Cell phone companies think you're stupid

No really, they do. I called up my cell phone service provider yesterday. I had seen an ad they had that gave an expensive phone to new customers for free. The only requirement was to sign a one-year contract. I've been with this same company for four years. I asked them about the deal and they said it was only available for new customers. But, they told me, they really appreciated my loyalty and therefore would give me any phone I wanted at a discount. So I asked about the phone in the ad. I could have it for only $99. Wow, what a deal! Pay $99 for something that's $0 for everyone else. When I told them that it wasn't much of a deal compared to the one I saw in the ad, they dropped it to $70. So this is what they think of loyal customers. We have to pay for everything, but new customers get everything for free. That seems to be the exact opposite of appreciating loyalty.

"What to do?" you ask? I'll tell you. Switch cell phone providers every twelve months or so. Never sign a contract longer than a year and as soon as that expires, start looking for deals at competitors. When they're giving an expensive phone away for free, switch. And remember, you can take your phone number with you. If you catch a good deal through Amazon like one of my friends did, you can end up getting paid money on top of a free phone. Maybe they'll catch on at some point, and start treating loyal customers well.