(no subject)

[arethinn]

Does anyone have an idea how we might manage to get rid of a piano we no longer want without having to pay for its removal and disposal? We have an antique (ca. turn of the 20th century) upright piano and haven't been having luck selling the thing on Craigslist or with signs posted by the music department, possibly because it's not in the greatest condition. We had never put a high price tag on it, but honestly at this point we'd be willing to give it away for free if only someone would come and take it away. (I suppose I haven't tried Freecycle, but argh, to me that's a pain to deal with and basically last resort.) I wonder if I just haven't found the right audience for this kind of thing (it might be a nice project if one were into restoring old pianos, for instance). Any tips?

Comments

[feedle.livejournal.com]

Have you called all the local music dealers?

I put the word out I was trying to sell a Yamaha spinet, and while none of the piano dealers in Portland were interested in it eventually the word got around. Put up a Craigslist post and give the URL to any music store or piano dealer you can find. They might not be interested, but they might know someone who is.

[arethinn]

I doubt they would want it, given its age and condition. And I feel funny saying "hey, could you guys advertise this for me for free? Yeah thanks!"

I should check in person and see if any of them have a place to pin up a flyer though.

[feedle.livejournal.com]

You aren't asking them to advertise it. I think you're missing the point of what you're going after.

A lot of piano dealers and music merchants don't necessarily deal in old pianos, but KNOW PEOPLE WHO DO. Asking them "hey, if you know of anybody who deals in old pianos that might be interested, could you pass my contact info along" is different than "let me take your business away from you."

In my case, that's what happened: a local piano dealer eventually got me in touch with a private local foundation that buys pianos for distribution to non-profits and schools.

EDIT: also check with piano tuners and repairmen. They might even be interested in it for parts.

[arethinn]

A lot of piano dealers and music merchants don't necessarily deal in old pianos, but KNOW PEOPLE WHO DO. Asking them "hey, if you know of anybody who deals in old pianos that might be interested, could you pass my contact info along" is different than "let me take your business away from you."

Sure sounds to me like advertising - I'm asking them to do legwork. I mean, I can go there and ask, and if they know someone off the top of their heads, great; but asking them to make the contact (rather than the onus being on me) sounds very strange.

eta: I wonder if the misunderstanding is that you are picturing them knowing a single personal friend or acquaintance, and I was picturing me asking them to be responsible to somehow recognize random such people coming into the shop and saying "hey, have this URL".

[feedle.livejournal.com]

That is exactly the misunderstanding. It's called "networking", and it's how the business world works.

Piano dealers, especially, work in pretty closed tight-knit circles. They might be randomly be talking to a piano mechanic friend who happens to mention he knows somebody who's looking for an old piano to "fix-up", and the dealer might be able to say "as a matter of fact, there was this [guy|girl] in my shop just the other day..."

There's never a harm in handing somebody a business card and saying "well, if you run across anyone who might be interested."