I saved almost two hundred dollars a year with a single ten-minute phone call, and I only made it because a friend told me it was possible. The internet company had been quietly raising my rate every year, and I had been quietly paying it.

The call is not hard. You just have to know what to say and actually make it.

Do a little homework first

You do not need a spreadsheet. You need two numbers: what you pay now, and what a competitor in your area charges for the same speed.

• Check your current bill for the exact monthly rate
• Search what the other provider in your area advertises
• Look up your own company’s new-customer price, because that is what they will offer

The new-customer price is your target. Companies will happily give a long-time customer the same deal they give a stranger if you ask.

What to actually say

Call and get to the retention department, not the first person who answers. Then keep it simple.

• “I have been a customer for years, but my bill keeps going up.”
• “The other provider in my area is offering the same speed for less.”
• “What can you do to lower my rate before I make a decision?”

Be polite, and be ready to actually follow through if they say no. The moment they think you will leave, the offers appear. I got a twelve-month discount just for asking, no threats required.