dolcecorazon
04-14-2009, 12:26 PM
Verizon Wireless
A former Verizon sales rep, let's call him Steve, wrote to us recently offering insider advice to all Consumerist readers. We were excited because by knowing how the sales force at Verizon are compensated, consumers can get an edge when haggling over a new phone. What? Haggling!? Over a phone!? Yes, even you can do it. Verizon Steve confesses all he knows, from the simple to the sublime...:
• Never get a 2-year contract. "The only benefit to a 2 yr contract is a $50 savings on your phone. Its not worth it. Take the $50 and get a 1 year then you can upgrade to a new phone every 10 months."
• Verizon reps get tons of money from new lines and certain accessories and text packages, take advantage of this. They won't let a new customer walk out the door. "Play hardball, they will do anything to get the new lines. VZW makes $ off the service, not the phones. Tell them you don't want to mail in the rebate. There does come a point of diminishing returns. For example, if you walked in and wanted a $39 plan and a free Treo 700, not gonna happen. But I have given away almost every non-PDA phone in the store for the right deal. Also tell them you will buy the accessories, and text package. Trust me here, these are 2 of the biggest metrics for the reps. Return the accessories the next day and call customer care to cancel your text package."
• Mention the lost or stolen program to get 25% off a new phone, even if you're under contract. Who's to say you didn't lose it?
• If you're on a rate plan of $59.99 or higher, you can get "a new
phone (and new contract) for the discounted price after 12 months." That one helps me lol You too Skylab!
• Insurance is a rip-off. It costs too much and has a $50 deductible.
• Tell them you'll sign up for the Unlimited Data Plan with your Treo. "Speaking of Treos, often they offer an extra $100 off if you get the Unlimited data plan. Get it.. Save $100 and cancel it the next day if you don't want it. The leverage here is amazing also because that high end data package counts as a new activation in a roundabout way for the rep. None of the data packages are contractual. I use to tell the customers this just to save them $."
• Reps don't get as much money if you're still in a contract. If you upgrade on the phone with Verizon, the store reps won't be as motivated to help you.
• Ask for a loyalty credit on the phone before going to the store. "One way to work the system if you have New Every 2 and are out of contract is to call customer care, have them put you back into contract, but ask for a loyalty credit (up to $60 off your next months bill), then go into the retail store and use your New Every 2. The two credits can't be combined and that is the only way to get both. I've never seen this not work, although they could technically say that you already got a credit, but the system are not that informative and I have never seen that happen. Just make sure you know the contract rules for VZW in your state, and make sure you go to the store in time to cancel the new contract in case you cant use the NE2."
T-Mobile
T-Mobile doesn't want to be left out of the fun! One of their sales reps has generously and selflessly written down his innermost thoughts and sent them to the Consumerist for your personal edification. Bask in the glory of Confessions of a T-Mobile Sales Rep...
• T-Mobile price matches. "T-Mobile has a policy that they do not advertise that is called a price match guarantee. This states that they can honor any price that has been printed (advertisement), as long as the terms and conditions are the same as T-Mobile's. It also states that you can get an account credit if the price of the phone goes down within 30 days. "
• T-Mobile lets reps give away accessories. "Most reps have the ability to give away accessories for free without checking with their managers. If we give any bit of discount, we don't get paid out on the accessory so you might as well ask for it for free. Things like waived activation or discounts on phones can be done, but usually through the manager or senior sales reps permission."
• Use features to get free stuff, avoid insurance. "As other reps have stated, features are a big portion for reps. Any data feature nets the rep some extra cash. Use that to your advantage and ask them to throw in some accessories if you buy unlimited messaging or t-zones. The only thing that does not earn us money is insurance, so stay away from that one."
• Shop at the end of the month. T-mobile has a quota system for reps. They'll be more generous at the end of the month. "Go in to purchase service during the last 5 days of the month. This is the time that is most crucial for store reps and their managers. They need to make sure to get quota, and everyone is more lenient during the end of the month." If it's not the end of the month, you can still try to take advantage: "If you have already been approved for service and you are not offered the deal that you want, give the rep your phone number and tell them to call you when they can give you a good deal. I had a customer do this and get what they want on the last day of the month because we were 2 activations short of goal."
• Never get a 2 year contract. "As the VZW rep said, only sign a one year contract. Yeah you have to pay 50 bucks more, but you can upgrade again in 11 months. "
• Your rate plan doesn't mean anything at T-Mobile. "At T-mobile, we don't get paid very much on how high the rate plan is, so don't push that you are going to spend a lot on the plan. We care about the accessories and the features. "
• Get your rebate at the store and on-line. "As the cingy guy said, if you ask and get an in-store instant rebate, you can still find the mail in rebate at www.tmobilerebates.com. (http://www.tmobilerebates.com./) The rebate center will still honor it."
