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Phone Upgrades Are a Pain on Verizon Contract

By
Real Estate Agent with The English Team

Gotcha!  The Verizon 2 year phone contract leaves me out in the cold.  

I am one of the many real estate agents using Verzon as my cell phone supplier.  Many of us chose Verizon because the coverage is excellent throughout most of the US.  Real estate agents HAVE to be able o send and receive calls, text messages and email.  It is the lifeblood of our business.  So most of us select our wireless vendor based on coverage.

DroidI have been a Verizon customer for a bunch of years.  I can not recall the exact number but safely 12 or 14 years.  Every two years I sign a new contract for cell phones.  I get a new phone (actually it was 4 of them last time as I am on a family plan) and then I am a captive customer for two more years.

As soon as the cell phones go out of warranty, our family usually has a couple of cell phone "failures" and we need a replacement.  

Verzon makes this an awfully painful experience.  My daughter Hannah had a failure on her Droid Ally (a particularly poorly made phone by the way) and we needed a replacement.  When we called in we learned that the phone was out of warranty by a month or so.  Then we learned an replacement phone would cost us an arm and a leg.  And if we wanted to upgrade to an iPhone we could shell out $650.00.

We did not feel like shelling out $650 for a new phone right now.  There is college tuition to pay and Tim's truck needs some work done and we are replacing some fixtures in a couple of bathrooms, etc, etc.

Verizon DisappointmentWhat can you do?  We went back to the old "standby" replacement program.  My husband Tim started searching Ebay for a replacement.  Could have picked up an exact replacement for less than $25.00.  But, the phone was a pice of you know what so Tim snagged an HTC Droid Incredible for $110.00.  Much better phone than my daughter was using and only a couple of months old.

Hmmm.  Next April we are going to think hard about whether or not to renew the Verizon contract.  If I had to give an answer right now, I am thinking another wireless providor might have a leg up on Verizon.  

There is a lesson here for real estate.  While spending hundreds of dollars trying to grab one new customer, you sometimes forget to service the clients you already have.  Part of marketing is making sure you are providing the best possible service to existing clients.

Posted by

Sally English

Atlanta real estate agent

 Realty Associates of Atlanta LLC; 3350 Northlake Parkway Atlanta, Georgia 30345 |404-229-2995

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Comments (17)

Wallace S. Gibson, CPM
Gibson Management Group, Ltd. - Charlottesville, VA
LandlordWhisperer

I've gotten letter from Sprint that my husband has to upgrade his 5 year old phone by the end of the year...talk about "pry from his cold hands"....this won't be fun! AND then I will have 2 root canals....you did the right thing!

Oct 31, 2011 11:40 PM
Ralph Janisch ABR CRS Broker
Janisch & Co. - Conroe, TX
Selling Northwest Houston to good people like you!

My experience says most of the cell phone companies work in a very similar fashion.  Always the 2 year commitment with heavy penalty if you need to terminate or change equipment.  Of course of you can find another phone cheaper they will usually allow you to change it out for the existing phone.  Really a pain not matter what service you use.

Oct 31, 2011 11:42 PM
Sally English
The English Team - Atlanta, GA
Sally English Atlanta Real Estate Agent

Thanks Wallace.  Yea, not easy for us Realtors these days.

Oct 31, 2011 11:42 PM
FN LN
Toronto, ON

Hi Sally - This one issue can be very expensive for your cell phone provider.

Oct 31, 2011 11:42 PM
Charlie Dresen
The Group, Inc - Steamboat Springs, CO
Steamboat Springs, CO e-Pro

There's a tried and true business school "rule" that it takes much less marketing money to retain existing customers than it does to go out and obtain new ones...so keep your current customers happy and they'll remain loyal, not to mention refer business your way. Verizon is pretty much our only option here in Steamboat Springs due to coverage, and yesterday they were out of service for more than 6 hours here...talk about feeling disconnected!

Oct 31, 2011 11:44 PM
Sally English
The English Team - Atlanta, GA
Sally English Atlanta Real Estate Agent

Jeanne and Ralph: Just leaves me wondering if I am with the best wireless "solution".  I am definitely going to be shopping around for a new wireless vendor next April.  If the phone had been replaced I probably would not have been quite as determined to find a replacement.

