<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; = charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2600.0" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV>Ted,</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I think you make a valid point - that the experienced tech should = not be shooting themself in the foot as their skill increases.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I'm gonna go out on a limb here and presume that there will be = those who agree with charging by the job (with a basis on hours, similar to auto = service), those who promote charging actual time regardless, and lots in = between.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Personally, I think the the piano industry allows us a = freedom to determine our fees as we choose.  I think TO SOME DEGREE we owe it = to our clients to charge them based on actual hours for a job.  I also = think it is not unreasonable to charge a set fee for a particular job.  = >From the clients perspective, the same work gets done either way.  With an experienced tech, it is simply done in less time (yeah, and probably better).  As a new tech, I guess I lean more toward a price per = job, understanding that the extra time I take is my incentive to get = more skilled so that I can do more work in less time and thus, make more money.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Bottom line for me is no hard and fast rule of fee = scheduling.  I hope that as long as I am in the piano service industry we do not = get regulations like those of the auto industry.  Tighter regulations = have advantages, to be sure, but I think our current freedoms outweigh = those.  In the meantime, work hard, charge fairly, and maintain your integrity.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>William R. Monroe<BR>PTG Associate<BR>Salt Lake City, UT  = </DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; = BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: = black"><B>From:</B> <A title=rohde@pdnt.com href="mailto:rohde@pdnt.com">Ted Rohde</A> = </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A = title=pianotech@ptg.org href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Thursday, April 11, 2002 = 6:47 PM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Fees - revisited</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial>List,</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> <FONT size=3>   I = read with interest the discussion on how techs charge...hourly fees, = etc.   If we base ourselves on hourly fees, do we not hurt our income in the = long run?  I know how long it used to take me to do an action = regulation on a Yamaha Grand.  I now can do that same job in less than half the = time due to speed gained through experience.  Am I now to = be docked because I've attained more experience and skill?   It seems wrong that a person like myself who has been working for = 30+ years should have to contract more jobs just to keep up with the novice.  Even the auto repair industry has manuals listing = hours per job to charge. </FONT></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial>    Interested to hear responses.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial>Thanks!!</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial>Ted Rohde - Central Illinois</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial>Lurking in the Background.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial>PS  Sorry for the virus problem several = weeks ago.  I didn't intentionally post messages to the site or = even know I had it until several of you informed me.  The computer went on autopilot without my knowledge.  By all means, it's corrected = with the newest Norton updates.    My apologies!!!</FONT></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>