Tell me if this is you. A few months ago you started receiving email notices that the promotional rate on your internet service would soon expire. You had every intention of calling the company to see what they’re currently offering but that’s the sort of thing that immediately sinks to the bottom of the metaphorical ocean of priorities and never comes back up for air… Not today. Today we’re gonna get a better rate on our internet service.
Sidebar – This is something companies do that really annoys me as a consumer. They bring you in with promotional rates that eventually expire and count on you being too lazy or unaware to do anything about it. I feel like it disincentivizes customer loyalty. My bill goes up the longer I stay with this plan/service/ISP? Huh? I know I have to live in reality but it frustrates me to no end that I am not rewarded with a bigger discount over time the longer I stay a customer.
A 2025 survey by CNET found that 63% of US adults paying for home internet saw their bill increase by an average of $195 than the year prior. 20% of respondents reported cancelling, downgrading, or switching providers due to cost. Further, only 10% tried to negotiate their bill.
One thing is clear, most folks just shrug their shoulders and accept the price increase. Now that might not sound much like you, but it sounds a lot like a guy I’ve known my whole life… I even got the emails, knew what was coming and promptly did nothing. Which is precisely what the company is counting on – our apathy and lack of focus. Anyways, I forget where I was going with that… oh right. Not this time!
Here are our rules of engagement
If you will, and I think you will:
- I am keeping this service, at least for now. There is only the illusion of competition. We are reliant on a stable internet connection for work/entertainment/everything. While there are some interesting alternatives available, we are renting and our lease is up in roughly eight months so it doesn’t make a lot of sense to establish a new service with just a few months left here.
- I am going to do this like a true Millennial introvert, which is to say, how I would normally do it I guess. We’re going to explore the least human interactive options first, as in, what options are available through my account portal -> Chat bot -> Calling a real human (🤮)
Not counting the $1.22 in taxes and fees, my current monthly broadband bill sits at $139. That’s $124.00 for the 1 GIG plan, includes maximum of 1 Gbps down, and 1.25 TB of monthly data. The equipment rental is $15.00. Every little bit counts so let’s see what we can do about that.
Level 1: Make the Buttons Go Clicky
First things first, let me log into my account and see if I can do anything from there. Immediately after entering my credentials I am greeted by a page stating “Your bill has changed,” giving me the option to explore offers. For a moment I actually had hope but it turned out to be more of the usual offers to add and bundle other services that I don’t need or want. Swing and a miss on self service.
Level 2: Help Me, AI Chatbot, You’re My Only Hope…
So I decided to move on to the chatbots and see what they could do for me. I’ll be upfront with you here, this didn’t last long. I was quickly frustrated as the chatbot seems to only be able to do everything you can already do from your account, maybe just for the non-technically inclined among us. Waste of effort, time to move on.
Level 3: Do You Accept Empty Threats, by Chance?
I figured now that I was going to speak to a human I needed to come correct with a real alternative to their service. A quick check with Verizon indicated 5G Home Internet was available at my address. I’ve actually used this at a previous address and I don’t have a bad thing to say about it. Their price is $55 a month with up to 25 Mbps down (for the first 200 GB, 10 Mbps after), and unlimited data. Not a true apples to apples comparison to my current broadband service, but $55 a month speaks for itself. It’s also not a great fit for my family’s internet needs at the moment but my ISP doesn’t know that.
If you can’t already tell by this point I was really dragging my feet just to not make a phone call. Half the day had gone by and I could no longer justify not calling… so I folded some laundry.
Finally I call my ISP. After authenticating with my account from the automated system I chose the option for “remove or downgrade services” as I figured those would be the people with authorization to make the deals for account retention. After a brief hold they answer and ask how they can help, while not verbatim this is in effect what I said:
“Hi [Name], now that the promotion has ended on my internet service I’m paying over $140 a month. I was looking at switching to Verizon because it’s a third of the cost, but I’d prefer not to deal with the hassle of switching. So really I was wondering if there were any promotions I qualify for that could get me close to that price?”
The answer was a quick and sure “Absolutely, we can do that. Give me just a sec to see what’s available”
This right here, I thought, is where the negotiation starts. I readied myself mentally for the battle to come. Visualization is key to success. For sure his first offer will be insultingly low… maybe $10 off a month or something to that effect. I would then say that’s not good enough, that I will be canceling my service if they can’t do better. Then I would have to be placed on hold while he went for a smoke break under the guise of speaking to his manager. Of course he’s trying to wait me out at this point… He with the most available minutes in the day wins….
“Okay, looks like we can cut it in half.”
“In half? Umm… the internet service itself? The $124?”
This I was not prepared for. Well beyond my expectations.
“Your monthly bill would be $70. You would also get 1 free year of mobile service”
Ah, there it is, gotta switch my mobile service. Admiral Ackbar is sounding off in my head… IT’S A TRAP!
“Gotcha, so the discount is from bundling services and I would need to switch my cell phone over?”
“Yes and no, we are bundling but you don’t actually have to activate the cell plan”
“And how long is the promotion good for?”
“12 Months”
“Wow, okay, let’s do that”
He sent over the estimate and sure enough, I now had an additional $69 promotional credit for the next 12 months. My prorated bill for the month would now be $91, and moving forward $70 a month. That’s honestly way better than I expected and what else does that mean? It means I’ve been overpaying for a long time… and you might be as well. Either way, today is undoubtedly a success.
Previous bill excluding taxes/fees: $139.00/mo ($1668/yr)
Future bill excluding taxes/fees: $70.00/mo ($840/yr)
That’s a savings of $69 a month and $828 over the next year. We set out to lower our internet bill and we cut it fully in half! That’s real results, in what realistically could take you 10-15 minutes. Now to break the cycle, we’re setting a calendar reminder. A simple task/event/notification on whatever your preferred calendar app 12 months from today (or whenever yours expires) will do.
What did I learn? Sometimes you just gotta grow a pair… of lungs 🫁 and talk to a human if you want to get real results.
Some final thoughts on execution as I sign off. Whenever I’m dealing with customer service I always try to keep in mind that I’m dealing with another human on the other end of the call. Sometimes it may even seem as if that specific person feels like giving you a deal would take money directly out of their own back pockets. Which can be frustrating but in most situations if you get disconnected you will get a different representative when you call back, so do with that information what you will. Always remain calm, friendly, and be polite – it costs you nothing.
Now you have to go out there and put the theory into practice. Look at your bill – is it more than you want to pay? Take five minutes and find the competition, know your options, and come prepared. Try my script, tweak it, make it yours. Never be afraid to switch providers or cancel a service if you’re unhappy because we ultimately vote with our wallets. Most importantly – who can beat my record of half off? Let me know what worked and what didn’t.