Vodafone Retention Deals

MercMan

Just got of the phone to them. Most unhelpful bunch I've met! I got a reduction from £49pcm to £35pcm until the end of my contract, I told them they will have to give me a bloody good deal or I'm off when it comes to renewal. They sugegsted I look on E-Bay for a replacement phone. I can use any phone I like as long as its unlocked so they tell me. Off to look for an iPhone.

vernumamy

Hi all, newby here making first post.

I have been following this forum for a couple of months now, to see what sort of deals Vodafone may be offering to existing customers.

I will share with you my thoughts and experience with Vodafone.

I am currently coming to the end of my 18 month SIM ONLY contract with Vodafone.

About 2 months ago the discount on my tariff came to an end. I had forgotten that it reverted back to the original price after 15 months and I was reminded of this by Vodafone after I contacted them to query the price rise.

They told me I had 3 months remaining on my contract but they would put me through to upgrades to see what they could offer.

The chap I spoke to in upgrades offered me a 12 month SIM ONLY deal of,

600 minutes
unlimited texts

for £15.00 per month.

This offer was being advertised in the daily newspapers to anybody, so it was no special offer to me as an existing customer. ( fair enough they don't have to )

I thanked him but declined.

So last Wednesday 20/01/10 was the day I was eligible to give my 30 days notice and apply for my PAC number, which I did.

When I phoned Vodafone, I selected the "thinking of leaving option" and was asked why I wanted to leave.

I told the chap I was speaking to of my situation, and that as an existing customer I had felt a little bit insulted by what I was offered by his colleague in upgrades.

He asked me what I was interested in.

I told him about this deal, here below (post number 2264 in November 2009)

themacuser wrote: »

I got this as a new customer by ringing up. Wanted a sim only but didn't mind staying for 18 months.

I got:

900 Anytime Minutes
Unlimited Text
Unlimited Landline Calls
Unlimited Internet
18 Months
£15 a month sim only.

Can't complain

I was told that he could not do that deal.

I said alright then.

I told him that I have an advert from one of the daily newspapers from last week offering,

1200 minutes
unlimited landlines
unlimited texts
unlimited internet

SIM ONLY

for £25.00 per month.

His reply was "yes we have that offer".

I said that offer is for anybody, what would you do for me on that as an existing customer.

He basically told me that there really wasn't any room to manouvre, that the margin to do a deal was not there to give a loyalty discount to existing customers and that all the main mobile operators were cutting prices that much, they are all struggling to give loyalty discounts.

So it is my experience that,

"VODAFONE DO NOT"

treat existing customers any better or different than new customers.

So should they??

Well I personally believe that "loyalty" is a two way thing.

I can go on a 30 day rolling contract for £xx.00 with no loyalty or commitment from me, or I can commit to a longer term deal as an existing customer for a better rate.

I even offered to reduce the "unlimited texts" down to "200" as I am not a texter, to reduce the price, but I was told it is part of the bundle so it cannot be done.

I received my PAC number from Vodafone yesterday, so they obviously don't mind losing me.

I have seen offers with T-Mobile, 02 and orange, not sure which one I am going with yet, but I have to make a decision before the end of the month as their offers are coming to an end.

Good luck to you all,

Albert.

caffinebassman

vernumamy wrote: »

So it is my experience that,

"VODAFONE DO NOT"

treat existing customers any better or different than new customers.

So should they??

Well I personally believe that "loyalty" is a two way thing.

Interesting story!

Here's my thoughts ...

I actually think that mostly loyalty is becoming a very weak tool in getting good deals with mobile phone networks.

I wouldn't be surprised if companies are able to work out a profit valuation for each of their customers and are actively letting their lower value customers go so that they can sign up new customers to their newly priced tariffs with better margins.

After all, for a deal to work it has to be acceptable to both sides.

What's the sense in paying £XX per month for 1000 mins, 500 txts and 500MB internet if you use a fraction of your allowance.

Conversely what's the point for the network in offering the above deal at £XX with £10 discount if you do use a high % of the allowances.

