Music Trade Review

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MAY
THE
17, 1924
MUSIC
TRADE
REVIEW
Gutting Down Radio Service Charges
Second of a Series of Articles Dealing With the Merchandising Problems Confronting the Music Merchant in
Handling This Latest Acquisition to His Line on a Profitable Basis—Selling the Customer
So as to Cut Service Expense to a Minimum Amount
I
N the music trade when you sell an instru-
ment the transaction is completed, provided
the instrument you sell is not defective.
From that time on the purchaser is no longer in
the question. In radio the transaction is dif-
ferent. When you sell an instrument you do so
with the understanding that should anything go
wrong your service department will repair it.
As there is no such thing at the present time as
a fool-proof radio receiver, the purchasers gen-
erally manage to keep the radio service depart-
ment busy. They have spent money for a re-
ceiver, and whether it is their fault or not they
expect the dealer to keep it free from trouble,
either imaginary or real. A great deal of this
service is unnecessary, and too much of it is
absolutely ruinous to the dealer. Most of the
trouble can be traced back to the salesman
when he sold the goods to the customer.
The customer understands little or nothing
about the technical points of radio, and some-
times cares even less. He wants his radio set to
be infallible and to work at all times. There-
fore the salesman approaches and sells the in-
strument on that basis, not taking into consid-
eration that there is no such thing as a radio
receiver which will work all the time, day in,
day out, and achieve the same results.
One of the Big Troubles
One of the biggest troublemakers in the entire
transaction is the fact that a radio receiver is
supposed to receive far-distant programs. The
customer has read and heard of programs being
received over distances of 1,000 to 3,000 miles.
When the salesman is asked about the matter
he will state that the receiver being demon-
strated will do those things. No receiver can
be guaranteed for distance. Whether it be a
four or a ten-tube receiver the most that the
salesman should state is that it will faithfully
receive the local programs, and the rest de-
pends upon its operation and the conditions gov-
erning transmission at that time. This channel
immediately makes it clear sailing so far as dis-
tant reception is concerned.
An instance of this can be cited in the follow-
ing: One of the largest department stores in
the East held an exposition and radio sale.
Before the sale the men selling the goods were
coached on the different points of superiority
of each of the receivers by the manufacturers
themselves. They were cautioned in each case
to disregard the selling of the intangible quality
—distance. Then the sales manager stated that
the first salesman who made mention of dis-
tance in selling a receiver could consider him-
self automatically fired. They were told to sell
the beautiful tone, the nice machine work, the
cabinet work, the reputation of the receivers and
not to guarantee anything more than local pro-
grams.
The result of this was that, while over $60,000
worth of merchandise was sold, the service
charges since that time have amounted to much
less than $100, most of which was due to dam-
age to receivers in the hands of the inexperi-
enced owners.
Selling Service
When a dealer allows his salesman to sell
service he is letting himself in for a lot of
trouble. If you place the receiver in the home
of the purchaser and get it operating properly,
there should be no more trouble from this
source. This can be done without mentioning
O
N
anything about loud speaker operation on sta-
tions far distant.
There is one method of selling a radio set
and assuring yourself no monetary loss from
service. The method is to sell the customer an
installation or carrying charge. When the re-
ceiver is bought, explain to the buyer that there
will be a charge of $10 or $15 for the proper
installation of the set, and any small adjustments
that you may be called upon to make within the
year—exclusive of replacement of parts, such as
tubes, phones or loud speakers. Tell your cus-
tomer that inasmuch as you have a man that
takes care of this work, the charge is made
merely as a safeguard to the purchaser against
any future trouble. If the purchaser does not
see it in that fashion and states that "so and so"
does not charge for the work, tell him that
he need not expect help from that party should
anything go wrong.
By doing this you assure yourself of two
things. The customer will have faith in you
and is assured that any trouble that does come
up will be attended to. The important thing
is that your service time is paid for before the
machine is delivered and you are not losing any
money in the transaction. It might be of inter-
est to state that every large company retailing
radio receivers to-day charges for the installa-
tion and service that it renders and only guar-
antees the receiver where it makes the installa-
tion itself.
