My three month trial was coming up on 2/10. I had already gotten two mailings from them asking me to renew. Based on multiple car forums (including this one), I felt that I had enough ammo to bargain for a reduced renewal price. Another thing I have learned about XM is that they can royally screw things up on the credit cards by continued billing after cancellations, incorrect billing amounts. etc.
What is interesting is that much of what you can do is based on the initiative the particular operator that answers your call.
The first operator asked what she could do for me. I explained that my renewal was ending and I wanted to talk about the pricing. She quoted me prices that were higher than the numbers on the latest mailing. I told here that they were too high and asked if there was a better deal or a promotion. She stated a simple ..."no, that's the best I can do". When I said that I couldn't afford that amount and that I was thinking of cancelling, she just said..."if you want to cancel, just don't do anything and your account will cancel on its own". Geesh, not much marketing going on there. I thanked her and hung up.
I called right back on the same number and got a different operator. Same routine...trial expiring, renewal, too costly, etc. She was giving me most of the same spiel, but when I asked about promotions, she said..."I can't offer you one, but if you know of one, you can ask me about it". WTF?! So, I say..."so if I ask about $77 a year you can then give it to me?" Yep. Well, the $77 deal is plus royalty fees and taxes for a total of about $92 per year. She went on to talk about the automatic renewal of the subscription. I asked how it worked and she said it was billed to the credit card on file. So I tell her that I don't have a credit card. She says that they will mail me an invoice. I think there is a $2 fee to have an invoice mailed, but that is cheap insurance if I don't have to go argue with their customer service in India about incorrect billings. All told, this ends up being a half-price deal.
What is interesting is that much of what you can do is based on the initiative the particular operator that answers your call.
The first operator asked what she could do for me. I explained that my renewal was ending and I wanted to talk about the pricing. She quoted me prices that were higher than the numbers on the latest mailing. I told here that they were too high and asked if there was a better deal or a promotion. She stated a simple ..."no, that's the best I can do". When I said that I couldn't afford that amount and that I was thinking of cancelling, she just said..."if you want to cancel, just don't do anything and your account will cancel on its own". Geesh, not much marketing going on there. I thanked her and hung up.
I called right back on the same number and got a different operator. Same routine...trial expiring, renewal, too costly, etc. She was giving me most of the same spiel, but when I asked about promotions, she said..."I can't offer you one, but if you know of one, you can ask me about it". WTF?! So, I say..."so if I ask about $77 a year you can then give it to me?" Yep. Well, the $77 deal is plus royalty fees and taxes for a total of about $92 per year. She went on to talk about the automatic renewal of the subscription. I asked how it worked and she said it was billed to the credit card on file. So I tell her that I don't have a credit card. She says that they will mail me an invoice. I think there is a $2 fee to have an invoice mailed, but that is cheap insurance if I don't have to go argue with their customer service in India about incorrect billings. All told, this ends up being a half-price deal.
Not much bang for the buck from either service!!
