No Appreciation for Existing Customers

[SHORTKITTEN]

So I have had Verizon since it was AirTouch (approx. 20 years) and was just told there is no longer a discount to upgrade my phone, even though I am Upgrade Eligible.  I just verified the price I will pay to upgrade is the same as a brand new customer...and actually, a new customer will get a 2nd phone free with their current promo (sure, I can too, if I want to add a 3rd new unnecessary line).  Thanks for making me feel like my loyalty means nothing.

[sprmankalel]

You had AirTouch as your carrier until Verizon took them over. You can't have been a customer of Verizon if you were a customer of AirTouch. Please separate the time you were an AirTouch customer from the time you were a Verizon customer.

Verizon has gotten rid of discounted devices and this goes back to at least 2014. You are also, fully able to take advantage of any available promotion should you meet the requirements of the promotion. If this promotion requires that you add a new line of service to get the free phone then that is what you must do. That promotion is not specifically for new customers so I do not know why you would say that current customers can't get the same as a new customer. That promotion is designed for Verizon to add more lines of service, whether they be completely new customers or new lines on existing accounts. In fact, there were many deals in the past that were for new customers that current customers were NOT able to take advantage of. Now that Verizon has made it where nobody is excluded from promotions as long as they're willing to go by the promotion's terms, you're complaining.

If this keeps happening, Verizon will take away Device Payment Plans and we will have to pony up full price at once to buy a phone. There is only so far a tree will bend before it breaks.

I am treated well as a customer. I have great service, I feel like I get a good value for what my service plan costs (excluding the cost of my device) and I am generally happy with Verizon. If I weren't I'd have left.

[stef7]

It would seem it's totally up to Verizon if they offer a device BOGO or not. Maybe you're not a customer and you are coming to Verizon for the first time. Maybe you are an existing customer, and you are adding a line. That's all fine.

Maybe someone and their significant other are sticking with the carrier.Why not ask for and expect some form of customer retention incentive? That would be a good thing to do. The OP is communicating what is important to them. Maybe someone in management should run with that idea.

Verizon is no tree. You often use the argument, if that's the available plans, promotions, restrictions <insert noun du jour here>, then take it or leave it. And that's fine too, it's just not adding anything new to the conversation. You are expressing your opinion, true, just as the OP had done. And so?

I never finance my phones.IMHO, Verizon should put all those that use Device Payment Plans on a lower-tiered line of service... Absurd right? OK, on the flip-side, maybe I should get some kind of reward as a customer if I purchase my device outright. You might think that's just as absurd.

[SHORTKITTEN]

My bad...I have been a Verizon customer since they took over AirTouch approximately 18 years ago...and, your bad, because I received my last Loyalty Discount on 9/8/15 which was AFTER the "at least 2014" date you give...we all make mistakes...

Neither mistake is that important to the overall complaint which was that Verizon has always given me a discount since I've been with them and now the only discounts available are the same as they would give to anyone else...which, to me, is sad.  Loyalty gets us, the consumer, nowhere nowadays.  I just miss the choices I had 2 years ago, where we had over 20 phones to choose from ranging from free - approx 200.00 and we could choose based on our budget.  It was available 2 years ago during my last upgrade (and all previous upgrades), but now it's not (I was able to pay 149.99 up front instead of the approx 500.00-700.00 retail...which was much better than the monthly option).

This is just my opinion - it is not right, it is not wrong, it is just an opinion.  Verizon knows they are the Gold Standard for phones (which is why, at least for now, there is no need to offer things like the free Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, etc promos of the other carriers), but I don't feel they are appreciating us that have not gone over to one of those other carriers.  I'm not going anywhere and that's what they are banking on. 

[Ann154]

The New Every Two upgrade option was retired several years ago. The two year contract price option was all plans was retired in January 2017.

The subsidized pricing was misleading has you had a lower upfront cost, but higher service costs throughout the two year contract term. The costs have been separated and now for most phones the device payment agreement (DPP) is actually less expensive over the two years when you add up the phone costs plus the service costs.

Do the math yourself for some of the phones you purchased in the past and for the ones you were considering.

Also you can still pay upfront the $200 you used to pay as a down payment on the phone and reduce your monthly device payment installments.

[SHORTKITTEN]

Thank you for the info.  However, I don't see how that is any different than a new customer would pay.  Where is the appreciation from Verizon to their returning customers?  That's what they got rid of....they could still offer a Loyalty discount on the new plans if they wanted to.

[stef7]

For whatever reasons, some customer's are not realizing the most reliable, the best coverage, the highest speeds that they should. Now this will hopefully change again as Verizon re-configures their towers for newer technology, but some customers will be negatively impacted.

Seems to me the Rewards program is not all that it has been hyped to be, at least not yet - there are some kinks they need to take care of. I personally don't value how it's structured and it seems lot's of people are having problems redeeming rewards.

And the GoUnlimited plan (?). I'm not really sure why it exists, but it's still possible the traffic shaping implied in the plan has not been implemented as originally conceived. People experiencing dial-up modem speeds? Can't open web pages or update email headers? Really?

