A few months back, I had posted on how I save money on my Comcast bill to the tune of $250/year by pitting a competing service against theirs and threatening to leave. I laid out the steps of how to approach the situation from what to say to who to talk to - and for that brief period of time required, I was pleased with the return on investment of $250/year for life...until I got a bill today for close to $100 more than my usual month bill. I called to inquire and was told that the change to my bill which I had been benefiting from was because it was actually just a 6 month promotion. I utilized some of the same tactics I as last time, in getting to the right person, treating them in a calm, professional manner and laying out my case in a rational, objective manner.
Fortunately, my patience and approach paid off and they agreed to discount my Comcast bill again. The rep said that she could only do it for 6 months at a time like last time, so every 6 months, I'll have to spend 10 minutes or so (the wait actually wasn't that bad this time) and revisit the same scenario with the rep again. The price she quoted me for this month's bill was actually LOWER than I had been paying! Presumably, there are different promotions they can pick from each time and she hooked me up this month with a better one than I had previously.
For anyone out there that isn't stuck with a pure monopoly phone, cable or internet service, I highly recommend pitting your existing company against the competition in order to enjoy substantial savings annually. It might be satellite vs. cable, cell service vs. landline -
What are your success stories in this regard?
Fortunately, my patience and approach paid off and they agreed to discount my Comcast bill again. The rep said that she could only do it for 6 months at a time like last time, so every 6 months, I'll have to spend 10 minutes or so (the wait actually wasn't that bad this time) and revisit the same scenario with the rep again. The price she quoted me for this month's bill was actually LOWER than I had been paying! Presumably, there are different promotions they can pick from each time and she hooked me up this month with a better one than I had previously.
For anyone out there that isn't stuck with a pure monopoly phone, cable or internet service, I highly recommend pitting your existing company against the competition in order to enjoy substantial savings annually. It might be satellite vs. cable, cell service vs. landline -
you can employ the same approach no matter what and given the high acquisition cost of a customer and low variable costs, most of the time, these companies will relent and grant you a discount rather than letting you walk.
What are your success stories in this regard?
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2 COMMENTS HERE
Good catch. I think cable companies are trying to retain as many customers as possible.
Saw an analyst report this week saying DIRECTV was the only TV provider that increased subscribers in 2008. Guess they're winning the war.
I used a similar approach to lower the bill for the DISH Network. Like you, I'll have to call them back when the promotional rate expires, but for now it's worth it.
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