No idea whether this will help you get a deal on an iPhone, but in the wake of Consumerist’s article with 8 tips from an ex-Verizon sales rep on getting the best deal on a phone from his former employer, an ex-Cingular rep has stepped up and provided this list:
- Avoid contract extensions by changing your rate plan at a store. “If you want to change your rate plan, do it in a retail store instead of on-line or over the phone.”
- Features are your friends. “You can just about get about get a rep to do anything you want if you offer to get a text package or a data package, and they can be cancelled on-line or over the phone the second you leave the store.”
- Upgrade more often with a higher priced rate plan. “[Cingular’s] upgrade policies are similar to Verizon’s, if someone’s rate plan has been 75 dollars or higher (including features, but excluding taxes) for the last three months, they can upgrade 1/2 way through their contract.”
- Get the rebate in the store, and at home. “Try to get the rep to give you the rebate in the store, they’ll be likely to do this if you agree to get accessories. You can get go online and print out the rebate form from www.cingular.com and send it in anyway.”
- Make the store compete with the website. “Remember that the retail stores can match prices for the cingular website, so check those prices before you go into a store.”
- Get credit for your mistakes. “If you go way over on your text messaging one month, go into a store and ask if they can credit you the difference if you sign up for a bigger text package. They should be able to do this, and you can always drop your text back down after you’ve gotten your credit.”
- Use the internet for $20. “Also, regardless of what kind of phone you have a $20 mediaMAX data package will give you unlimted access to the web that will not use your minutes, whether you’re using a phone, a PDA, or even a laptop card.”
I’m still waiting for a Bell Mobility ex-employee (or hey, a current employee will do) to spill the beans…