Saving Money

How To Get The Best Deal On Subscriptions

Getting the best deal is an art form, and it takes some time to learn how to do it effectively. When it comes to subscription services, a person has to know how the provider operates and know when to decline one deal, knowing a better one may come along later. I found this out when I recently renewed my subscription to a popular running magazine.

When I signed up for a fresh subscription a year ago, I wasn’t sure if I’d really read the magazine. I turned down a multi-year subscription deal in favor of a single year subscription. As with most subscriptions, the amount per issue went down the longer the subscription length, but I wanted to make sure I would actually read the magazine before committing to throwing my money away for a substantial period of time.

Now that the year was up, I was looking at my pricing options. I had read the magazine consistently and was willing to renew. I was pleasantly surprised that to keep me as a customer, they offered me a multi-year subscription rate that was half the multi-year rate offered to me a year ago! I hit the button and will be receiving my running magazine for 3 more years, dirt cheap.

Keep these things in mind when dealing with subscriptions, whether it’s a physical product or a service:

• Length Of Service Savings: Typically, the longer the subscription the less it costs per month. If you know you will want a service for a long period of time, take advantage by taking the longer duration.
• Everything is Negotiable: Many subscription services are negotiable. Find a phone number and call the provider’s customer service department and tell them you’d like to sign up, but it’s just not worth the cost. The worst they can say is, “No.”
• Hold Out For A Better Deal: Many subscription providers offer sweet deals to new customers but save the best deals for renewals. Magazines are notorious for doing this, as the rate of people declining to renew is high. They need to step up their game to keep customers.

Subscriptions can be found in every corner of everyday life, but that doesn’t mean you have to pay full price. By putting in a little effort, and keeping your eyes open as to how each subscription provider operates you can find their sweet spot of the best deal, and keep more of your hard-earned cash for your self.

What do you think, Clever Friends, what’s your best story saving money on a subscription?

Brock Kernin

Brock is a software engineer by day and personal finance blogger at night. He is a fitness junkie and enjoys grilling and smoking meat. Married with two children,  Brock strives to improve his skills as a husband and father, and is always on the lookout to stretch his family’s budget as far as he can.