It doesn’t take magic fairy dust to get customer service reps to give you a “good deal.” A lot of times all you have to do is practice the lost art of being nice!
STOP overpaying for monthly services. STOP overpaying at the store. LOWER YOUR BILLS with a simple phone call. GET SALE PRICES even when items are not on sale.
Most people overpay for just about everything these days – but usually lower bills and discounted prices are just a matter of employing a few simple, old fashioned tips!
Sound too good to be true? It’s not… A lot of times all you have to do is ask!
Proven Tips to Help Save You Money…
While some CSR’s (Customer Service Reps) are trained to try and dissuade you from your dream of reduced expenses, others wouldn’t mind giving you a break at all… as long as you treated them right! Here are a few tried and true pointers that I use every nearly every day. Enjoy!
- You HAVE to ask – If you do not ask for a discount… no one is going to give it to you. Quit waiting for money to fall from the sky and go make something happen! This tip is the one that saves me the most money. I use it everywhere I go. Later on in the article I’ll share one of my bigger wins from using this priceless advice.
- ALWAYS maintain an excellent spirit when dealing with the CSR – The old adage, “You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar” is quite true. Simply consider how you would want to be addressed then give the CSR the same respect and courtesy. After all… they probably catch flack all day so if talking to you is a pleasure for them, they are likely to do whatever they can for you.
- Maintain separation between the CSR and the company itself – This is an awesome tactic that is CRUCIAL to your success in lowering costs. Basically you want to create a distinction between the CSR and the company they work for. This allows you to voice your displeasure with the company, while not attributing any of the displeasure to the person you’re talking to. For example instead of saying, “You are charging me too much for Internet”, say something like… “I am just really unhappy with how much Comcast is charging me for service, especially with all the other options out there.”
- Get the CSR to empathize with your situation – Now that you have created that separation between them and the company… you can easily place them in your situation. Say something like, “What would you do if you were me?” Or simply, “How would you feel if you were in my shoes?” Or, “you know what I mean right… you’re trying to make a living just like me right?”
- Use the company’s competitor’s prices and services against them – If you use Comcast for Internet, talk about the low prices AT&T is offering on residential DSL service with similar speeds. Say to them, “I will stay with Comcast if they can match AT&T‘s prices, otherwise I‘m going to have cancel and go with AT&T. I mean, what would you do if you were in my shoes?“
- Be willing to discontinue the service – Ultimately if you are not truly willing to leave your current provider, you will be less authoritative and they will be less likely to oblige you. Make sure before making this decision you discuss it with your wife and/or family. Be sure to explain the alternatives, and also key on possible benefits of canceling the service altogether.
- Be confident and persistent – Just as you are much more likely to listen to someone who delivers a confident and meaningful argument, so the CSR will be too. Before you call, make a plan of action. Write down the reasons why you need the price reduced along with price quotes from several other providers. If you are prepared and resolved, the CSR will have a hard time denying your request…it worked for me!!
Employing these tips has saved me thousands of dollars over the course of the last few years!
Don’t Limit These Stratagem to Phone Calls…
One of my “biggest wins” experienced from these strategies happened earlier this year when I was installing my back yard paver patio.
- We went to our local home improvement store (Menards) to purchase our supplies
- We sized out our patio using their friendly computer system (I got the CSR to help me so I could “buddy up” with him)
- We picked out all the patio stones and peripherals we needed for installation
- We went to the desk to have the CSR price out our goods
- After he gave me the price I said, “Hey man… since I’m spending so much here (it was around $1,800) do you think I could get some sort of discount?” Almost without hesitation he replied, “Sure. Let me go ask my supervisor what we can do for you.” He came back and offered to give me the last sale price on every item I was purchasing. When it was all said and done we saved over $300 just like that!
What are you waiting for?
Go try this out and let us know what happened in the comments below.
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DFA is passionately dedicated to helping people break the bondage of debt and work toward financial freedom using biblical principles.