Originally Posted by Jimmy Stang
A quick update on my renewal journey (quoted above). I used the live chat feature to try and negotiate a new value plan for the past month. Initially I was only able to get them down to $131/month for the same level of service that I was currently getting, minus call waiting. Not entirely pleased, I tried a few more attempts but was never able to get much movement. I got a separate email saying that one of my old purchased Pace cable boxes was being depreciated, so they offered to throw in 3 free rental boxes with the Blue Curve hub central PVR thing. Not bad considering one of my boxes was being depreciated, one was ancient and didn't record anymore, and one was still working well. But considering how often I watch cable TV (Flames games, mostly), new boxes was neither here nor there.
To be fair, I would have accepted $131 and grumbled about it a bit, which isn't actually terrible if my last negotiation didn't get me $100/month, which was surprisingly good.
Tried again yesterday - no blinking from Shaw.
Tried again today - the last day of my value plan, and coincidentally Black Friday, and he instantly offered me $120 for everything that I already had or was promised, but also threw in "Total TV" instead of "Small TV". So yes I am paying more, and while I am just getting a bunch of channels that I may not ever watch, at least I am getting more. And even with "Small TV" I would've taken it because I haven't seen any better offers from Shaw or Telus posted anywhere, and getting the equivalent products somewhere else would've cost more anyway. Two years ago, Telus had an comparable deal for $100 that I was ready to whip out, but never had to. So I think that it really depends on who you get, and what the "market" is like.
I asked the agent to tell me honestly why he was able to do something today that previous agents, including the one yesterday, couldn't. He said that the offers were there, but he just had to do a bit of digging and had the experience to apply them. He didn't think that it had anything to do with Black Friday or it being the last day of my existing plan.
So my advice: Start chatting a few weeks prior. Check in often to see if any new deals were available, and express light regret and "I'll have to think about it and get back to you". Be polite and build a rapport. Don't be afraid to let your plan get near the end or even expire, because even if you're on a higher month-to-month rate for a few days, it all gets prorated anyway.
So I wouldn't say that I "won", but I don't feel I was the victim of a screwjob either, so... I'll take it.
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