<HTML><BODY STYLE="font:10pt verdana; border:none;"><DIV><BR>It seems t=
o me that one of the main parts of service is communication with the cust=
omer. My "initial visit" fee is figured to include a pitch raising =
and puttering with sticking keys and loose action parts. When a new=
customer calls me, I say "The initial visit costs this much and for your=
money I <U>will </U>do this and this and this and this. If your pi=
ano needs more work I will discuss it with you before I do it." I a=
lways try to ask if there are any other problems with the instrument.&nbs=
p; If I get there and I find a well maintained piano without any problems=
I can always finish the job within an hour and charge a lesser fee. =
; (Then I AM a hero).</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Discussing the instrum=
ent's problems with the customer is part of the job and has to be done.&n=
bsp; Of course there will be times when the customer just lets you to you=
r own devices and you must determine what level of service you will provi=
de. That's why I keep reading this list, the more you know the more=
confident you will be in providing a simple repair. If you are too=
busy to spend some time with the customer discussing what he/she needs o=
r wants....cool, that's a good problem to have. But you ought to tr=
y to remedy it.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Mitch Ruth</DIV> <DIV>DeMoss=
ville, KY</DIV></BODY></HTML><DIV><BR><br clear=all><hr>Get your FREE d=
ownload of MSN Explorer at <a href="http://explorer.msn.com">http://exp=
lorer.msn.com</a><br></p></DIV>