Pricing to Success in Piano Tuning w/ David Andersen & Eathan Janney
In this episode, David and Eathan talk about pricing in the piano industry, especially during the pandemic and post-pandemic. Raising prices may seem counter-intuitive, but keeping up with your standard of living may be necessary. One participant adds “Now is the time to raise prices, not just to keep up, but to get ahead of the curve”.
“Historically we do not charge enough as piano technicians, when I raise prices, I am met with more success” shares another participant. During this conversation, the participants help unpack the importance of offering a diverse set of services to your clients as there is no good piano that you cannot make better.
The path to becoming a high-end piano technician is not just skill, but also building a relationship of trust and having references through word of mouth. In this episode, we further unpack the importance of having a trust-based relationship with your clients and reflections on the PTM 2020 convention.
Here’s a little bit about our hosts:
David Andersen:
David Andersen, owner of David Andersen pianos in Los Angeles has been a professional musician, recording artist, and piano technician/consultant for nearly four decades. He has overseen the restoration and maintenance of hundreds of Steinway and Mason & Hamlin pianos during that time. Beginning in 1975 he apprenticed for two and a half years under Jack Cofer in Atlanta, Georgia; during the 1980s he studied at Steinway facilities both in New York and London.
Eathan Janney:
Eathan has 20 years of experience as a piano technician. He studied with Dave Miller, the staff piano technician for the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University, New Jersey.
Dave Carpenter, the inventor of the Verituner electronic tuning device, provided mentorship for Eathan in Chicago. Eathan also worked with Ken Eschete and Bill Schwarts, the staff piano technicians at Northwestern University in Chicago.
In 2009, he founded Floating Piano Factory of New York, a company that allows piano technicians to move from Apprentice to Craftsman level while offering value pricing to clients as technicians progress toward mastery. In 2017 he founded Piano Technicians Masterclasses, an online project designed to offer cutting-edge instruction from piano industry masters to anyone on the globe with an internet connection.
𝐉𝐎𝐈𝐍 𝐔𝐒 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓❗❗
Browse more masterclasses and lectures from Piano Tuning Pros here: https://www.pianotechniciansmasterclass.com/
Piano Tech Radio Hour is brought to you by Piano Technicians Master. We provide cutting-edge piano technology instruction from piano industry masters without leaving your home, featuring monthly subscriptions, conventions, single live streaming, and recorded masterclasses. Learn advanced skills:
- How to tune pianos.
- How to repair pianos.
- How to rebuild pianos.
- How to tune concert pianos for the finest performers in the world.
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