Threaten to Cancel Every Subscription
Modern life increasingly means juggling an increasingly expensive collection of subscriptions . Want to listen to music on demand? This is a subscription. Do you want to use a certain set of software? This is a subscription. Want to stay up to date with the latest TV programs? It’s a bunch of subscriptions. All of these monthly payments are taking a heavy toll on our wallets, and if you want this to stop, it seems like your only option is to cancel some of them. Which you should if you don’t use them. But sometimes you don’t even have to go that far – you only need to threaten to cancel them.
Subscriber services do not want to lose you
If you find that the subscription is getting too expensive for you, start the cancellation process. For most subscriptions, it will look something like this: the service will ask you if you are sure you want to cancel your subscription. They might even tell you about all the benefits their program adds to your life (only a fool would say no!). However, keep going.
If the service asks why you are canceling your subscription, be sure to say that it is too expensive a subscription. This hints to the automatic cancellation process that a financial incentive might force you to stay. At this point, your attempt to cancel will likely go one of two ways: either the company will give up and let you complete your subscription, or it will start canceling promotions.
“Oh, we couldn’t offer this to you before, but since you are very special to us, how about you can enjoy one month for free in the future?” If that’s not enough, select “Cancel Subscription” again. “Okay, fair enough. It was a shitty offer. Doesn’t matter! In fact, we can offer you the same plan you have now for half the price you paid before! Pretty cute, right?” You still choose “Unsubscribe”. “WE WILL GIVE YOU OUR PREMIUM LEVEL. ALL PREPARATIONS. DOLLAR PER MONTH. ONE. DOLLAR. PLEASE. FOR GOD’S SAKE, DON’T UNsubscribe.”
Congratulations! You’ve just turned your expensive, hard-to-justify subscription into something perfectly reasonable.
Research a company before threatening to cancel
Of course, not all companies will behave the same way when you hit the “Unsubscribe” button, so do some research before trying this step. This way you will be able to optimize your “cancellation” plans. If you know a company is offering more than one deal, don’t take the first offer you see. If you find that they only give you one way out before ending the relationship, it’s best to take the money and run.
In my experience, newspaper and digital media subscriptions will most likely mirror the scenario above, insisting on better and better prices until you walk away paying next to nothing for a subscription that could once cost you $15 or more. more per month. In fact, it becomes almost impossible to unsubscribe, especially if you have to do it over the phone .
Other companies may only make one offer to you before allowing you to cancel your subscription. Adobe is notorious for cutting the price of its subscription in half as soon as you threaten to cancel it . On the other hand, Hulu used to offer a free month when you tried to cancel your subscription, but a year ago the company was offering a single Redditor six months of service for $2.99 . You might even be lucky enough to try it with non-traditional subscriptions. For example, if you have an annual credit card, call the card company before the card is renewed. There’s a good chance you can get them to waive the fee entirely when you threaten to cancel – not a bad deal even if you have to call back every year.
The real reason to do your research is to avoid completely losing access to your subscription (unless you agree). Some companies are content not only to let you unsubscribe without offering anything, but also not to let you resubscribe after the fact. For example, an AMC A-List subscription does not allow you to renew your subscription for six months after you cancel it. You don’t want to cancel a subscription you’re actively using in pursuit of a better deal, only to find yourself locked out of the service for an extended period of time.
But if you’re sure the company doesn’t have such a policy, there’s no risk of unsubscribing and resubscribing if you go through the process without offering a better deal. You are already paying for it. In the worst case, you will simply continue to pay what you have already been charged. Just remember to keep an eye on the new deal: if they offer you a good price for six months, for example, don’t let it expire – when the seventh month comes, who knows how much they’ll charge you.