<HTML>Carol, You are correct in the fantastic business opportunity suggestion.  = Having been in sales for sometime, I consider customer relations my strong s= uit.  That's why it's extremely frustrating when I go out of my way to = do the job as well as possible AND to be very professional about it, I get i= rked when it doesn't pay off.  But that's often the nature of dealer wo= rk.   The hard part is finding a that customer that you thought you'd bonded w= ith has looked elsewhere.  Learning to not take that sort of thing pers= onally is the lesson here. Thanks for your valuable insights, Dave S. In a message dated 9/20/04 9:12:17 PM Pacific Daylight Time, crbrpt@bell= atlantic.net writes: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-= LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">To David especially, I have= a few suggestions to make concerning getting customers to call YOU when the free tunings are completed from the dealer. First of all, that free in-home tuning after someone has purchased a piano is not really just an appointment to tune a piano - it is a fantastic business opportunity for you to get a client!  I doubt most people will notice or appreciate your technical skills, but what they WILL remember is whether or not you seemed interested in them and their piano. Did you dress nicely?  Did you smile and comment how nice the piano looked in their home?  Did you ask them how they liked the piano or if there were any problems? Did you ask their kid to play a song for you after you were finished?  Did you leave any literature about how to take care of the piano?  And most important, did you not agree to send a post card reminding them when their next tuning should be done, say in 6 months!!!  Those should have been your parting words. If you consider that being a successful business man piano tuner is 90% customer care and 10% technical stuff, then you might have better odds of keeping the customer.  I will say that the "show" is far more important than any unseen work you might have done.  If any extra work is needed, bring them into the room and SHOW them what you are doing!  It makes for great entertainment as most people have never even seen the inside of a piano, and are totally fascinated the thing even comes apart in the first place! I think people are totally  wowed by electronic tuning devices. The combination of those little red lights, or rotating circles, combined with your wearing a tie, watching a kid play a song, and driving a clean car are no match for an unknown tuner unless their prices so undercut you, that they probably give poor service and will call you back anyway when they get disappointed with the sound and playability of their piano. When I was a kid, I was the one who stayed home to let the piano tuner in the house.  If I didn't like the guy, I would tell my Dad and he would find someone else.  Our tuner never joined the guild, but he wore a beret and drove a red Porche!  He even let me rumage through his tool bag and gladly answered any question I ever had.  Of course I was happy with his service!  My Dad was happy because he thought the piano sounded good and played crisply.  The guy before him however, came out and said something I perceived as uncomplementary about the brand of our piano, so we never called him back. Just remember, building your business is more "show" than competence; keeping your busness is paying attention to detail and being competent! Carol Beigel, RPT</BLOCKQUOTE> </HTML>