Cell Phone Upgrades

Most people with cell phones in the US have a 1-2 year contract (usually 2 years). This contract provides the customer with a cheap cell phone up front and locks them in to their phone for the duration of the contract.

For some people this is a perfectly acceptable state of affairs. But for the technophile and gadget phreeks, it is a life time sentence.

Further, many companies will not budge very much on the upgrade rebate issue. In many cases, even if you've had your old phone for a year but less than 2, the best you can hope for is a $75 off the FULL retail price of the phone with a 2 YEAR contract renewal. A 1yr contract renewal can result in as little as $25 off.

OK, so what I witnessed while working in the commission driven wireless retail world is that their is usually room to bargain as long as you are dealing with an organization that has power.

This means you need to go to the source and do your business directly from an company owned store. When you do this you bypass the "Authorized dealer" who has no power to negotiate. Literally, the 3rd party dealers usually type your info into the corporate website and get a simple "yes or no" answer.

After you've located the corporately owned store, the next trick is to verify that the sales reps work off of commission.This info is necessary for you to know, because if the reps don't care whether you buy or not, they have no motive to bargain with you.


You can usually spot commissioned reps when they eagerly give you their card if you tell them you'll come back.

I usually ask something like "should I see you, or can anyone help me?". If they are commissioned they usually tell me to see them directly. If not, they don't really push the issue.

As a fail safe, simply ask them if the are commissioned and they will usually tell you.

Understand that the world of wireless sales has many different levels at which its company operates. A the top are the executives and policy makers. They outline lofty goals of how the company should operate that don't always sync completely with the nitty gritty of the real world.

The retail store is the front line (or at least one of them) and what matters most on this front is meeting quotas. Meeting and exceeding quota is what makes reps more money and gets managers bonuses and promotions. Sometimes, the difference between a good month and bad one is a few cell phones or peripherals. This is good for you the customer.

Now, assuming you've found the right type of store, you have to make them want your business enough to work with you.

The best way do accomplish this is to leverage something they want against what you want.

Tell them what you want simply and politely and they will look up your info. The first thing they will do is tell you that you can't get the full discount. At this point you tell them that you have been a good customer and you really just want the new phone, but can't afford the full price. (Or whatever you prefer to use as the reason).

If the rep has the authority, he/she may simply give you the discount. You will likely have to resign your contract, and MAY have to change your plan (So be ware), but at least you got the latest gadget.

IF the rep doesn't have the required authority, ask to speak with the person who does (There is one in every store).

The best tactic is to leverage the purchase of additional service against the discount.

If the store sells other service that you are planning to buy, then try making your purchase, contingent on you getting a discount on your phone. (I.e. you subscribe to their internet service if they give you the discount).

Take it from me, a quota hanging over your head is as bad as having the sword of Damocles inches above you. Sometimes, you feel like doing everything within your power to (Legally) meet that monthly sales target.