looming in the background. You know it’s coming. You’re trying to forget all about it. The movie theme from Jaws keeps playing in your head.

The beginning refrains ….”da dant da dant” … are growing louder and louder. Sleepless nights. And screaming at the top of your lungs sounds like the best way for you to handle the stress.

Then it happens. Just on the day you almost had a peaceful mind. It came in the mail … now staring up at you. The dreaded cell phone contract renewal. It has made its way into your castle; your fortress from the never-ending, encroaching marketing fingers of companies wanting you to buy, buy, buy and spend, spend, spend.

WAIT! Before you give in and renew your current cell phone contract, there is another way.

You may be saying, “Yeah, right. But, I don’t have time to go around town to all the different cell phone stores to see what phones they have or suffer brain damage from the sales pitches. By the time I get out of one store and go to another, I’m totally confused and don’t know what I’m doing no less be able to make an informed decision! It’ll be easier and less stressful to stay where I am.

Well, hear me out for a moment. There IS another way! It’s a service that the company I represent offers to all of our prospective customers. And you can use it from the comfort of your home at any time. So no wasted gas, time and definitely no brain damage. Also, I can be on the phone with you and guide you through the process so you’ll know you are being helped in the best possible way. I’m like your “information reducer” – you just see what you need to see and read.

You wanna know what it is?

“Okay.”

It is a website that offers cell phone handsets and accessories at great prices. At least 90% of the time, the prices are better than what you can get from the carriers themselves. And if you change carriers, the deals on the handsets are even better! (Of course, a person signs up for the service on this site too … so it is a one stop shop for all your needs.)

The other thing you can do is check out the cell phone service plans with each carrier. So you can comparison shop all in one place … just by the click of your mouse. It can’t get much easier than that.

Also, especially if you have continued to renew your contract without making any changes, you may find that you have a very old plan that is costing you more than what a new one, with more minutes and features, would cost.

If you have me on the phone with you, I would ask you some questions about how you use your phone and service to make sure the plan that you now have would be the best one for you. We would look at the number of minutes you use, your calling pattern, and if you travel enough to need a larger coverage area, or if roll over minutes would be a consideration. The answers to these questions will help me help you determine what the best service plan would be for you at the best price. (Note: essentially all the carriers have the same plans and their charges are about the same … yet there are a few differences that could sway you one way or the other. That’s where I would be able to help you the most!)

“Uh, I’ve been hearing about these unlimited plans for $99.99. What about them? Are they a good deal? Who has them? I was thinking I should get that and get rid of my land line.”

Well, all the carriers have a version of the unlimited plan for $99.99. Nextel is higher. The other thing to look at is if you are on a family plan now and the additional phone service costs anywhere from $9.99 to $19.99 … the shared unlimited plan would be $99.99 for each person. So it can be a pretty expensive proposition if you don’t really look at all of your communication needs and usage. There are other alternatives … and it’s not really an either or decision … it’s what can we combine to get the best prices and best features and benefits that will add value to your communication needs.

“Like what for instance … if it isn’t either or?”

Well, again the company I represent offers all the phone services from stand alone long distance, local phone, DSL, digital voice (VoIP) and digital video (yes, you can SEE the person you are talking with!) as well as all the cell phone service providers. We are the largest direct seller of telecommunications in the world. We know how to help our customers get the best communication services that truly fit their needs. You no longer have to take what the monopolies decide to offer you! Now individual consumers can have their own communications consultants to help them determine what’s best for them.

“Well, that sounds really good. You mentioned earlier that you can offer cell phone handsets for less money than the carriers. Give me some idea of what that means.”

Okay. First, let me preface my comments with the following. To get the best pricing on a new phone it’s better to go to another carrier than to stay with the one you currently have. New customers are treated “better” than the customers who decide to stay. I haven’t figured the reason why they do this. So, if you don’t really care one way or the other … then the first thing to do is look to see what the other carriers are offering.

So, lets say you wanted to get a Blackberry Pearl, the best prices would be between ATT and T-Mobile on my company’s site… $39.99 versus FREE.

(The carriers’ costs are from $79.99 (for a refurbished one) up to $199.99 for the same phone. So just doing this comparison you can see you can save quite a bit!) In my case, I probably would pick the ATT phone because I travel a lot and need coverage across the country. ATT has a bigger “footprint” than T-Mobile. So the extra $39.99 would be worth it to me. Next would be to select the plan you want based on the number of minutes you use on average. Like I said before, all the carriers have essentially the same pricing for the same amount of minutes. T-Mobile is slightly less than the others.

If you weren’t going to be a new customer for ATT, then the Blackberry Pearl would cost $89.99 through my company’s website. Or if you were going to stay with Verizon the phone would cost $224.99 rather than $149.99.

Another thing to know is that the phone prices change on a regular basis. Usually the prices are the same for about a week to two weeks. There are always good “deals” on selected phones. For example, one the “deals” going on now is the ATT Palm Centro – White for only $49.99. (Without a contract, the phone would cost $269.99.)

Therefore a good strategy would be to start looking at the website a month or so before your contract expires. Then you can be aware of what the deals are going on and also it gives you time to figure out what kind of phone you would like, what plan you should be getting and if you would want to change your carrier. Again, you can do all of this from the comfort of your own home and 24/7 if you wanted to.

“Wow, you’re right! I do have another way to comparison shop and get good information about cell phones without the brain damage or spending big bucks on gas. Thanks a lot … this will be a dream rather than a nightmare!

“One last question … will I be able to keep my old phone number if I do decide to change carriers? I’ve had it for years and it’s on all my business cards.”

Yes, you’ll be able to keep your number and “port” it to another carrier. That was made in effect by FCC regulations a few years back. So no worries there, either.

Looking forward to doing business with you as your communications consultant. Tell me when your contract is about to expire, and I will get in touch with you a month before and we can start this process together.

“That’s great. I will definitely like that. In fact, my contract is coming up now. Can we start now?”

Yup. Let’s set a day and time that will be good for you … and we’ll go from there. Got your calendar?

If you would like to get more information on how Linda Halladay can help you alleviate your cell phone contract “nightmare”, please contact her at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Her phone number is 719-359-8272. The name of her company is Personal Communications Pros, LLC – Your link to better connections by maximizing your minutes and your money.

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