• Get free stuff by calling within 14 days and threatening to switch to another carrier. "If you want to squeeze a bit more out of the deal and you are within 14 days of new service, call the store and ask to speak to the rep that helped you. Remind him/her who you are, and ask what you need to do to cancel. This will set off alarms in the reps head since you are their customer, and they will get a chargeback if you cancel. When they ask why you want to know how to cancel, let them know that you have been offered a deal for a similar type phone for the same price from a DIFFERENT carrier, but with a couple free accessories and waived activation. Most likely the rep will try to offer you a free accessory to stay with us, being as how they worked hard at getting you to sign that initial contract and don't want to lose the sale. You have to tell the rep it is a different carrier because if you say its another Tmobile store, the rep will not lose the credit if you cancel and sign back up with a different store. "
• Replace a broken T-mobile phone with a prepaid one."Go to Walmart and buy a T-Mobile prepaid phone. Your contract sim card will work in the phone no problem, and there is NO difference (software or hardware wise) between a prepaid phone and one that is upgraded with contract. Then put the prepaid activation code and sim card up on ebay, and make $10. (from what I hear, this is the same with Cingular and Verizon)"
• Upgrade over the phone, not in a store. At T-Mobile, reps don't get paid much for upgrades and don't care if you get a deal on a phone. Upgrade over the phone to get the best deal.
"If you are out of contract, you have a bargaining chip with customer care over the phone. Ask for a cheaper price on a phone, or a "preferred" rate plan that's cheaper but gives you the same amount of minutes. If you have been a good customer and made payments on time, you have a good chance of getting a discount. T-Mobile corporate store reps cannot discount the upgrade price at all in store. We don't make very much money off an upgrade, and many will spend less time with you if its busy. Go in during a off-peak time if you want an honest opinion or to chat about the phones. There is nothing worse for us than to get an hour-long upgrade on a Saturday and watch as our coworkers are getting new lines and getting paid."
• Unlock your phone. Immediately call into customer care and ask to have your phone unlocked. Unlocking your phone allows your phone to be used with any GSM carrier (Cingular is the only other national US carrier). T-mobile will unlock your phone for free at anytime during or after you contract. Once you unlock your phone, you can now use a cingular sim card or any sim card in the world. Whether or not you plan on traveling, you have still increased the resell value of your phone by quite a bit.
A former Verizon sales rep, let's call him Steve, wrote to us recently offering insider advice to all Consumerist readers. We were excited because by knowing how the sales force at Verizon are compensated, consumers can get an edge when haggling over a new phone. What? Haggling!? Over a phone!? Yes, even you can do it. Verizon Steve confesses all he knows, from the simple to the sublime...:
• Never get a 2-year contract. "The only benefit to a 2 yr contract is a $50 savings on your phone. Its not worth it. Take the $50 and get a 1 year then you can upgrade to a new phone every 10 months."
• Verizon reps get tons of money from new lines and certain accessories and text packages, take advantage of this. They won't let a new customer walk out the door. "Play hardball, they will do anything to get the new lines. VZW makes $ off the service, not the phones. Tell them you don't want to mail in the rebate. There does come a point of diminishing returns. For example, if you walked in and wanted a $39 plan and a free Treo 700, not gonna happen. But I have given away almost every non-PDA phone in the store for the right deal. Also tell them you will buy the accessories, and text package. Trust me here, these are 2 of the biggest metrics for the reps. Return the accessories the next day and call customer care to cancel your text package."
• Mention the lost or stolen program to get 25% off a new phone, even if you're under contract. Who's to say you didn't lose it?
• If you're on a rate plan of $59.99 or higher, you can get "a new
phone (and new contract) for the discounted price after 12 months." That one helps me lol You too Skylab!
• Insurance is a rip-off. It costs too much and has a $50 deductible.
• Tell them you'll sign up for the Unlimited Data Plan with your Treo. "Speaking of Treos, often they offer an extra $100 off if you get the Unlimited data plan. Get it.. Save $100 and cancel it the next day if you don't want it. The leverage here is amazing also because that high end data package counts as a new activation in a roundabout way for the rep. None of the data packages are contractual. I use to tell the customers this just to save them $."
• Reps don't get as much money if you're still in a contract. If you upgrade on the phone with Verizon, the store reps won't be as motivated to help you.
• Ask for a loyalty credit on the phone before going to the store. "One way to work the system if you have New Every 2 and are out of contract is to call customer care, have them put you back into contract, but ask for a loyalty credit (up to $60 off your next months bill), then go into the retail store and use your New Every 2. The two credits can't be combined and that is the only way to get both. I've never seen this not work, although they could technically say that you already got a credit, but the system are not that informative and I have never seen that happen. Just make sure you know the contract rules for VZW in your state, and make sure you go to the store in time to cancel the new contract in case you cant use the NE2."
