In an earlier post this week, I wrote about a step by step guide on how to negotiate with the contract yielding wireless providers. Today I’ll reveal the actual flow of the conversation I had when I called in for my sister.
Here’s the Scoop on my Conversation with Rogers recently:
My sister was paying about $31 a month including tax (from a previously negotiated contract by yours truly two years ago) for:
- 10 voicemail
- 200 day time minutes
- Rogers to Rogers
- Unlimited evening and weekends starting from 6pm
Being the young-un that she is, many of her friends text. As you know, texting can add up! She wanted text messaging included in herr next plan. She was paying an extra $3-5 more a month just for text messages sent and received (texting on the very very low end hence restricting herself from unleashing the texting beast). She had one more week left on her contract.
So I called in to the Retentions Department for her, spoke to Tristan (names have been changed) from the Retentions Department who said that if she added $5, then she can have 250 texts, AND she would have to recommit for another 2 years. (In my head, I was thinking WTF- what kind of deal is that? Pay more??) I firmly but nicely said that she didn’t want to pay any more, and that I am with Telus and I get all the above for LESS per month including 100 long distance minutes per month, web browsing, and 200 incoming and outgoing texts (which is true, by the way).
So then he told me to wait, and then came back after speaking to a supervisor, and said that they can offer her a cheaper package for $3 extra for 100 outgoing texts and unlimited incoming.
(inside voice: DUDE are deaf? Are you NOT listening to me??) But I kept my cool and I said she didn’t want to pay any more than what they are paying now, again. Nicely.
Then he spoke to his supervisor again (another 5 more minutes of waiting), and came back and said that they can offer a $5 credit for 2500 text messages and keep the price of the plan to $31 a month including taxes. I asked him to repeat the above, to see if it included Rogers to Rogers, and he said yes. He said he would note it on the computer.
Then I checked out my fave sites for seeing what other people are getting when they call Retention (Howard Forum aka “HoFo” and the Canadian bargain hunters galore website Red Flag Deals- both forums are great resources to see what other people are getting, but moreso Howard Forums because it is solely dedicated to wireless carriers and phones vs bargain hunting in general for Red Flag Deals) and saw that Rogers had recently eliminated the System Access Fee ($6.95) and now have a very low low priced Government Regulatory Fee (only $2.50 for British Columbia).
The guy I was speaking do didn’t tell me these specifics, so I called back in and spoke to someone else (and mentioned Tristan’s name) just to double check that my sister wasn’t being charged the SAF. She wasn’t, but that other person quoted exactly what was noted on the contract offering, but didn’t mention Rogers to Rogers. I told her that the guy I spoke with earlier said Rogers to Rogers would be carried over and included and that he would note it.
She said that they can’t add Rogers to Rogers for a plan like that, and said it was not possible.
I asked her to check the notes because the guy specifically told me Rogers to Rogers. She checked. Nothing.
I asked her to speak to the manager because of the same reason, so the manager came on after another 5 minutes and said she couldn’t do anything because it was not noted.
After a bit more dialogue (and back and forth placing me on hold), the manager agreed to add Rogers to Rogers (usually costs another $5) because that was what my sister had in the first place. So in the end, this is what she got:
- 200 day time minutes
- unlimited evening and weekends from 6pm
- call display
- voice mail 10
- 2500 outgoing messages and unlimited incoming
- Rogers to Rogers
All for $27 including tax… but she had to recommit for another 3 years, which she ended up going for.
So the gist of it is to be polite, ask nicely, take the time (I spent 3.5 hours on the phone!) and don’t be afraid to negotiate and ask to speak to the managers if they are trying to low ball you. Play their game. =)
Hope that helps and good luck getting a better deal!
Have you had success with phoning in and negotiating? Please share!
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CONGRATS! That’s great. Wow, I’ve never had to do it, but I’ll keep your story in mind.
.-= Investing Newbie´s last blog ..Money Moves =-.
