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Regardless of how you manage your money – the dreaded written budget, the cash flow plan, watch your purchases via your banks online services, or you balance your checkbook once a year or so - this is a simple tip virtually anyone can use to save some decent money every month.  The best part is that it takes very little time or effort.So, ready to find out how to trim your monthly expenses on 21st century “necessities” like cable, internet and phone service?  Use competition as leverage.

The best place to start is in your junk mail. We all get those introductory offers in the mail wanting us to switch from our current service provider to another one. Keep them, you’ll need them in just a minute. Or just jot down the details from commercials on the tube. Either way, you could actually switch your service and save money but then you have the hassle of installation visits, phone number portability (which isn’t a pleasant experience), etc.  That’s too much hassle.

Here’s an easier way. Call your current provider, tell them about the benefits of the competitors offer, faster speed, more channels, better price, etc… whatever the case may be.  Then tell them you really like their service and would like to stay but the other offer is very compelling.  Then, politely ask what they can do for you.

Many times you’ll get a decent discount offer immediately.  That simple.  If they still didn’t match the competitors offer, you can probably get more just by telling them you were hoping they could do better or you thought they’d be able to match the competitors offer.  Like taking risks, then you could even take it one step further.

When you make the call, you don’t want to be demanding or set limits that force you into cancelling if you don’t want to.

This approach should work if this is the first time you are trying to lower your cable monthly rate. For those that have done it a number of times, some cable companies are becoming a bit stricter. I have one friend who insist on the way to continue to get the best price is to say you are going to cancel and if they won’t offer you a better price, cancel. Most of the time they will relent before actually cancelling and the few times they haven’t (he’s been doing this for years) he simply calls up the next day and says he’s changed his mind and wants to continue the service.

It really does work… and it’s so simple.  Now go call your cable company and save some money.

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