Then there is the complication of adding a handset onto the deal - people often just don't "get it" that you are paying for the handset over the minimum term - that's why there is a minimum term.

After all if you buy a TV on credit over 12 months say and then you loose it, break it or it's stolen - you can't go back to Currys and demand a new one.

I think the best tips for getting a good deal that you are happy with are:

• don't be distracted by the latest shiny new phone (you are buying this thing - it is never FREE)
• know what you want from the phone and research for to find a phone that does what you want
• as best you can match your contract to you typical usage a little over is OK a lot over is wasted money
• don't expect miracles IMHO loyalty is fast becoming a myth in the mobile industry
• be realistic even if you have "loyalty points" it will not buy you a deal on which the provider does not make sufficient profit

All of that said, Vodafone, where is my free iPhone 3GS 16MB with 1000mins, 500txts, 500MB internet for £25 per month :rotfl:

TeetotalTom

Hiya, first post but am a bit stuck which deal and phone to go for.

Am at the end of my current contract with Vodafone and enquired about an upgrade deal to the iPhone. Was told by the rep that they couldnt budge on prices so I requested my PAC code.

Was phoned a couple of days later by a Vodafone rep who offered me a pretty crappy deal at first (which involved me spending more money than I am on now!) then I got offered an n97 mini for free, 300 minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited internet for £20 a month, 2year contract, what do you think?

The other side of this is after speaking to a Vodafone rep in the store I found out I could trade in my old phone for an iPhone which would knock some money off the price over the length of the contract, no-one at Vodafone told me you could do that!

So I'm a bit stuck as to which deal to go for. Do I go for the n97 mini deal or trade in my old phone for the iPhone contract, which is more money per month but I do prefer that phone.

The other alternative is to go with the n97 mini deal and trade that phone in for an iPhone when the new one is released in about June.

Decisions, decisions...

MercMan

After all if you buy a TV on credit over 12 months say and then you loose it, break it or it's stolen - you can't go back to Currys and demand a new one.

Funny that's exactly what the VF Customer Retention guy said to me.

caffinebassman

MercMan wrote: »

Funny that's exactly what the VF Customer Retention guy said to me.

LOL I can assure you I'm not in any way connected to Vodafone - apart from my phone contract which is out soon and I'm probably off to 3.

I remember many, many moons ago I bought some hi-fi gear with a loan from the bank (I was young and frankly pretty stupid) - I had it for about 6 months and the flat I was in got broken into and naturally it was gone for good ... I learned from that to insure stuff that I'm buying on credit or to make sure it's covered somehow.

Of course you then need to consider that in the costs and make sure you get a decent deal on the insurance.

Pammy

I'm a little confused, has anyone had a deal on the iphone or is it a fact they are sticking to what their website states?

mclean1979

Pammy wrote: »

I'm a little confused, has anyone had a deal on the iphone or is it a fact they are sticking to what their website states?

Try taking your business to another provider. My brother got £5 off per month doing this. I wil be doing the same in a few weeks as vodafone haven't bothered to contact me regarding renewal. :j

Pammy

Why are 02 customers receiving all these amazing deals. My boyfriend just got off the phone with Vodaphone and they said its not something vodaphone can offer,

I don't understand why O2 can do this.

Smithmeister

Vodafone_company_representative wrote: »

Hi Smithmeister

I'm sure I can clear this up.

To be able to do this though I will need to take a look at your account. The reply you have received is not from my team, it is from our normal email customer services. So that I can find you email and take a look at what's happening could you let me know your reference number for the email?

Alternatively if you don't have a reference number, you can follow our previous instructions for getting in touch ensuring you quote WRT135 in the subject line (otherwise it won't come to my team).

All the best

Kirsty
Web Relations Team
Vodafone UK

Smithmeister wrote: »

Hi Kirsty,

Thanks for the response, here are the details you require :-
Re: WRT 135 [#1981355]


Hope that helps.

Hi Kirsty,

Did you receive this ok? I posted it Thursday afternoon.

Regards