<!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 5.50.4134.100" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>First-time customers are quoted a = ballpark range.  The tuning fee would be between $X and $Y, depending on = what I find upon meeting the piano for the first time.  A discussion with the = customer while I'm setting up the appointment usually gives me a pretty good idea = about which end of the range I might end up charging them for.  Also in = the discussion is a run-down of the most common things that could run the = bill up (extensive pitch correction, dealing with = corrosion, breaking strings, clearing out obstructions in the action and/or repairing broken = action parts, etc.).  When all is said and done, they are prepared to pay = $Y, but are delighted when the bill comes out to be less than that.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>+ + + + +</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Are the guides on how long a job should = take still in print?</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Invaluable resources, I should think, = for the newbie who is trying to determine what to charge for what kind of a = job.  They're also a help for the experienced pro who is having one of those = bad-head days when everything is taking longer than it should.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>The real acid-test is troubleshooting = skills.  I'm sure we've all been there ... you spend 2 hours looking for = something it takes the next technician just 5 minutes to find.  You spend = another hour or so fixing all of the symptoms when the other technician fixes the = cause of all of those symptoms in just 10 minutes, then has to undo all the work = you did on the symptoms.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Who gets to charge who for = what?</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Z! Reinhardt  RPT<BR>Ann = Arbor  MI<BR><A href="mailto:diskladame@provide.net">diskladame@provide.net</A></FONT><= /DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE 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=Wimblees@AOL.COM = href="mailto:Wimblees@AOL.COM">Wimblees@AOL.COM</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> Saturday, February 02, = 2002 6:10 PM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: Pricing = Models</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica><FONT size=2>In a = message dated 2/2/02 5:04:18 PM !!!First Boot!!!, <A href="mailto:drpt@sk.sympatico.ca">drpt@sk.sympatico.ca</A> writes: <BR><BR><BR> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px = solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px" TYPE="CITE">I suppose the ultimate in fairness would be to charge a = hourly rate for all <BR>service. The client that has a wonderful piano and = wishes to have superior <BR>service would end up paying less and the "once = in a lifetime" folks would <BR>pay a great deal more. <BR><BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR><BR>The problem with this is that a customer = won't know if you are really doing a lot of service for a fair hourly rate, = or if yo are new to the business, and taking extra time to fix problems that a = more experienced tuner can do in half the time. <BR><BR>I had that happen = to me once when I had my furnace worked on. The company sent out a new = recruit, who took two hours to fix a problem. Later I found out the problem should = have been fixed in about 15 minutes. <BR><BR>Wim </FONT></FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>