Haggle To Lower Your Direct TV Satellite Bill

In response to my post on watching free online TV content, I got an e-mail pointing out that if you love to watch live sports, it’s still hard to beat a Direct TV subscription. Instead, they lowered their bill significantly with a phone call and some haggling. The overall process is basically the same as haggling with your cable internet provider.

Call customer service and tell them you are thinking about canceling your service. Your goal is to reach the Retentions Department. As you can tell from the name, the primary goal of this group is to keep you as a customer (for as cheaply as possible). This means they have the most discretion when it comes to service discounts.

Prepare your pitch. The “open-ended approach” consists of basically saying “I’m thinking of canceling my service because it costs too much. Are there any discounts available to me?” You leave it up to them, and see what they throw at you. A script suggestion:

DirecTV Retentions: How can I help you today?

You: Hi, I’ve been a DirecTV customer for a while now, but I am trying to lower my expenses these days and I don’t really need all these channels. Am I eligible for any service discounts to lower my bill?

If you don’t get something satisfactory, either haggle upwards (instead of $10 off for 6 months, ask for 12 months) or try going in with a goal and a good idea of what the competition is offering. Look up the current DirecTV promotional offers for new customers in your area, as well as competing offers from Dish Network or local major cable provider (Comcast, Charter, etc.). Depending on your viewing preferences, you may ask specifically for a combination of the following:

• Lower monthly fee (i.e. $15 credit each month for 12 months)
• Free installation / free additional receivers
• Free or discounted upgrades to HD DVR rental
• Free premium movie/sports/HD channels

DirecTV Retentions: How can I help you today?

You: Hi, I’ve been a DirecTV customer for a while now, but I am trying to lower my expenses and seeing what bills I can reduce or cancel. I’ve been seeing commercials for [competitor's name] offering service for [$XXX]. Is there any way you can offer that to me as well if I stay?

Remember, you lose nothing by asking. Even the most shy person can simply ask nicely until you hear “no”, there’s no requirement for verbal ninja skills. Share the discounts that you scored in the comments!

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