Money Challenge of the Week, Tackling the Cable Bill

I'm not ashamed to say that I enjoy money.  I enjoy earning it, saving it, spending it, talking about it, planning for it, researching what I can do with it and, well, you get the idea.

One of the things I like to do is set up little goals or money challenges for myself to see what I can accomplish.  For example, at one point, I set the goal of finding cheap or free lunches while still eating out on my lunch hour.  After digging around, it was amazing the amount of coupons or incredible specials I could find.

I think we all need to set up some money challenges for ourselves every now and again to make sure we're doing right by the money we all work so hard to obtain. 

I'll be setting my first stake in the ground and say that over the next week, I'll be calling Comcast and asking them to lower my bill.  From reading around on various websites, like the Consumerist, many people have just called up Comcast, said they were unhappy with their rate and gotten one of their new subscriber promotions, saving $50-100 off of their monthly bill for 6 months to a year.  

I actually was successful at this a couple of years ago but my rate has since expired. It doesn't always work out, especially on a subsequent try. However, annoying people, umm, I mean diligence is a virtue of mine and I really like keeping my money, so this is definitely something I'll enjoy attempting.

One thing I should mention is that you need to be fully prepared for this. Research whatever the current new subscriber rates are for your cable provider and another local cable provider and then ask if you can get them.  

Typically, you'll need to speak with the company's Retention Department to get your rates adjusted.  Tell them some of the deals you're seeing from a local competitor or from one of their own advertisements and ask what they can do to retain you as a customer since you're unhappy with your current rate.  If you have a money tale of woe as to why this discount is important to you right now, feel free to interject that into the conversation, as well.  

If you do get a customer service representative willing to adjust your rate, make sure you get the full details on their offer before accepting.

• Are your terms changing?  If you are in a contract with your cable provider, you certainly don't want them trying to charge you an Early Termination Fee (ETF).  
• Will you be in a contract?  Is this extending your current contract, if you have one?
• How long will you have the discount?  Verify how much the discount is to ensure that they actually are offering you a deal.
• What will your bill be after the discount expires?  This is important because you may have a package that is no longer offered and by accepting new terms, you may be forced into a current package with a different rate.

Also keep in mind that if you don't succeed on your first try, it doesn't mean you can't try again the next day.  Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you'll end up with the customer service rep who is simply having a bad day or thinks their weekly challenge is to say "no" to as many customers as possible.  Don't let those people stand in your way.  They're not going to cancel your account if you call again asking for a discount later.

So, who wants to take this challenge on with me?  If you do, comment on how you did.  Even if you don't succeed, just consider this practice for the next time!