Ways to cut TV, phone costs

Weren't we supposed to be paperless by now? Not only are we still buying paper (maybe more now than ever), we have all these digital costs piling up. How to Cut the Beastly Cost of Digital Services gives some good advice on how to make small but meaningful changes:

• DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL: Cable, satellite and telephone companies can only be overjoyed that millions of their customers take no action to lower their bills, and instead routinely pay much too much for overpriced plans they purchased a decade ago.
• IF THEY SAY NO, THREATEN TO SWITCH: If you're thinking about switching to another satellite, cable or phone provider, call your current one and let 'em know.
• BUNDLE YOUR SERVICES: With traditional landline ownership dwindling as more customers use only cellphones, the major phone and cable companies are chockablock with packages intended to keep you from straying.
• RECONSIDER THIRD-PARTY CARRIERS: Once, third-party long-distance companies offered cheaper long-distance calling than you could get from your local provider, but that might no longer be the case.
• ASK FOR CORPORATE DISCOUNTS, MONITOR WEB SITES FOR DEALS, AND IF ALL ELSE FAILS, DOWNGRADE

Have you tried any of these? Or maybe you know of some better ways that aren't listed?

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This post is used with permission of Sound Mind Investing, America's best-selling Christian financial newsletter. SMI, published by investment advisor Austin Pryor, has been Crown's primary investing resource for nearly 20 years. More than 14,000 families rely monthly on SMI's step-by-step investment advice. Visit Sound Mind Investing to learn more.

Comments

[Pam]

This morning, June 1 about 6:45 am, you were discussing how long to keep paper records. You stated that you do not need to keep bank records. I was audited by the IRS because I did home day care and had very little taxable income due to the ability to deduct house hold expenses. This triggered the audit in which they took every bank for that year and tracked the money coming in and out of the account. They added the money coming in to be sure we were claiming it all, we were. My point is that if you are self employed or have other dealings out of the ordinary your bank statments shoudl be kept for at least 3 years.

[jerry]

TracFone prepaid wireless is a great way to cut phone charges. I recently lost my job and as a result i have been forced to cut down on spending i started by changing my coverage to Tracfone and have saved over 1000$ in the last year on excess spending.

[Sharon]

Everyone one in our house uses pay as you go phones for cell use (except for the phone my husband has been given to him by his company to use free of charge -- but he is still careful how he uses it because the company is paying for it). With pay as you go, we really think twice about making calls and being on the phone for very long. Another bonus is it reduces temptation to be chatting on the phone while driving, which is being proven to be very distracting and dangerous.