<div dir="ltr">Speaking from a less-than-stellar experience...<div><br></div><div>Have the retiring gent "introduce" you to his (living) clientele. This may be a mailing that you do in his name (with his blessing, of course) or him phoning everyone, or something else. A mailing with his signature on a letter would probably be easiest and most effective.</div> <div><br></div><div>Definitely you need to acquire his phone number. </div><div><br></div><div>Possibly, pay a fixed amount for his active clients that agree to your services, plus a percentage of any inactive ones that contact you in the next two years, or some other finite timeframe. </div> <div><br></div><div>My experience was a tech who retired due to health issues, and who told very few clients that someone else would be answering the phone. Thankfully, at least, I did get the phone number!</div><div><br> </div><div>My 2c,</div><div>Paul Bruesch</div><div>Stillwater, MN<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Fri, Oct 24, 2008 at 7:49 AM, Paul McCloud <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:pmc033@earthlink.net">pmc033@earthlink.net</a>></span> wrote:<br> <blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex;"> <div> <p> </p><div>List:   </div> <div>    I have been offered first dibs on a piano business that has been gradually downsized over the past several years.  The owner, retiring at the end of the year, has been a technician for 60 years, most of which were spent here in San Diego.  He used to have a store location with various new and used pianos, but has given up piano sales, and does part time tuning.  What he's offering is his customer list, a few rental pianos (returned), tools and supplies, and a few odd piano benches and other accessories.  I know there has been some discussion in the past about purchasing an existing business or customer list, but I can't seem to find much in the archives.  Maybe I need a better search keyword.  </div> <div>    I'm leaning towards some kind of arrangement where I would pay for any customer on the list that actually becomes my client.  Paying for  a couple thousand names where most of them are dead, moved, or otherwise useless to me doesn't make sense.  I've got plenty of those anyway.  I'm thinking that I would pay a certain amount for any client I got from his list that actually became a customer.  I could put out a mailer that would introduce me to his clients, asking them to call me for their next service.  Someone suggested to ask if he has a list of his most recent customers, and how much business he has done in the last year with them.  That figure would tell me what I could expect to make if I did purchase his list.  I'm also keen to acqure his telephone number.  He has moved into the shop where I work, and has a corner of the room.  When I'm there, I hear his phone ring and I listen to the p! hone calls that come in as his answering machine takes messages.  </div> <div>    If any of you could offer advice, I'd be very glad to have it.</div> <div>    Respectfully,</div> <div>    Paul McCloud, RPT</div> <div>    San Diego, CA</div> <div> </div><font color="#888888"> <div> </div> <div> </div> <div>Paul McCloud</div> <div>Service Technician for PianoSD.com</div> <div><a href="http://www.pianoservsd.com" target="_blank">www.pianoservsd.com</a> </div> <div>Created with free BlueVoda software:</div> <div><a href="http://www.vodahost.com/partner/idevaffiliate.php?id=9223_1_3_9" target="_blank">http://www.vodahost.com/partner/idevaffiliate.php?id=9223_1_3_9</a></div> <div> </div> <div> </div> <p></p></font><p></p></div></blockquote></div><br></div></div>