Just signed up for DirecTV - Discounts?

[TakeCover]

Just signed up for DirecTV due to a discount being offered through my wife's employer, along with the inclusion of NFL Sunday Ticket at no charge for this season. And, I gotta say, we're pretty stoked to be ditching Mediacom...

Now, I know that these promotional prices don't last, and I'll need to cancel the "free" stuff (HBO, SHOWTIME, STARZ, Cinemax, etc.) manually once the promo periods are up to stay out of "surprise" charges, but are there any other recommendations out there to get additional discounts from DirecTV? I have heard that you can haggle with them over the course of your contract for freebies/better rates... What methods do/don't work for this?



Also, as a shameless plug, if anyone's considering signing up, we can both save $100 if I refer you to DirecTV, you'd just have to let me know via PM... :yes:

 

[TakeCover]

Bump & New Question:

The DirecTV installer will be out to my place on either the 28th or 29th. How can I tell before then whether or not I'll get the game on FCS on Saturday night? Their customer service has not been helpful (they resort to telling me to look at my channel guide, which isn't possible because we don't have our service installed yet). We signed up for the Choice package + Sports Pack.

 

[cowgirl836]

My mom called once about the price, threatened to switch to Dish and got the price reduced and free DVR.

I have no idea what she said, but she can definitely pull the "Take me very seriously right now" voice. Works great on children.

 

[dmclone]

Make sure you get every piece of equipment you ever think you're going to need. Once you sign the contract, they stop being so generous.

 

[hoosman]

I am not a customer of DirecTV. My girlfriend has the service and I have not heard anything nice about them. They will add services right away but seem to play games when you want to cut services. I spent an hour on the phone because they had the wrong (highest price) sports package installed. The first lady quickly added an additional (cheaper) package, but wasn't authorized to delete the previous package, so then we had 2 packages of the same thing. She gave me a phone number of another department -couldn't transfer my call. The next worker said she didn't know how to delete the first package because she was new. Then she said that her supervisor had to authorize the change and she put me on hold. Then she said that her supervisor wasn't there and she would talk to them later and have them credit the account. Then she said she wanted to get permission to delete the package from my girlfriend because I wasn't on the account. Then she told my girlfriend that I needed be added to the account. They were supposed to send an email when the credit occured - never happened. Then the bill arrived and a $30 service charge was added to the bill. As a new customer, you will get hit with a large rate increase when your trial period ends, then they will fight to keep you at the higher rate. If you do finally get programming and the service cost reduced, you will get a 25% increase in your bill a few months later because of "higher operating costs".

 

[2020cy]

I have had nothing but excellent customer service with Direct, refreshing after mediacum. Yyou could try to check online or go to a friends house with Direct and check for the game.

 

[bhutch65]

I am not a customer of DirecTV. My girlfriend has the service and I have not heard anything nice about them. They will add services right away but seem to play games when you want to cut services. I spent an hour on the phone because they had the wrong (highest price) sports package installed. The first lady quickly added an additional (cheaper) package, but wasn't authorized to delete the previous package, so then we had 2 packages of the same thing. She gave me a phone number of another department -couldn't transfer my call. The next worker said she didn't know how to delete the first package because she was new. Then she said that her supervisor had to authorize the change and she put me on hold. Then she said that her supervisor wasn't there and she would talk to them later and have them credit the account. Then she said she wanted to get permission to delete the package from my girlfriend because I wasn't on the account. Then she told my girlfriend that I needed be added to the account. They were supposed to send an email when the credit occured - never happened. Then the bill arrived and a $30 service charge was added to the bill. As a new customer, you will get hit with a large rate increase when your trial period ends, then they will fight to keep you at the higher rate. If you do finally get programming and the service cost reduced, you will get a 25% increase in your bill a few months later because of "higher operating costs".

I've had exactly the opposite in service from DirectTV. They will bend over backward for you to make you happy. A superbly run company. If I have ever had ANY problem, they take care of it and usually offer a credit of $5 to $10/ month for the next 3 or 6 months. If they do increase prices, I call them and have never been turned down when wanting to find a way to make it less expensive. I call them every 6 months or so to see if they can get me a bargain and they have always found a way to lower my bill. I just can't imagine anyone having a problem with them. 6 years Mediacom free and loving it.

 

[tplumm]

I signed with DirecTV 4 years ago. Initial package was Choice xtra with a single HD DVR. In July I called and explained that i had decided to cancel my service. I explained that I was tightening my budget and just could not justify what i was spending, given other offers on the market. Keep in mind this was probably the first time they had ever heard from me.
They handed me to a save center and the rep proceeded to reduce my monthly bill by $30/ month for the next twelve months; gave me 2 additional HD DVR's for my other two rooms; waived the install fee for the whole home DVR service and gave me NFL Sunday ticket.
I know some have recommended calling and threatening to cancel to try to get concessions, the rep even suggested i call each year "as a valued customer".
I believe that if i had been calling each year asking for stuff, doubt all those things would have been offerred. For example, i don't watch that much TV, so when they first offered movie channels, i simply said thanks, but no thanks. Reiterated the desire for a lower monthly fee, plus I could get more features as a new customer elsewhere.
My suggestion, if you are pleased with the service and are not regularly asking for concessions or upgrades, they are much more willing to negotiate on things you may really want a few years down the road. Told a few friends about what i was offered when i called and they were shut down when they tried the same tactic, but then they were in the habit of calling and regularly threatening cancellation. My two cents

 

[kingcy]

Every time you call them for whatever ask them if there is anyway to reduce your bill. Make sure you do so after the first year as well. I have had good luck with them this go around and nothing but pleased. If you ever really want to get something out of them just cancel and within hours they will be calling kissing your ***.