photograph of a headstock being strung
Edge guitar services

Eltham Jones, guitar repair and technical services :Bristol : Cardiff : Bridgend : Tel. 07971 240296

A guitar teacher came to me once and asked me if I could supply him with a pickup for his classical guitar. He clearly felt he had done a lot of research (but not enough, as it turned out) and was convinced that this was the answer to the problems he was experiencing with his current pickup. On impulse, and fortunately before I ordered the replacement, I asked him what his existing pickup was and was surprised to find out that it was basically the same as the one he wanted to replace it with but he was convinced that the current installation was faulty. As soon as he described the fault I realised that the problem was the way he was using the pickup with a PA and a desk and replacing the pickup would simply have been a very expensive lesson in using PA equipment.


He was pretty disgruntled to be told that he was doing something wrong but when I demonstrated that his pickup did actually work fine with the same desk that we had in the shop he was forced grudgingly to concede that I had just saved him nearly £200.


He's never been back to me for anything since and I was left with the uncomfortable feeling that I would have been better off if I'd just taken his money and let him discover his mistake himself.


I lose more business that way, but at least I can sleep at nights...


My philosophy in business is very simple: treat everyone as you would wish to be treated yourself. Treat your customers as friends; be honest with people and don't waste time on diplomacy because diplomacy is the enemy of communication and communication is what gets things done.


And the moral of the above story? Bring me the problem, not what you believe to be the solution; the solution's my department...

My business philosophy

© Eltham Jones, EDGE Guitar Services

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