My wife and I have been loyal Telus customers for a few years now. Michelle has a cool little Nokia with a missing “4″ key and I have a Palm Treo with a recently cracked screen. When we signed up for our phones we spent a lot of time talking with a really nice guy at the dealer and we left feeling that he had taken care of us very well and that we had gotten a really great deal. On top of that, over the next few weeks I called Telus about a few things and with a little help they made our already great deal even better. As far as I was concerned they had lifelong customers.
My contract expires in two months and with the aforementioned damage our phones have taken we are looking to upgrade. Yesterday, someone from one of the local Telus stores called me and suggested I come in to look at the new phones and talk about the special offers that are available to me because my contract is expiring.
So, since I had some free time today (and I really like gadgets), I thought I’d swing by the Telus dealer that called me and see what they could tempt me with. The sales guy that greeted me took me to his desk, offered me a seat and looked up my account information on the computer. He seemed like a really nice guy (I was going to say, “really nice kid”, but I’m not ready to sound that old). He asked me if I was satisfied with the amount I was paying and after he reviewed my contract, he agreed that I was getting a good deal. He then led me over to the display cases and started talking about the “deal” that Telus was offering me to entice me to renew my contract.
Pointing out a few of the phones, he told me that if I renew my three year contract I could get several phones for free. Glancing down at the listed prices for these phones, I noticed that the listed three year contract price for them was $0. Free – as in the same price I was being offered. I then mentioned that the “deal” didn’t seem like much of a deal to me. After some slick sales hula hoops, I was told that because I have been a loyal customer that they were willing to treat me like a new customer and offer me the new customer price. Thanks Telus! That’s really swell of you. If that’s how you treat your friends…
I then picked up a few of the non-functioning demo units and asked about one phone in particular. Holding the non-functioning Blackberry Storm with it’s non-functioning clicky touch screen I asked if I could see one that is functioning. I was told no. I must have blinked funny or something because the answer was quickly changed to, “I could get one out of a box in the back but it would take ten minutes to set it up”. I declined the gracious offer and thanked the sales guy for his time.
Honeslty, I’m not the kind of person that haggles over price or expects a special secret deal everytime, but something about being told that Telus was willing to forget my loyality so they could offer me the best price really turned me off. On top of that, I find it really strange that anyone whould pay money for a phone (and monthly fees) when they have not even been able try a working model.
Telus, did you know we are in bad economic times? Every sale counts. Did you know Rogers has a product called the iPhone? It looks pretty cool. Maybe you’ve heard of them? Maybe you should try treating your friends like friends and having a working phone sitting around the store on the off chance someone might want to try one of your products.
There’s a good chance I’ll stay with Telus. The only reason I’d change is if I decide to get an iPhone. They’re not making it easy on themselves though.
