Shop Talk
I think I understand why so many people demand a free phone...
To all you reps who bravely face whiney snotty mean ass people who demand this phone free and that phone free, I think I know why.
For years, wireless companies have been giving their low-end phones away for free with a contract. Even today carriers are offering their lowest end phones for free.
Well, I think if the wireless companies would stop doing that, then after a decade or so, people will eventually realize that there is no such thing as a free phone. But maybe I'm wrong. (After all, we ARE talking about wireless customers.)
Instead of giving low end phones away with a contract, make them pay at least 20 or higher.
I paid 40 for my Nokia 2610 and it was well worth it. I got a nice phone, my rep got a small commission.
For years, wireless companies have been giving their low-end phones away for free with a contract. Even today carriers are offering their lowest end phones for free.
Well, I think if the wireless companies would stop doing that, then after a decade or so, people will eventually realize that there is no such thing as a free phone. But maybe I'm wrong. (After all, we ARE talking about wireless customers.)
Instead of giving low end phones away with a contract, make them pay at least 20 or higher.
I paid 40 for my Nokia 2610 and it was well worth it. I got a nice phone, my rep got a small commission.
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cellfiend said:
We charge 25 for the Nokia 2610. It's a POS prepaid. You payed too much.
I don't have prepaid. And I think the Nokia 2610 is a great phone, it is only a POS if you are one of those crybabies who wants bluetooth, a camera, 3G, mp3 player, video recorder, and a hundred other expensive features that just aren't worth paying out the back side for.
The Nokia 2610 is a solid performing device, and I do not like the bells and whistles so this phone is a great fit for my needs.
And I paid 40 at the time because the device had JUST come out so they didn't drop the price until a month later. But I don't care. My rep was very very nice and he did an excellent job so if he got a few extra buck...
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The New ATnT Wireless said:cellfiend said:
We charge 25 for the Nokia 2610. It's a POS prepaid. You payed too much.
I don't have prepaid. And I think the Nokia 2610 is a great phone
Good for you buddy, it's sold as a prepaid phone in any major retail outlet from target to walmart.
The Nokia 2610 is a solid performing device, and I do not like the bells and whistles so this phone is a great fit for my needs.
It's slow and clunky and retails for 30 dollars because it's made out of **** components.
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And I paid 40 at the time because the device had JUST come out so they didn't drop the price until a month later. But I don'
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cellfiend said:...The New ATnT Wireless said:cellfiend said:
We charge 25 for the Nokia 2610. It's a POS prepaid. You payed too much.
I don't have prepaid. And I think the Nokia 2610 is a great phone
Good for you buddy, it's sold as a prepaid phone in any major retail outlet from target to walmart.
The Nokia 2610 is a solid performing device, and I do not like the bells and whistles so this phone is a great fit for my needs.
It's slow and clunky and retails for 30 dollars because it's made out of **** components.
And I paid 40 at the time because the device had JUST come out so they didn't drop the pr
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Yes... crybabies... right... crybabies who want FEATURES.
I'm totally ****ed without my navigation damnit. Makes my life a hell of alot easier.
I'm also totally ****ed if you don't buy those features... seeing as I won't be eating.
I'm totally ****ed without my navigation damnit. Makes my life a hell of alot easier.
I'm also totally ****ed if you don't buy those features... seeing as I won't be eating.
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well not to burst your bubble, but duh 🙄
we've been saying this for years now. its a simple solution. sure people are going to cry and whine at first, but they already do that now, so it wouldnt be anything new. eventually that "free" word wont be something they expect.
i also just adore the customers who take the free phone and then come back a few weeks or months later crying because its "a cheap piece of crap"
🙄
duh. you got it for free. what do you expect. you could have paid $50 for a better phone and then YOU WOULD HAVE GOTTEN IT BACK thru a MIR, making the better phone I tried to tell you to get FREE, but no. you are too cheap to realzie the value in anything and took the freebie out the door instead of listenin...
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we've been saying this for years now. its a simple solution. sure people are going to cry and whine at first, but they already do that now, so it wouldnt be anything new. eventually that "free" word wont be something they expect.
i also just adore the customers who take the free phone and then come back a few weeks or months later crying because its "a cheap piece of crap"
🙄
duh. you got it for free. what do you expect. you could have paid $50 for a better phone and then YOU WOULD HAVE GOTTEN IT BACK thru a MIR, making the better phone I tried to tell you to get FREE, but no. you are too cheap to realzie the value in anything and took the freebie out the door instead of listenin...
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liquid you are right on the money.
Also consider the mindless lemmings that get all their information off of the twit box (tv for the really slow). Well just this morning the local channel was airing a spot with info that was out of date and advising people to take the free handsets because of quality, forgo insurance of any sort and demand free accessories, also to have and make sure all the fees are waived. (thinking of calling them and calling the reporter out on bad facts.)
its simple, lets say K.I.S.S. for cell phone customers.
if customer education was simple.
1. if your credit is crap because you cannot or will not pay your bills DO NOT EXPECT ANYTHING.
2. that "free" handset was reduced in price for your contract com...