T-Mobile
T-Mobile doesn't want to be left out of the fun! One of their sales reps has generously and selflessly written down his innermost thoughts and sent them to the Consumerist for your personal edification. Bask in the glory of Confessions of a T-Mobile Sales Rep...
• T-Mobile price matches. "T-Mobile has a policy that they do not advertise that is called a price match guarantee. This states that they can honor any price that has been printed (advertisement), as long as the terms and conditions are the same as T-Mobile's. It also states that you can get an account credit if the price of the phone goes down within 30 days. "
• T-Mobile lets reps give away accessories. "Most reps have the ability to give away accessories for free without checking with their managers. If we give any bit of discount, we don't get paid out on the accessory so you might as well ask for it for free. Things like waived activation or discounts on phones can be done, but usually through the manager or senior sales reps permission."
• Use features to get free stuff, avoid insurance. "As other reps have stated, features are a big portion for reps. Any data feature nets the rep some extra cash. Use that to your advantage and ask them to throw in some accessories if you buy unlimited messaging or t-zones. The only thing that does not earn us money is insurance, so stay away from that one."
• Shop at the end of the month. T-mobile has a quota system for reps. They'll be more generous at the end of the month. "Go in to purchase service during the last 5 days of the month. This is the time that is most crucial for store reps and their managers. They need to make sure to get quota, and everyone is more lenient during the end of the month." If it's not the end of the month, you can still try to take advantage: "If you have already been approved for service and you are not offered the deal that you want, give the rep your phone number and tell them to call you when they can give you a good deal. I had a customer do this and get what they want on the last day of the month because we were 2 activations short of goal."
• Never get a 2 year contract. "As the VZW rep said, only sign a one year contract. Yeah you have to pay 50 bucks more, but you can upgrade again in 11 months. "
• Your rate plan doesn't mean anything at T-Mobile. "At T-mobile, we don't get paid very much on how high the rate plan is, so don't push that you are going to spend a lot on the plan. We care about the accessories and the features. "
• Get your rebate at the store and on-line. "As the cingy guy said, if you ask and get an in-store instant rebate, you can still find the mail in rebate at www.tmobilerebates.com. (http://www.tmobilerebates.com./) The rebate center will still honor it."
• Get free stuff by calling within 14 days and threatening to switch to another carrier. "If you want to squeeze a bit more out of the deal and you are within 14 days of new service, call the store and ask to speak to the rep that helped you. Remind him/her who you are, and ask what you need to do to cancel. This will set off alarms in the reps head since you are their customer, and they will get a chargeback if you cancel. When they ask why you want to know how to cancel, let them know that you have been offered a deal for a similar type phone for the same price from a DIFFERENT carrier, but with a couple free accessories and waived activation. Most likely the rep will try to offer you a free accessory to stay with us, being as how they worked hard at getting you to sign that initial contract and don't want to lose the sale. You have to tell the rep it is a different carrier because if you say its another Tmobile store, the rep will not lose the credit if you cancel and sign back up with a different store. "
• Replace a broken T-mobile phone with a prepaid one."Go to Walmart and buy a T-Mobile prepaid phone. Your contract sim card will work in the phone no problem, and there is NO difference (software or hardware wise) between a prepaid phone and one that is upgraded with contract. Then put the prepaid activation code and sim card up on ebay, and make $10. (from what I hear, this is the same with Cingular and Verizon)"
• Upgrade over the phone, not in a store. At T-Mobile, reps don't get paid much for upgrades and don't care if you get a deal on a phone. Upgrade over the phone to get the best deal.
"If you are out of contract, you have a bargaining chip with customer care over the phone. Ask for a cheaper price on a phone, or a "preferred" rate plan that's cheaper but gives you the same amount of minutes. If you have been a good customer and made payments on time, you have a good chance of getting a discount. T-Mobile corporate store reps cannot discount the upgrade price at all in store. We don't make very much money off an upgrade, and many will spend less time with you if its busy. Go in during a off-peak time if you want an honest opinion or to chat about the phones. There is nothing worse for us than to get an hour-long upgrade on a Saturday and watch as our coworkers are getting new lines and getting paid."
• Unlock your phone. Immediately call into customer care and ask to have your phone unlocked. Unlocking your phone allows your phone to be used with any GSM carrier (Cingular is the only other national US carrier). T-mobile will unlock your phone for free at anytime during or after you contract. Once you unlock your phone, you can now use a cingular sim card or any sim card in the world. Whether or not you plan on traveling, you have still increased the resell value of your phone by quite a bit.