Little Resistance
It is surprising how little resistance you meet
in selling the carrying and installation charge
if the customer is handled in the correct manner.
If you establish your department in that fashion
you will find out that you will have little trouble
from that source. Not every customer needs
or calls for service, of course. Some expect it
anyway, so it is about an even break when
looked at from the point of ultimate profit.
One point that the average dealer is lacking
in is the proper explanation of the receivers to
the customer. Do not let the party go out of
your store with the idea that the particular re-
ceiver that he has just purchased is absolutely
perfect. Explain that a radio set is finicky at
times and will for no reason at all develop queer
noises that it is impossible to eliminate. In the
Summertime they may expect static, which pre-
sents itself in crackling or grumbling noises.
Most all year around they may expect the little
squeaks of regenerative sets in the neighbor-
hood. If the customer objects to these noises,
explain that they are not constant and it is only
in the very early evening when the young people
are operating the sets that they are noticed.
When the older people operate the sets they
are content for the most part to listen to one
program all evening. This cuts down the howls
and squeals.
Selling Features
As much as possible, sell the party the outside
features of the sets. Sell the ease of operation,
the nice work, the few controls, the name of the
manufacturer in back of the goods. Never open
the cabinet to show the inside unless forced to
by the insistent demand of the buyer. For the
most part the prospect is interested in the work-
ing of the set. There are no wheels turning
inside of it to create interest. Showing off your
knowledge of radio by opening the cabinet,
removing the tubes and working the condensers
K
» ML
and controls while the cover is up does not help
your selling the goods. It only leads the man
or woman to try the same thing at home, when
some supposed trouble comes up. Furthermore,
never attempt to fix a receiver in front of a
prospective customer. Should something go
wrong with a receiver when demonstrating, look
at your batteries and antenna and if you are
fairly sure that it is the set substitute another
one for the demonstration and fix the damaged
one after the customer has left the store. If
there is any explanation necessary, tell the party
that due to improper operation the receiver has
been put out of adjustment. This will empha-
size the necessity for the proper operation of
the set.
Installations
When installing the set do not merely put
up the antenna, attach the batteries and see that
the tube lights. Spend an hour with the party
who will operate the receiver the most and ex-
plain just how the set should be worked. This
gives you a good chance to survey the possi-
bilities of the receiver and to give a little talk to
the person on some of the minor difficulties
likely to be experienced.
Show your customer where the batteries are
and how to connect them properly. Lay stress
on the difference between the B batteries and
the A batteries and tell the effect of connecting
them in the wrong place. Make it understood
that the tubes will be blown out by connecting
them in the wrong manner. Mark the leads with
tags wherever necessary.
If the customer has purchased a charger ex-
plain that the set must never be operated when
the charger is in use, and for safety's sake tell
him to disconnect the battery from the set
altogether when this is being done. Instruct
him that the storage batte-ry needs distilled
water and show him how to test its condition
with a hydrometer.
Receiver Instruction
The most important thing is instructing him
how to handle the receiver. This makes it
necessary for the dealer to understand the opera-
tion of the set himself. For that reason he
should first have found out the details of how
the set is operated. Nothing is done in a hit or
miss manner in tuning a set, for each dial iias
something to do with the correct operation.
Otherwise the manufacturer would not have
placed it on the machine.
When you have shown the parties how the
set is operated, make them sit down at the re-
ceiver and operate it themselves, correcting
them when necessary. Do not be afraid to
spend a little time with them, as a customer who
understands the capabilities of his machine when
it is installed will not bother you with tales and
troubles later on. Make it plainly understood
that they should not expect too much from their
receiver at once, as there is a certain knack
in working it that only comes from familiarity
with the particular one they have.
No receiver under the sun will give the same
results in the Summer as in the Winter. A
receiver will be inclined to be a little noisy in
the Summertime. This is because the air con-
tains a greater amount of static electricity, and
the effect is to make the reception of the weaker
programs a little unpleasant at times. But this,
of course, is beyond human control and will
have to be put up with for the time.
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