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Also consider the mindless lemmings that get all their information off of the twit box (tv for the really slow). Well just this morning the local channel was airing a spot with info that was out of date and advising people to take the free handsets because of quality, forgo insurance of any sort and demand free accessories, also to have and make sure all the fees are waived. (thinking of calling them and calling the reporter out on bad facts.)
its simple, lets say K.I.S.S. for cell phone customers.
if customer education was simple.
1. if your credit is crap because you cannot or will not pay your bills DO NOT EXPECT ANYTHING.
2. that "free" handset was reduced in price for your contract com...
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Asprinttech said:
(thinking of calling them and calling the reporter out on bad facts.)
I agree with the rest of your rant but the truth of the matter is that this reporter, or customers in general, find better deals from indirect stores/kiosks/internet and that's why they want you to offer something better. Well maybe not you cause you just do the insurance thing, but the other guys on here. Now I agree that the benefits aren't worth it for places like letstalk.com or wirefly.com because of the additional penalties they add to your contract besides dual ETFs (for them and the carrier)..like paying over 100 because a bill payment is late. But reputable stores that people can actually physically go to li...
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yes i can. if you find a good deal somewhere, jump on it. dont come to me asking me to break polocy and bend over backwards to match a deal that someone else is running. and then dont get pissed at me because i dont want to risk my job for breaking policy just to make you happy.
if you find it cheap at BB or CC, chances are there is a reason. if you want to be that cheap and want it bad enough, get it there. otherwise pay what i'm asking and be happy that you will get good customer service as well
if you find it cheap at BB or CC, chances are there is a reason. if you want to be that cheap and want it bad enough, get it there. otherwise pay what i'm asking and be happy that you will get good customer service as well
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liquidfire said:
yes i can. if you find a good deal somewhere, jump on it. dont come to me asking me to break polocy and bend over backwards to match a deal that someone else is running.
What about just throwing stuff in like car charger, case, etc? Im sure they let you do that. Sometimes that's all that is needed. But I see what you're saying sure. If you can save over 100 dollars don't bother the direct stores they can't lower handset pricing.
if you find it cheap at BB or CC, chances are there is a reason.
Like what?
otherwise pay what i'm asking and be happy that you will get good customer service as well
Eh..customer service... it's goi...
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If they are coming to you to match the Best Buy/Wal-Mart price...there's a reason for why they didn't simply buy it there. Sometimes the indirect dealers cannot process upgrades, specific account types, etc. Other times (mostly in the case of indirect kiosks) they don't trust them, or have had a bad experience with them before.
BUT...from my aspect...if I discount a phone, I don't get paid. For an upgrade, this is not worth my time. For a new activation, depending on the senario (adding features, buying accessories, multiple lines, how close to quota, etc) it may be worth it for me to match prices.
I can see it both ways. As far as upgrades go, my manager does not let us price match since the cons outway the pros as far as the store ec...
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BUT...from my aspect...if I discount a phone, I don't get paid. For an upgrade, this is not worth my time. For a new activation, depending on the senario (adding features, buying accessories, multiple lines, how close to quota, etc) it may be worth it for me to match prices.
I can see it both ways. As far as upgrades go, my manager does not let us price match since the cons outway the pros as far as the store ec...
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asme here if they cop attitude, i will help them less.
if they are cool, i will help them more.
truth be told if they cop attitude, they will surely have something negative to say, no matter how well you take care of them.
and THAT grinds my gears to no end. plus the fact that if they get a better deal than i gave them, they will return the phone and i am back at square one.
had this one guy to that to me, came in using his dad's good credit, 1st thing he ask is what kind of deal can you get me?
gave ggim a great deal on 3 phones. while i am doing that he says, he just returned some phone from verizon recently. So i get yelled at by my manager for the price drop. and them the guy sends his dad and sister in to do the return.
so i got ...
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if they are cool, i will help them more.
truth be told if they cop attitude, they will surely have something negative to say, no matter how well you take care of them.
and THAT grinds my gears to no end. plus the fact that if they get a better deal than i gave them, they will return the phone and i am back at square one.
had this one guy to that to me, came in using his dad's good credit, 1st thing he ask is what kind of deal can you get me?
gave ggim a great deal on 3 phones. while i am doing that he says, he just returned some phone from verizon recently. So i get yelled at by my manager for the price drop. and them the guy sends his dad and sister in to do the return.
so i got ...
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People see cell phones as a requirement not a luxury! if they've been customers for "X # of yrs" they demand free service, discounts, and free crap out the a$$!!! and when its time to upgrade and they have free phone promos people think they can pick the phone that does it all and get it for free!!! NO! the only free phones r the POS ones! get it through your head! you can't get a phone that does pics, email, wed, tv, music, etc for FREE!! and i don't give a crap how long uve been a customer! i had 2 customers that came in w/ a flyer for a free upgrade (which has to be done on the web or through telesales bc the store has no free phones anymore) and they chose the instinct and when i told them the price they flipped out on me bc they actua...
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hahaha, i love that counterpoint.
