How to get FREE Money.

If I told you that you could make $1000+ with very little effort – would you be keen?

Of course you would!

And, Sure. Being offered a wad full of cash sounds way more appealing than ‘saving on your household bills’…..but, essentially they amount to the same.

The truth is most of us are being ripped off.

Why? Because, the majority of us are too lazy, clueless, busy or not bothered to do anything about it.

Contact my energy provider? Get comparison quotes? Speak to someone who couldn’t care less at a call centre? No! Thank! You!

I read a great book this week called ‘Kill Bills! – The 9 Insider Tricks You Need to Win The War on Household Bills’ that might make you reconsider. It is written by a chap called Joel Gibson who, having worked at Australia’s biggest consumer network, is something of an expert on the tricks the industry plays on us, hapless consumers.

The book is wedged full of detailed advice on every type of bill, from energy and insurance to home loans and groceries*. He drills down in savage detail all the sneaky ways these companies make a play for our cash and gives all the info (and scripts) required to level the playing field. Scott Pape does something similar in his rather excellent book, ‘The Barefoot Investor: The Only Money Guide You’ll Ever Need’ which is required reading for anyone who is planning to live off money for the rest of their life.

Here’s some of the ‘Kill Bills‘ stuff to get you started (upgrade to the book for the full monty).

FREE MONEY – Trap 1: ‘Are you a ‘Price Chaser’ or a ‘Sleeping Beauty’? Whilst you might assume that you’d be rewarded for loyalty, when it comes to changing providers, it’s the super slutty switchers that tend to get the best deals. In fact, the ‘Sleeping Beauties’ (‘who never asks for a better deal and never, ever leaves.’) usually pay a premium (up to 34% more!!) which accounts for the ‘Price Chasers’ better deal.

Get the $$$ you deserve: Don’t be afraid to switch. Ask your friends/social platforms for referrals, check out the comparison websites, call and get a few different quotes. If you have been coasting along for years with some providers you can make some real FREE money by simply making a few phone calls. In some cases you only need to ask your current provider – ‘Am I on the best deal for my usage?’, ‘Can you offer me a loyalty discount?’ or ‘I have been offered X by Y, are you willing to match that?’ Joel’s No.1 trick in the book is called ‘The De Niro’, inspired by the film ‘Heat’ – ‘Don’t let yourself get attached to anything you are not willing to walk out on in 30 seconds flat if you feel the heat around the corner.’ Basically, “If you’re not willing to walk away, if you’re not ruthlessly mobile, you’ll never get the best deals and sooner or later you’ll end up getting ripped off.”

FREE MONEY – Trap 2: Are you a victim of ‘The Honeymoon Strategy’? Because most of us are adverse to change, once we choose a provider we tend to take a ‘set and forget’ approach. Unless we get some sudden bill shocker we can tootle along for years without noticing the creeping cost and steadily decreasing discounts. This is what is commonly known as a ‘front book versus back book pricing strategy’ – they lure you in with a cheap deal/initial discount and then roger you later to make up their losses. Some companies even have teams dedicated to creating algorithms to work out how hard they can roger you (raise their prices) before you’ll decide to pack up your pants and leave!

Get the $$$ you deserve: Time to do a little ‘Mystery Shopping’ my friend. Go to your provider’s website (in disguise – use a different address in the same area/use a friend’s email/car registration number) and see what NEW customers are being offered. Pay attention to the ads on TV/at the bus stop and in-store. If they are more competitive/better than what you are currently paying for, then ask them politely to ‘Please explain’. Make sure you keep an eye on the difference between this year and last year’s premium and request an extension on your loyalty discount/that they match current introductory offers. If they aren’t forthcoming (and you have a better offer up your sleeve) then it’s time to ‘adopt the ‘Elizabeth Taylor’ approach and take honeymoon after honeymoon after honeymoon’ depending on the best offer at any given time.

FREE MONEY – Trap 3: Have you forgotten that David beat Goliath? Just because these big companies understand all the fancy jargon (mega-what?!) and bamboozle us with ‘loyalty discounts’ and ‘product disclosure statements’ doesn’t mean we can’t fight them. This is what economists call ‘information asymmetry’ and it’s what your providers are counting on to scare you off asking too many questions.

Get the $$$ you deserve: You may be small but that doesn’t mean you can’t be mighty. Don’t forget YOU are the customer and that is a SUPERPOWER. Yes, you may not speak the language but there are a lot of resources at your disposal. Seek out info from reliable sources like government websites or consumer groups and ask questions. Bills don’t stand still so check in regularly (annually?) and don’t be in a hurry to decide as sometimes a ‘retention offer’ might improve, or an ’empty cart’ at checkout could result in a further discount the next day.

It’s been at least 18 months since I last examined and renegotiated my own outgoings, so excuse me whilst I nip off for a vino to take a closer look.

I’ll report back next week how much FREE money I ended up finding. I encourage you to do the same and let’s share our wins!

This GET RICHER post is brought to you by someone who knows money can’t buy you happiness. But, it can buy you a jet ski – and have you ever seen anyone sad on a jet ski?

*’Kill Bills’ is written and tailored for the Australian market (in terms of providers) but the majority of the advice is valid wherever you call home. It’s a cracking read and unlike a lot of self-help books that waffle and repeat their way through 12 chapters, this is chock full of practical/actionable advice. PS. This is not an Ad.