Paul stated that his  
tuning rate is constant. Most of his work is done in a university and  
he only does limited work outside of the university. When he stated  
that he gives wealthy people a higher than normal rate, he was saying  
that because his rate is higher than the normal rate (higher than  
other local tuners), piano owners requesting his services tend to be  
wealthy and that his tuning rate is higher than other tuners in the  
area.

I don't think he was trying to suggest that he charges a lower tuning  
rate for less-than-wealthy clients, and a higher rate for wealthy  
clients.

Terry Farrell

On Oct 31, 2010, at
kdjk





3:46 PM, Ed Foote wrote:

>  Paul writes:
> >>  Even here at UNL when the weather changes, find some pianos  
> horribly wild and will struggle with them for 2 or 3 hours,  
> sometimes...
>
>            I am astounded that it would take 3 hours to tune a  
> piano.  It only takes 15 minutes to get a piano to pitch, and then  
> perhaps another 90 minutes to fine tune.  Exactly what takes 3  
> hours? And, if a piano is 30 cents flat or sharp(!), there is no  
> point in trying to end up with a super-fine tuning, since the wood  
> will move around in the next 48 hours, and that tuning will not be  
> there afterwards. (see below)
>
> >>My tuning rate is constant, (much higher than the local  
> techs...for a reason) but the pitch adjustment charges will vary,  
> not by time, but by how far out they are....sharp or flat (being  
> wildly both ways in the midwest).
> Of course, some wealthy folks will still ask for me ( I guess it's  
> the position here...) so I give them my higher than normal rate;  
> they like it; and off I go. <<
>
>       This doesn't compute.  If you charge by how wealthy the  
> customer is, your rate is NOT constant, it is opportunistic,   and  
> it will only be a matter of time before some customers find out that  
> they are being charged more because they have more.  This will not  
> be a happy day for anyone.
>
> >>I will also advise them before I start when nasty flat or sharp,  
> that my first visit will require a follow up tuning (or 2 or 3) in  
> the coming month or so, if they want the piano to get to a stable  
> point.
>
>    That is the point; a horribly out of tune piano will need another  
> tuning, later.  Is it in the customers best interest to be charged  
> for 3 hours of work when it will have to be redone in a couple of  
> weeks?
> Wondering,
> Ed Foote RPT
>

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