Yeah, retention incentives are something customers would value. I would have enjoyed another Verizon discount on top of the Google DayDream VR, $200 Visa Card, and 2-yr warranty on the V30 I recently purchased. It's a carrier locked device, which means, I'm at Verizon's will when and if I get OTA updates. I'm already being punished because I purchased an LG SmartWatch that is still superior to the Apple and Samsung offerings. They have delayed the Android Wear 2.0 update. Why?

Yes, other forms of rewarding customer loyalty should be under consideration. Glad you brought it up ShortKitten. A propos, specially during this season.

[Ann154]

New and existing customers have always paid the same for the various promotions since 2000 when I was also merged into Verizon Wireless from AirTouch too and when I briefly left Verizon Wireless for another carrier during the Alltel merger and back again as a "new" customer with a new account number.

[SHORTKITTEN]

Unfortunately, you and I had different experiences, as I always had to log in to my account to see the discount.  For example, on 9/8/15, I couldn't find the reduced price and actually thought the discount was terminated 2 years ago, as I was logged in and seeing the same price as not being logged in.  So, I called and the rep told me there was one additional step that had been added since my 2013 upgrade and once I did that, I saw the discount.  Also, my husband thought the prices were higher than I actually paid because he was looking at Verizon without logging in.  Finally, today, I contacted Verizon and the rep told me they no longer offer the discount.  So, in my experience, there was a discount, which has now been terminated.

[boringusername]

ALL companies give promos to new customers so they can get new customers. Ironically if you switched carriers you'd as a new customer would get special deals that long time customers would not get and yet you would not have any issue taking that deal would you?. Would you say to them "Oh that is so unfair to your long time customers so I will decline this special deal you are offering me." No you would not.

[SHORTKITTEN]

You missed my point COMPLETELY, but I have discussed in length with other users.  Thanks anyway.

[boringusername]

SHORTKITTEN wrote:

You missed my point COMPLETELY, but I have discussed in length with other users. Thanks anyway.

I got your point. You're a "loyal" customer( which does not mean what you think it means) and you deserve special perks or the same perks as new customers. I pay Verizon each month for service so I expect that service. That's the extent of our relationship. No more no less.

[SHORTKITTEN]

Nope, Webster hasn't failed me in over 35 years...faithful to a cause, ideal, custom, institution, or product

Not that I need to defend myself, but it's good for Verizon to know too.  I have said "no thank you" to every offer from every other carrier who has solicited me, I have told friends, family, and strangers how great Verizon's reliability is, I have given Verizon's phone # out to potential customers and directions to their stores (for those too scared of computers), and when others don't have cell service, I say, "here, use mine, I have Verizon".  But, honestly, none of that matters because I'm only asking for what I received for the last 18 years...nothing more.  Being that I have been in Customer Service management for over 20 years, I know that is not asking much.  We are all entitied to our opinion.  I thank you for yours and you've heard mine.  I still love Verizon's product and I have not said a negative thing for 18 years, until now.

[sprmankalel]

You are not 'loyal' to Verizon Wireless.

You stayed as a customer because you felt that you got a good value for the money that you spend. I would be insulted by Verizon if a customer of 18 years, such as yourself, got better deals than a customer of 6 years, such as MYself. The reason all promotions are available to all customers who wish to follow the promotion's guidelines is to NOT create that type of business environment. It is also absurd to request that you get special consideration for remaining a customer. Do you go to your favorite restaurant and ask for free meals because you eat there once a week? Do you go to the grocery store and ask for free milk because you don't buy your milk anywhere else?

What it really boils down to is that you don't understand how we now buy our phones and pay for service and, instead of learning the benefits, you just complain about it. All of us who understand the new purchase options have seen benefits. My bill is lower since 2 year service contracts are gone. No carrier has subsidized phones anymore. It's just a fact that you have to accept.

There is no rule that says you must purchase a new phone every time you're eligible. There is also no rule that you have to buy a phone from Verizon Wireless directly. Lots of places sell phones that work on the VZW network. They all have their own promotions. It is the holiday time. Look at places like Best Buy for their promotions.

[stef7]

All one has to do is Google the concept, and one will find articles like this:

What a Real Wireless Loyalty Program Might Look Like – Tech.pinions

There's more than enough reasons, data and analysis out there to suggest retention /  loyalty programs would be welcomed and profitable for customers and carriers respectively.

[sprmankalel]

What it might look like. I am not reading that.

I go by what I get for what I pay. If VZW wasn't a good enough value for me I would leave. Just like any customer has the option to do with any carrier.

"Loyalty" Programs are [removed] concepts. I believe if a business offers a good product and value, continued patronage will be a direct result.

Profanity removed as required by the Verizon Wireless Terms of Service​.

Message edited by Verizon Moderator.

[boringusername]

stef7 wrote:

All one has to do is Google the concept, and one will find articles like this:

What a Real Wireless Loyalty Program Might Look Like – Tech.pinions

There's more than enough reasons, data and analysis out there to suggest retention / loyalty programs would be welcomed and profitable for customers and carriers respectively.

Here's the deal, T-Mobile would be cheaper for me especially with the free Netflix. However their network in my area is nowhere near what Verizon's is so it doesn't matter what their pricing is or what perks they offer. Lower pricing and perks don't make a difference if I don't have good coverage.