If you’ll recall, and nobody will, that my first ever Frugal Hack was about a secret Dish Network programming plan that they don’t advertise which gets you 50+ channels for only $19.99 a month. Pretty darn good deal, right? I know many of my frugal readers have already cut the cable cord, but if you’re a sports fan, like me, your options are pretty darn limited.

After all, you’re not going to get ESPN with the $19.99 plan, or the Discovery Channel, or Fox News, or TBS, or TNT. By knowing how to negotiate a deal with DishNetwork, you’ll learn how to get many of those channels without a significant increase in your bill. Also, it is worth mentioning that the strategy I’m going to describe will work for any cable or satellite TV company. If done correctly of course!

Do Your Research

The first thing you have to do is analyze your situation. Are you currently under contract with your cable or Satellite company? If so, this hack is going to be much more difficult to pull off.

Next, find out what the competition is currently offering. If you know this info like the back of your hand you’re going to get some serious street cred when talking to the rep. In my case, DirectTV was offering a special promotion of $29.99/mo. for 12 months for something they call the “Choice” package. It offered 150+ channels, including ESPN, and was going to used as my ammo when shooting for a better deal.

– DirectTV is ridiculously expensive these days and doesn’t give you much power to negotiate anymore. Instead, when you make the call to Dish to negotiate, tell them you plan on using Hulu Plus and Netflix along with an HD Antennae. I just did this and got the screaming deal of $45 off my bill for 12 months with the America’s Top 120+ package.

Make the Cancel Call

Next, you call the 1-800 number and tell the first person you speak with that you want to cancel your account. They’ll ask “why?” and you’ll say “I have found a better deal with a competitor of yours.” They’ll immediately put you on hold and send your call to the customer loyalty or customer retention department. The name varies by company, but the bottom line is you’ll want to talk with these guys as they are the ONLY ones authorized to give you the kick-ass deal you’re going to ask for.