This technique for getting companies to reduce your monthly bills is so classic and effective, it bears explicit reiteration.

• Identify a high-priced recurring service you subscribe to.
• Research the competition and find the best deal cheaper than yours.
• Call up your service and threaten to switch.
• Revel in the price matching

Call up full of vim and spunk. Doing battle with retention consultants is not for the milquetoast of heart!

Trey used this technique to make Comcast cut his cable bill by more than half, plus they threw in some free premium channels. His letter, inside.

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“Greetings, Consumerati:

Yesterday, frustrated with the high cost ($140+ per month) of digital cable and data service, I decided to try little consumerist-esque hack. I found the best combo deal for video, voice, and data offered by the local telco and, armed with this information, brazenly called up Comcast to tell them I was going to switch to their dramatically cheaper competitor. Low, and behold! Within 3 minutes, the salivating retentioneer had cut my monthly rate to $75, secured the rate for 12 months, and even thrown in a second block of premium channels to seal the deal. Further proof that it’s a /great/ idea to play one company off the other.”

Of course, using this method assumes you live in an area where there is actual competition, damn you, Time Warner. — BEN POPKEN

Related: Reduce Credit Card APR: It Never Hurts To Ask

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