I don’t usually use this as a platform from which to vent, but a conversation in my Financial Freedom group got me a little fired up.

The conversation was about cell phone bills. A woman posted a question about what everyone pays and for what service. As the comments rolled in, it became apparent that there are a few variable factors: 

Where you live, what services are most important to you, and timing of purchase.

Later in the day, I was listening to the radio and heard an advertisement for {Insert Name of Large Cell Service Provider HERE} and the great deal they had for their services. It’s the carrier I currently use and I was interested in switching my plan to this plan and saving $50 a month.

So I called … And was told: “Applies to New Customers ONLY.”

Oh – Kay…. Then I remembered, I’ve been told that before. By the phone company (when I had a landline through a phone company), by the cable company (when I had cable TV) by this and that and the other…

Now, I’m not completely ignorant. I know that there are loss leaders in any product/service industry. You see it most blatantly in the box stores on the end caps – new products at ridicuously low prices. They draw you in and ‘hook’ you. You spend more money in the long run.

But what about brand loyalty? What about the people who love your service and brag about you? What about people who bring other customers to you? Very few companies offer referral programs anymore, that I’ve seen anyway.

And what about customers who were with you while you grew? Last year I switched from {Big Name Cell Company} to {Big Name Cell Company}because of better coverage area. I did get one of those New Customers ONLY deals, too…. but I had been with the first company for nearly ten years. They weren’t about to meet the pricing offered by the new company. Yet, their ads now? It is one of their standard plans.

Have you experienced this? Did you find an alternative? Better yet, were you able to convince {Big Name Corporation} to give you said deal even though you weren’t a NEW customer?

Come February when my {Big Name Cell} contract expires, I’ll be moving onto greener pastures. Maybe you’ll want to come with me. If you’re interested, post a comment and let me know how I can reach you.

Until then …