DISCLAIMER I am in no way trying to get anyone to buy any products nor am I trying to help AT&T get any more of you're money
Hey r/frugal I wanted to share some tips and tricks on how to deal with AT&T, what you need and what you don't need, things you can and can't save on, stuff of that nature.
About me: I have been with the company for 2 years and I never have a day go by where I don't have a customer billing issue to resolve but I have yet to see it all.
Tip 1. Find a store you like, an employee you like, do your business with them. You can call 611, get someone on the phone who can sell you the Brooklyn Bridge, meaning that they can get you set up with stuff you don't need, devices you don't want, and an experience you will regret, with a bill you will hate. For example just the other day I had an elderly couple who got talked out of canceling their existing UVERSE, signing up for a tablet to use as home WIFI on a plan that didn't allow hotspoting, and a bill that was twice the price... So go in to a store with a face to come back and yell at if you get sold the Brooklyn Bridge.
Tip 2. Retention... I can not begin to describe how well retention will treat you if you treat them well, get them on the phone at least once every 6 months and complain about your pricing. Even better if you can find a store rep who will call on your behalf with you in the store. Everything can be negotiated down at least once, sometimes 5+ offers can be stacked at once. The only things that can't be negotiated down are the top tier TV packages and Unlimited plans. Three examples, one lady who got screwed over came in, I got on the phone, spent an hour, got each retention department on the phone and negotiated her home service bills down so low she was going to save money, and keep all the extra misquoted garbage she got sold saving her $6800 over two years. Second was an elderly gentleman who came in, fixed income, was going to switch to comcast because his savings was running so low he "could only afford to be alive for 6 more years" I was able to negotiate his home service bills down from $180/month to $60 per month(SAVE FOR RETIREMENT!!!). Last you guys will love, I had a lady who came in, was paying $30/month for tv/internet originally, I called tried to get It lower, she had 4 STACKED retention offers from every two months! Learn to use retention, a 20 minute call can save you $100's
Tip 3. Insurance, Its up to you wether its worth the monthly cost to keep your phone protected or not, I personally carry it but I have the iPhoneX 256gb and can't afford to just replace my $1200 phone, though I do not carry it on any of my family members phones. THE INSURANCE IS $8.99/MONTH not $11.99, that $3 add on is a concierge/tech support/50gb backup service that 99% of people don't use! Drop it if you don't use it!
Tip 4. Employment discounts, this is a given, most of you have one, most of you know about them, but if you don't this is for you. Go into an AT&T store with a pay stub/employee badge and see if you can get a discount, active/retired military, AARP/AAA even offer small discounts. You have to bring proof, but it takes less than 10 minutes to apply. THESE DON'T COUNT TOWARDS NEW UNLIMITED PLANS(only active military)
Tip 5. Accessories... Ask for a discount on accessories or buy them on Amazon. Simple as that, I hate it when people compare prices with Amazon right in front of me so maybe don't do that, but definitely don't overpay for a case. Ask to look in the clearance section too.
Tip 6. If you are a baller, can afford to pay outright for the phone you want, don't need to carry insurance, DO PRE-PAID, its WAY cheaper and no taxes/911 fees in most states. You get the same service.
Tip 7. I hate to tell you this but if you live in a big city, get a cheaper company, I tell my customers "AT&T is a luxury service" you pay extra for the 1% increase in signal reliability over t-mobile or MetroPCS, You pay for the faster DATA speeds. If you live in the boonies and all you can get is AT&T see the previous tips.
Tip 8. Don't cheap out and buy a $40 phone unless you're 100% sure you don't care that its a $40 phone. Don't buy a phone from China unless you know what you are doing. Chances are its a turd too. Im not bashing cheap phones, I don't make more money if you buy a $1000 phone, I just hate dealing with people complaining about their "brand new piece of crap" At least buy a low end samsung or LG. In the long run that $150 phone will last 10x longer than that ZTE maven you got for free by signing up. If you're in a tight spot ask the employee if I have any "donor phones" people drop off perfectly good working flip phones/older high end smartphones and most of them just collect dust. We don't recycle them, we wipe the info off and give them to people hard up. Not every store will have "donor phones" but all 7 that I have worked at have a box of them.
Tip 9. Theres a guy named Dave Ramsey, who says "if you're not going into the cell phone store and having them go over your bill with you every 6 months you're overpaying"... this is 100% true, everyone I haven't seen in 6-8 months I can usually save them $10 a month by just analyzing their bill. DO THIS. Data plans get cheaper almost every time they come out, sometimes autopay discounts can save you $20/month. Go ask about your bill.
Tip 10. Tax on a new device, is all you have to pay, if it comes out to $300 something is up unless you opted for a downpayment or they disclosed a credit deposit.
Tip 11. Be nice to us, I work a mandatory 48.5 hour workweek, we get shit on by our management, we know you're pissed off, we know you hate your $400 phone bill, but it's the GOLDEN RULE guys! Im nice to the worst customers, its my job, Ill explain to you what proration means until i'm blue in the face, but i'm even nicer to my nice customers, I know people by name if they come in smiling every time. Ill waive fees I can get in trouble for waiving if you treat me like a person and not the face of a company.
I have a big clogged up department in my brain with useless AT&T info, and Im here to answer all the questions you can throw at me, let me know if you need a straight answer, Im way bigger on saving people money than I am on helping them spend it so let me know.
April 06, 2018 at 12:07AM