Oct 31, 2011 11:45 PM
Sally English
The English Team - Atlanta, GA
Sally English Atlanta Real Estate Agent

Charlie, thanks for bringing me back on point.  Yes, yes yes.  We spend so much money attracting "new" clients and fail to spend just a few dollars taking care of existing clients.  You can also substitute "time" for "money".  We need to dedicate "time" to our existing clients to keep them happy.

Oct 31, 2011 11:47 PM
Sally English
The English Team - Atlanta, GA
Sally English Atlanta Real Estate Agent

Marc, yes it is expensive.  It will be expensive to the wireless provider if they give me a "free" replacement phone.  And it will be expensive to Verizon when I take my $300 plus monthly contract to a new wireless provider in April

Oct 31, 2011 11:50 PM
Bobbie Smith
Stroudsburg, PA
570-242-1891

Hi Sally. We know exactly how you feel. We have the "family" plan with Verizon also and yes, they get more and more expensive and give less and less.  One of these days another provider is going to be able to provide the coverage that we all need and Verizon customers are going to drop like flies.  To bad they do not realize the best way to hang on to a customer is to provide great marketing and customer service to keep that customer.  Good Luck!

Oct 31, 2011 11:52 PM
Sally English
The English Team - Atlanta, GA
Sally English Atlanta Real Estate Agent

Hey Bobbie, Did you get the Haloween snow?

 

I know Verizon will not miss me when I leave, but I am pretty sure they would indeed be quickly abandoned by "the masses" if there were a competitor.

Oct 31, 2011 11:56 PM
Barbara Hensley
RE/MAX Properties - Rockwall, TX
Homes for Sale in Rockwall County, Texas

Sally - I have used Verizon for many years also and believe it is the best in our area for coverage.  I currently use a Blackberry and am going to upgrade to an iPhone.  I know exactly what you mean about these phone companies chasing the new business but not doing anything to retain us faithful few.  Realtors are likely one of the best customer types. 

Oct 31, 2011 11:57 PM
Adrian Willanger
206 909-7536 AdrianWillanger-broker.com - Seattle, WA
Profit from my two decades of experience

Hi Sally-I've been with Verizon about as long, it's been a love hate relationship but I've learned to keep my old phone and buy insurance for a replacement, which I've done quite a bit. Nice find on Ebay!

 

Best

Nov 01, 2011 12:00 AM
Sally English
The English Team - Atlanta, GA
Sally English Atlanta Real Estate Agent

Barbara: Yes, the whole English family lusts for an iPhone.

Adrian: I have never taken out the insurance policy.  I will look into that next time.  Thx.  But, I have to say that you can find any phone on EBAY for substantially less than the wireless stores.  There is some risk in this but I have not been disappointed.  My husband time loves to trout fish.  He keeps his phone handy so he can "work" while fishing.  This has led to several phones being dunked in te river.  I am certain he purchased three blackberry phones one year.

Nov 01, 2011 12:04 AM
Bud & Beth McKinney
RE/MAX UNITED - Cary, NC
Cary/Raleigh/Apex NC - The Team That Cares, RE/MAX United

Wow -- I have never had a single problem with verizon here in Cary NC, and they even teach classes on the different smart phones.   Wishing you much better luck.

Nov 01, 2011 12:14 AM
Diane Grady
Endless Summer Realty - Saint Augustine, FL

Yes, great point. I am with Sprint and it is not any easier. I have their insurance plan at 7.00 per month per phone for 3 phones but you still only get a used phone for all that insurance and have to pay a co pay. Not a terriffic deal!

Nov 01, 2011 12:19 AM
Sally English
The English Team - Atlanta, GA
Sally English Atlanta Real Estate Agent

Diane, So in my situation I would have paid $98 in insurance costs to receive a phone that is selling on ebay for under $20.  And we have been so disapointed with the actual phone.  Note: the Droid HTC Incredible has been a GREAT phone.  The Droid Ally has been a dog of a phone.

Nov 01, 2011 12:34 AM
Sally English
The English Team - Atlanta, GA
Sally English Atlanta Real Estate Agent

Bud and Beth:  I am not complaining about the Verizon wireless coverage.  And with one daughter who is a freshman engineering student at UGA and is extremely techno savvy, another daughter who has just graduated from Vanderbilt's engineering school and works for a software company and a husband who loves computers............. I don't have to call the technical help desk.   I am just saying the phone replacement thing should have been "handled" by Verizon.  

Nov 01, 2011 12:39 AM