Thanks Investing Newbie =) It doesn’t sound like very much- $4 a off, but it adds up over a year, every dollar counts, right? =)
We recently negotiated our tv/phone/internet bundle plan. It DID take at least a half hour on the phone with a couple ” I need to check with a supervisor” ploys along the way too:) But it worked! and it was worth it, to the tune of over $360 dollars a year.
PS – I agree, “retention dept” is the way to go.
.-= Stay at Home Mom CFO´s last blog ..Weekly Round-Up – Snowed In (AGAIN!) Edition =-.
@Stay at Home Mom CFO: Awesome!!! $360 a year is a big sum, so congratulations. I love these stories. It’s like David and Goliath-ish, and we’re coming out on top. =)
[...] Negotiating with Rogers Wireless- Head to Head Battle! [...]
Good job! Gives me hope I can negotiate something better with AT&T. My contract is up this month.
.-= David @ MBA briefs´s last blog ..Do mass firings improve performance? =-.
@David Thanks =) I’m sure you’ll be able to negotiate something better with AT&T. The wireless market is getting competitive these days, ya know =) Good luck!! Remember, persistence is key! If you don’t get what you really really want, just call back another time (especially when your contract is due up!)
Asking for the retention department is definitely keep. So isn’t being persistent. People give up to easily and that’s what companies are expecting. When they say no we can’t do that, they want you to accept it but you definitely don’t have to.
.-= Evolution Of Wealth´s last blog ..Pricing Your Disability Insurance =-.
@Evolution of Wealth- yes, so true! They sounded really firm too, saying that absolutely they could not do anything, but they really can. It’s the game they play.
I love these stories! Sticking it to the man.
I managed to call them up, the way I believe it works is there is a three-tier retention plan, and i managed to get to tier 3
I got 20$ off my current plan (dataphone) so its 350 weekly minutes, unlimited texting, e&w and 500 mb of data, plus voice callid yadayada for 46 taxes in. Its worth a shot! Just be patient and persist, get some good hits in with offers from other companies, tell them “what the other rep offered you”
@Ceiling_Fan- Three tiers, eh? I didn’t know that (I wonder if someone reading from Retentions could confirm that?? Hellooo out there!) Wow what you got is a steal. It really depends on the person you get eh? Some of them can be really nice and flexible whereas some of them can be really firm and stubborn.
[...] YoungandThrifty.ca Negotiating with Rogers Wireless- Head to Head Battle Comparison of No Fee Travel Rewards Cards How to Get Cheap [...]
Inspiring post! I hope I can negotiate mine with such efficiency too.
just last Feb. I talked to the Retention dep. .
I got two lines for me and my wife each includes for total 45 $ + tax:
-450 min. daytime
-evening 6 pm & weekend free
-Text message 100 sent and unlimited receiving
- 100 min. Canadian long distance
-enhanced voice email
- caller ID
- Rogers-Rogers free
-500 Mb data for 15 $ (1 line only)
@Reza- Wow that’s great!!
Good job! Any tips on negotiation tactics?
Nice work with the negotiation. However, that is a long time to spend for a $48 yearly savings. I think I would have just found another company and told them to pound sand.
in fact I used the same strategy as explained above for almost 2 hours on the phone: knowing what I need ,persistent, nice and polite. also I mentioned Public mobile as a very good choice. the first offer was 38 $ per line which I refused completely. the final offer was 17.83$ per line plus 15 $ data plan (500 mb) which I took it.
after two months I called back to fix the voice mail issue and talked to Retention Rep so he modified the plan to 15 $ per line. these people have full power and very nice.
also when starting a negotiation don’t forget to mention the other good choices you have in hand to switch your service provider ( example: my sister has bla bla bla whit X company for only ..$ and she can add me to her plan ) or on Facebook I just started a chat whit 200 friends about the best cellphone plan…
have a good chance
Insightful post on effective negotiation. I have a hard time when it comes to negotiation but your tips are very useful! Thanks for sharing your ideas. I really like them.