I'm going to call up Visa and tell them since I've been paying for the minimum on my card for the last 3 years, they should knock some off of my balace or cover my payment this month...
I'm going to call up Visa and tell them since I've been paying for the minimum on my card for the last 3 years, they should knock some off of my balace or cover my payment this month...
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The wireless carrier's service would be almost solely responsible for the customer staying with them. It's kind of ridiculous that even if you're willing to pay for the phone up front, to get any kind of decent rate on a plan, you have to sign a contract for service. So basically, you can change your service to whatever you want within the contract period & even though I may not be able to get service anymore at home because you removed the tower for whatever reason, I'm screwed thanks to the contract that the legal department ever so delicately whipped up allowing them to bend over anyone who signs it.
That's just my 2¢... coming from a former wireless retention & sales employee for Dobson & a current customer of T-Mobile.
That's just my 2¢... coming from a former wireless retention & sales employee for Dobson & a current customer of T-Mobile.
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ErikaMarie said:
I may not be able to get service anymore at home because you removed the tower for whatever reason
If that is the case they will terminate your contract with no ETF because it costs them more for you to roam over 50% of the time..or if theres no service period I believe its in the contract that they can drop you.
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Maybe if you get someone really nice, they'll be willing... Maybe if you actually try to take them to court, they'll say ok. However, nowhere in the contract I had to reiterate to customers for 8 hours a day did it say they could get out of a contract without an ETF if there was no service, or if service changed. In fact, it said exactly the opposite.
Oh, & the "we'll notify you 30 days before we start charging you but hide it in the bill so that you don't see it & once you notice your plan goes up, you're screwed" loopholes are just mint.
The contracts are worded to say that the company is not responsible for that kind of stuff.
Oh, & the "we'll notify you 30 days before we start charging you but hide it in the bill so that you don't see it & once you notice your plan goes up, you're screwed" loopholes are just mint.
The contracts are worded to say that the company is not responsible for that kind of stuff.
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You don't pay for roaming. It costs them more for you to roam 100% of the time. They can't change your rate plan on you or start charging you for something thats included in the original contract. So just roam for a month and then ask if they'll cancel you with no ETF. Sprint for instance will automatically cancel you if you roam over 65% of the time. Why? Because it costs them money.
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& I'm aware you don't pay for roaming. I spent 6 years in the industry until 2006.
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Well if you can't get out of it..which I admit is hard...and I admit tmobile has ****ty coverage... only thing I can think of is biting the ETF after taking into account what it costs you monthly to not have service for X amount of months left on the contract.
I'd rather pay 200 than throw away 400, etc.
I'd rather pay 200 than throw away 400, etc.
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ErikaMarie said:
& I'm aware you don't pay for roaming. I spent 6 years in the industry until 2006.
I'm glad you got out. It is a saturated market now and the custys are becoming more stoopid and meeen.
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I don't know about Customer Care at other carriers, but one of the biggest reasons that people come and ask for free phones on an Upgrade is that the customer has talked to them and they have told them " You are eligible for a free upgrade". Now I know that probably not all Care people do this, so don't get mad at me for saying this. Customer Care and the web site do offer some free phones, mostly discontinued models or refurbs, but they also offer some pricing on phones that we cannot offer in the stores (another major gripe that I have, but do not want to expound on it here). Then the customer comes in the store and wants his free phone, and we don't have much or anything to offer him for nothing. Then they get mad at me because I can't do...
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PhonemanJ said:
Customer Care and the web site do offer some free phones, mostly discontinued models or refurbs, but they also offer some pricing on phones that we cannot offer in the stores (another major gripe that I have, but do not want to expound on it here). Then the customer comes in the store and wants his free phone, and we don't have much or anything to offer him for nothing. Then they get mad at me because I can't do what Care told them.
What they offer for free is like the corporate stores - POS garbage walmart sells as prepaid. Customers are too stupid to know the difference sometimes.
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the problem isnt the CS reps. they tell the customer that they are elig for a free phone, which is true. there are a few phones that they will be able to get for free (or free after MIR). But what mr dumb custy hears is that they can get any phone they want for free.
the care rep was correct, but the custy twisted it into what they wanted to be true, now what actually is true.
*i work in for a retailer and norm dont defend CS like this, but in this case it is all the custy's fault
the care rep was correct, but the custy twisted it into what they wanted to be true, now what actually is true.
*i work in for a retailer and norm dont defend CS like this, but in this case it is all the custy's fault
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PhonemanJ said:...
I don't know about Customer Care at other carriers, but one of the biggest reasons that people come and ask for free phones on an Upgrade is that the customer has talked to them and they have told them " You are eligible for a free upgrade". Now I know that probably not all Care people do this, so don't get mad at me for saying this. Customer Care and the web site do offer some free phones, mostly discontinued models or refurbs, but they also offer some pricing on phones that we cannot offer in the stores (another major gripe that I have, but do not want to expound on it here). Then the customer comes in the store and wants his free phone, and we don't have much or anything to offer him for nothing. Then t
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As Americans we deserve everything for free, that is why the gov't gives away cheese.
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