The wrapping paper is in Recycling. The stockings are unstuffed and the tree is on the curb. Yup….it is a full on Christmas Hangover. It might be a New Year but it’s the same old problem “Uggg, I spent way too much again! How can I save money in the New Year!?!” How can I reduce my spending?
Don’t worry ...we got ya covered here and have some tips with things you can do now to prepare yourself for the next holiday. Here are three sure fire ways to reduce your communications related expenses. Hurry and have a look. The next big holiday is right around the corner. After all, it’s National Corn Chip day in January! (seriously...it’s a thing.)
Three ways to Save Money by Tightening your Tech Belt in 2020 and reducing your Internet communications services costs.
Often overlooked are the so called ”fixed expenses” related to your Internet and home phone service and they are ripe for savings!
Internet Service Providers are marketing high-speed connectivity very aggressively with the promise of light speeds and plans that offer all-you-can-eat download data. These plans probably make sense if you are a professional gamer competing in a championship who is interested in downloading the entire contents of the Library of Congress while on a video call listening to HD Spotify catching up on email.
But if you just wanna’ watch the latest episode of “Mike Tyson’s Mysteries” on Netflix while the rest of the family is doing their own thing on the internet, you probably don’t need to be DARPA.
1) Reduce speed
Speeding to work in a Porsche is the dream of many ...But have you driven a Ford Lately?
Dropping to a lower, more appropriate speed could reduce your monthly bill by 30% or more. Ummmm... do you even know what you are spending? Maybe you might even be wondering “uhhh, who is my Internet provider?” Find out and take a look at what they are charging you and consider making a change. A family of four should be covered nicely with a plan like this - http://limetelenet.com/residential/internet.
It’s less than 60 bucks a month ...not bad considering the CRTC holds that Canadians spend much more on average*
2) Down your Data
How much data does a Data Needer need If Data Needer needed data? (* note...this has nothing to do with my Wood Chuck)
Internet usage limits and sneaky overage charges are a hallmark of most internet packages in Canada. The bottom line is you are probably paying too much. Consider “how much Internet data do I really need” (hint ...between you, me and the lamp post here its ~200GB a month if you are an average Canadian Household...shhhhhh)**
When looking back and connect the dots and find all of the data about your data usage, you’ll quickly discover that there are better plans out there for you. So Down your data and Up your savings because there are big bargains out there now. Here is an extraordinary deal http://limetelenet.com/residential/internet/
3) To HomePhoneLine or Not to HomePhoneLine? That is the question
Is it nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous and garbled telephone service? It ain't Shakespeare but the master storyteller wouldn’t want you to be asking “can you hear me now?” after every soliloquy. KEEP your home Phone line so they can hear your every line! There are plenty of providers who are bundling home telephone service in almost for free. Go with one of those. As an added bonus having a residential phone service line makes it easier for the ambulance to find you when you call 911 after opening your credit card bills.
What’s Next?
As 2020 approaches and you are looking at making the changes that are right for you, consider changing your ISP. You may be wondering, “How do I switch Internet Providers?” Don’t worry, the whole process is easy and can be simple and painless. Turns out the Canadian Government has us covered! The CRTC outlines the process here and makes it easy. https://crtc.gc.ca/eng/television/services/serv.htm Be sure to watch the Martel Family Video. Other than being a bit 2 dimensional they seem to be lovely family who figured this whole thing out already.
Good luck tightening your Tech Belt in 2020.
*CRTC communications spending report 2018
https://crtc.gc.ca/eng/publications/reports/policymonitoring/2018/cmr3c.htm
** iGR Group and CRTC study https://crtc.gc.ca/eng/publications/reports/policymonitoring/2018/cmr3c.htm
https://www.telecompetitor.com/igr-average-monthly-broadband-usage-is-190-gigabytes-monthly-per-household/