[...] did some research on RedFlagDeal Forum and checked out Young and Thrifty’s step by step guide to negotiating a better cell phone plan. Both are great resources and I strongly recommend you check them [...]
Ok, people, I work for Rogers Wireless as a Customer Service Rep. Let me tell you negotiating your contract every three years is perfectly fine. However, there are a lot of people nowadays wanting to get a Wind plan on the Rogers network. You have to understand that Rogers does offer a more reliable network ( I know some people have problems with coverage but they are a minority) It is by far bigger than these other companies with unlimited plans. From my and my co-worker’s experience the customer service is far better. Yes I do know that you will find the occasional person who just could not care less but in my specific call center customer service is key. Also, you have to understand that Rogers only hires agents in Canada thus paying more for their agents. Bell and Telus have pretty much the exact same plans as us but they hire agents abroad thus, paying them less. With Rogers you are paying for what you are getting. There are two things that I HATE in customers. Customers who just don’t want to pay for their services. They have overages and call in expecting to have them reversed. This will not happen, Rogers is toughening up with adjustment guidelines. You are all adult cell phone owners, you have to be responsible for what you use. Rogers gives out 10′s of millions of dollars away every month in “discretionary credits” these credits are not valid but as agents we give them away just to have the customer go away. They are not allowing this anymore. Another huge pet peeve is third party charges. It is extremely rare that the charges are actually not your fault, I would say about .01%. I am not exaggerating. People please use your common sense and don’t give out our cell number over the internet. Retention is also toughening up, cx were starting to only want to speak to them as they thought they could get credits every time they called in. You want a cell phone? PAY FOR IT!!! Also know that when you hear silence on the other line, the agent is either cursing at you, laughing at you, or gossiping with their neighbour while you yell at them. Please, please, please…. do not use the term “you people” it will really piss off the agent and most likely make the call worse for you. I hate to say this but it is true that if you are nice to me, you have better chances of getting what you want. I will give a nice customer a $50 goodwill credit just o re-activate their account if they are having money problems. I will flat out refuse a jerky customer a $5 credit for overages.
To wrap it up.
Do not call often
Expect to pay for your services.
Use common sense
Be nice.
@Rogers car- THANK YOU!
Much appreciated and I am loving your perspective on this 
Great advice!
Everyone I know is paying a different price for their cell phone plans, so to gain a frame of reference for the really good deals, I set up a website called Dealboasters (smartphone edition)… Please drop in to share your hard negotiated win fall cell phone plans… It can only help when we all go back to re negotiate our deals!
I am usually a bit shy on negotiating these things but I now feel emboldened to see what sort of deal I can get for myself.
This was a really fun read actually. Quite surprising. It is great that negotiating is still not out of the picture with companies. People often think these companies are “locked” into their prices, but this is simply not the case for many businesses. It was great seeing you not put up for the companies crap, but still maintaining your composure and acting cool and reserved. You simply wanted a better deal, and with some sly negotiating you were able to get it; and for your sister no less! You must be quite the brother to have.
@Ash Wells- Except I’m not a brother! LOL…. I’m a girl
I negotiated a great plan with Rogers when I was off contract. The mistake I made was to accept limited time credits and believing the rep when he said ‘just call back when they are about to expire and tell them to extend the credits’. Now that I’m back on contract they couldn’t give 2 hoots about me. I’ve pretty much decided against going with the major carriers in the future. 3 year contracts are too long when phones and plans are changing so rapidly.
@Shiraz- Oh yeah those are the WORST! Especially if it’s the first 6 months or the first year. They get you really bad.. and then you’re stuck until the end of the contract.
[...] minutes, no doubt) and asked to speak to one of their customer service representatives. Because I practiced negotiating for my cell phone contract last year, I thought I had the upper [...]