Cell Phone Service Activation Tips – Look Out For Commission Hogs!
I have been in the wireless industry for coming up on 10 years now in numerous jobs, mostly technical support and customer service. In that time I have seen some rather shady and down right unlawful actions by both company owned store retailers and authorized dealers alike. Whether you are a long time customer looking to renew your service agreement or a new customer, you should use caution and know what the dealers tell you is accurate.
First, I want to explain the difference between a company owned retailer and an authorized retailer. As the description indicates, a company owned retailer is owned and operated by the company and the employees get their paychecks directly from the wireless provider. An authorized retailer is a store that may look exactly like a company owned store but is owned and operated by a third party. Their income is generated by receiving a percentage of the phone and contract sales. Look for the words “Authorized Retailer” somewhere in the sign or in the store to identify them. Other stores like Wal-Mart, Radio Shack and others that sell multiple service provider products are called indirect retailers.
When you are looking to get new service or upgrade your existing service, it is important to understand the differences. I highly suggest sticking to a company owned store if at all possible. In this way you can ensure that the policies and agreements do not have additional items. Because authorized retailers and indirect stores have the ability to add their own requirements (such as extra early termination fees), you may find yourself agreeing to more than you need to. If you are not sure if the store is company owned, ask!
I’m not trying to put down authorized retailers by any means. Most are honest and will help you just as much as a company owned store. However, you have to realize that their income is generated solely by the amount of sales and contracts they produce. If you return a phone or change your mind about the service within the return period that income is lost and it is as if you never came to the store. Some of them will give you false information in order to prevent this.
For example, a common tactic by an authorized retailer is to tell you they will waive the activation fees and say you must wait for 30 days for the credit to appear on your bill. When the credit does not appear and you go back to the store you are instructed to contact customer service, who will not apply them and direct you back to the retailer. Because you are beyond the buyer’s remorse period, you are out of luck. Any credits or fee waivers beyond what the company offers MUST come out of the retailer’s pocket. If you are offered any kind of fee waivers, make sure those fees are NOT on the contract you sign. If they are, they will be billed and are valid charges that you agreed to, regardless of any verbal agreements.
While company owned retail store employees do not rely exclusively on sales for income, they do receive a commission on phone and feature sales. Unfortunately, you have to be prepared to counter not so honest tactics that some employees use to ensure more commission. One of the more common tactics is to push a high priced phone that you may not need. These “smart” phones require an additional data feature and are sometimes not fully disclosed by the sales person. Another tactic I have seen is an employee tells you that you MUST change your plan or upgrade your phone. If an employee tells you this, turn around, walk out of the door, call customer service and verify the information. It is extremely rare that a wireless company will force you to change your rate plan if you do not want to, no matter how old that plan is.
If you have questions about what to look for when getting new wireless service, upgrading your phone or anything else related to cell phones, give me a comment. Please make sure to include your email (never shared with anyone) so I may respond.
4 Comments
uberVU - social comments
November 22nd, 2009
at 2:23pm
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the oracle
November 23rd, 2009
at 1:38pm
I was in the cell phone biz for about 9 years, always as part of an indirect or authorized reseller. Though I agree with what you say in spirit, I think your tone is a bit harsh when speaking of non-company stores and employees.
As with anything else in life, experiences vary, but I worked for a couple of places that were extremely honest with the customer and very quick to remove any unscrupulous salespeople.
Many times, because of the numerous ways deals are struck between suppliers and resellers, an indirect seller can offer the same phone at a better (sometimes much better) price, and so the customer is better served there. I know that accessories is another place where as an indirect seller, offers of accessories at prices much lower than what could be had at the company store were common.
Also, as to commissioned sales – some are going to try to make a mint on every customer – they will not be working long.
I was always #1 in sales in the stores I worked, and never lower than 3rd in any district I was a part of, making much more than most – yet I have many people I call friend today, those friendships having been started by my giving them not only a good deal, but correct and helpful information along the way to their purchases.
I can remember one time in a mall store I worked at, sometime during the holiday period, when I had 18 customers filling out applications and waiting for me, as I had helped them previously, and they returned as loyal customers – all this time with 3 other salespeople seething on the sidelines because they had no customers at the time.
I was on commission, I made very good deals with people, and would go so far as to point them to a competitor if that competitor had a better deal, because I knew they would return to me another time. I never had a bad week, and was always rewarded with many returning customers. I also made lots of money. Much of my success was because of the knowledge I have. I have always been more knowledgeable and more prepared than the next guy.
Many people look at salespeople on commission and see a problem. I always tried to remind them that being motivated is never a problem, and that honesty and motivation are never mutually exclusive.
teddgcm
November 24th, 2009
at 6:20am
The Oracle,
You’re right, most authorized retailers are honest, as stated in my post. However, I get at least 3 – 5 calls each day from customers that claim the sales person promised to waive the activation fees or other charges and instructed them to call customer service after 30 days to get said credit.
It is a blatant disregard for the policies the store agreed to and an insult to the customer, not to mention a down right lie.
My point is, if the charge is in the contract, it will be billed, period. Any fee waivers or other credits must be given immediately and it must come out of the retailer’s pocket, unless the company is sponsoring a promotion.
lavendar8
December 12th, 2009
at 9:43pm
Help! Please, I just signed up with AT&T wireless tonight as a new customer. On a Family plan with 2 lines. When I called Verizon to see how the billing is handled when porting my number over, they said “You paid through the 28th so that means you are going to be charged until then”. AT&T didn’t warn me of this, if I terminated my Verizon service in the middle of my billing cycle. If I had known, I definitely would have had Radio Shack schedule activation in 2 weeks. Can AT&T cancel the port request and me go back to Verizon just until the end of the billing period and schedule the port of the number to them at that time? If not, I am being charged by AT&T and Verizon for the same 2 weeks. Does not make sense. I want to go to Radio Shack tomorrow and straighten this out. What rights do I have? Also, sounds like I need them to put in writing that they are going to “waive the activation fees” . Please help. Thank you.