How to Get the Best Deal From Verizon Wireless
By James McElroy
Verizon Wireless consistently earns high marks with the likes of CNET and other technology reviewers for its range of cellular coverage and signal quality. That level of service comes with a price: Verizon is far from the cheapest cellular provider and the most basic monthly voice plan costs about $40 a month for 450 minutes in June 2011. There are some ways to get a better deal from Verizon Wireless. Learn how to ask the right questions and keep an eye on your service plan cut the most costs with Verizon Wireless.
Step 1
Ask a Verizon representative if you're entitled to a discount through your employer. If your employer has an account with Verizon there's a good chance you're eligible for a discount. The discounts vary depending upon how many lines your employer has with Verizon and what kind of service the company pays for on those lines. Call 800-922-0204 or visit a Verizon store to talk to a representative.
Step 2
Take advantage of your military service by signing up for Verizon's veterans discount. Verizon gives military veterans 15 percent off their calling plans. Bring a copy of your DD-214, or discharge papers, to a Verizon store to verify your eligibility and get the discount applied to your account.
Step 3
Monitor your phone usage. Check your Verizon wireless bill to see how many minutes you normally use against how many minutes you pay for in your plan. Do the same for text messages. Verizon salespeople are paid on commission and want you to buy as many minutes as possible. You may have signed up for a 900 minute plan, but use few enough minutes to drop to a 450 minute plan.
Step 4
Join a family share plan. These are plans where multiple phones pull from the same pool of minutes. If you have one phone on your plan but have friends or family members who you could combine plans with, you would all get a better deal from Verizon by combining your plans together.
Step 5
Shop around for a new phone. Verizon regularly changes their device pricing, and pricing for the same device may be different at a corporate store, a box store and online. Figure out the phone you want from Verizon and shop around to find the best price for that device.
Writer Bio
James McElroy began his journalism career in 2001 and his stories have appeared in newspapers around the world, including "The Columbus Dispatch" and "The Star-Ledger." He studied journalism at the E.W. Scripps Graduate School of Journalism at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio.