A friend of mine pointed me to an excellent site that I now read every day, Silicon Valley.com’s Good Morning Silicon Valley. The information in there is quite eclectic and usually has very little to do with finances and such (I read it because I am also a Geek, remember), but a posting today caught my eye (7 Confessions of a Cell Phone Salesperson).
It started with a former Verizon sales rep’s need to unburden himself of back-room secrets and pass his insider expertise along to hapless customers. As his outlet, he chose The Consumerist blog, and Monday, a post titled “8 Confessions Of A Former Verizon Sales Rep” appeared, with advice like “Never get a two-year contract” and some tips on playing hardball that may or may not be in your ethical comfort zone (like agreeing to a data plan to get a phone discount, then canceling the plan a day later).
Next thing you know, past and present reps for other phone companies are tripping over each other in a rush to spill their guts. In short order we got “7 Confessions of a Cingular Sales Rep,” “6 Confessions Of A Former Sprint Sales Rep,” “11 Confessions of a T-Mobile Sales Rep,” and invitations are out to any Alltel or U.S. Cellular renegades. As to the tips themselves, your mileage may vary, but it’s nice to have even a semblance of battlefield intelligence.
I went to the all of the links in that article and was astounded at the “tricks of the trade” as it were in the cell phone world. Now I pay a pretty penny for my cell phones, and now I am wondering just how badly I am being “fleeced” by my service provider up here in Ottawa?
Any Canadian Reps Willing to Talk ?
Are any Telus, Bell Mobility, Rogers or Fido Sales reps who would like to unburden themselves and confess their “sins against consumers” to the Big Cajun Man? All names kept anonymous.
