Verizon Corporate discount question

[elberta5]

Corporate discount question

I'm an HP employee and get a corporate discount from Verizon on their service and the phones.
At end of July our contract (3 lines) is expiring. I would like two switch to Verizon.
However their discount on the phones is very minute, actually it's cheaper to get them at Verizon store
And even more cheaper at Costco or Radio Shack.
When I call the Verizon CS regarding getting the phones some where else and then transferring the
Service to for corporate discount, I was told absolutely NOT.
To get the discount, everything must be done via corporate internet site.
Is any way around it?

[dglively]

We just took advantage of the Verizon discount program offered to Cisco employees. I went out to Verizon's HP discount sight and compared it to what Cisco employees are offered and here's what I determined...

- Yes, the hardware prices offered to HP employees is not that great. However, they are constantly changing. Currently, a VX6000 through the HP program is $99 with a two-year contract. Via the Cisco program the same phone on with a two-year agreement costs $109.99. However, When I bought my VX6000 through the Cisco program back in May it was $99 with a $70 mail in rebate. I monitored the Cisco program site for three months prior to my purchase and found that hardware prices change almost monthly.

- HP employees are getting a 20% discount on monthly rates for all plans! Cisco employees only get a 15% discount.

So, if you look at the bigger economic picture, even if you do pay $25 to $30 more per phone you’ll recover that and much, much more over the two year period through the savings you'll realize as a result of the 20% monthly plan discount.

In your case it pays to look past your startup costs and evaluate your total one or two years costs. That's where the real savings are.

[mem7759]

So, obviously the discounts vary by employer. I think I can get somewhere around 20%. As some have stated they get their discounts on "all plans". I tried calling on mine and I was told I cannot get the discount on my plan, because I am on a Family Share plan. Does anyone know if this is employer specific?

[dglively]

Saying corporate B2B discounts vary by company is pretty darn near the same as saying they are company specific....

The best way to "comparison shop" is the go to the extra-net site Verizon has setup for your company's corporate discounts and compare them against other company's extra-net sites. The URL's are consistent in their format; just change the last part where the company name would be.

http://business.verizonwireless.com/b2b/company_name

Try Cisco, try HP, try other major corporations...

[mem7759]

Thanks for the info. I checked, and unfortunately, with my company, the discount does NOT apply to the family share plan. Oh well.

[TProphet]

Have you considered Sprint?

Sprint plans are pretty competitive with Verizon, and you may be eligible for a discount through them. I recently switched to them from Verizon, and at least in the Seattle area, I can't tell the difference. I travel outside the Sprint coverage area occaionally, but I pay an extra $5/mo which insulates me from roaming charges. This is called "Free and Clear America" and all usage is billed at home rate. It works like the Verizon SingleRate plans, but is a lot less expensive--if the phone works, it doesn't matter whether you're roaming; it just comes out of your minutes.

Incidentally, my aunt works for HP, and Sprint gives her a discount--25% if I'm not mistaken. She and my uncle are on a shared minutes plan. You can call 1-888-788-4727 to find out whether you're eligible. If you're in the Sacramento area, ask for a 916 number because the plans are better than those for 530 numbers (behind the scenes, 530 folks are served by affiliate carrier Ubiquitel rather than directly by Sprint; it's kind of like dealing with a franchise versus a company-owned outlet).

[jayc]

Originally Posted by mem7759

Thanks for the info. I checked, and unfortunately, with my company, the discount does NOT apply to the family share plan. Oh well.

I've never seen you not be able to get a discount on the primary line... usually not the secondary lines though. You might want to double check.

[MissTress]

I get 50% off of equipment, and I htink that includes phones?