This isn’t a post to thank Verizon.
In fact, after 19 years with them, I’m more disappointed than anything.
Quick story…
AT&T has been our internet provider forever. They upgraded our neighborhood to fiber, sent a tech team, and—classic move—added a sales rep to the visit. One conversation later, I walked away with a mobile offer that cut my monthly bill by 45%. New phone, buyout on the old ones…hard to ignore.
I didn’t want to leave Verizon. I called them, gave them the offer, and asked if they could come close. After an hour on the phone?
Nothing. No effort. No counter. No curiosity. Just…shrugs.
So:
AT&T – signed.
Verizon – cancelled.
That’s when the real fun started.
All I wanted next was my final bill.
Week 1
Agent #1: “We’ll mail it.”
Mail?
As in, the thing delivered by a person, not a computer?
Apparently yes.
And to pay? I needed to physically go to a Verizon store and write a check.
Am I living in 2025 or 1925?
Week 2
No bill.
Week 3
Two more agents. Same script. “We’ll rush it.”
Three days later…they charged my account automatically—for the bill I still couldn’t see.
They did email a link, but it didn’t work because my account was now closed. Perfect.
Week 4
Agent #4 assures me the bill is coming.
“It already came out of my bank account!” I say.
“We’ll mail it,” they reply—as if this is the twist that makes things better.
Today, it finally arrived.
I genuinely felt something I haven’t felt in a decade: excitement to open my mailbox.
A large envelope. Could it be…The Final Bill?!
Reader, it was.
Here’s the punchline:
I was a 19-year customer.
I would have paid MORE to stay if Verizon had simply tried, asked a question, made a gesture, acted like loyalty mattered.
But loyalty wasn’t part of the playbook. Just the script.
Takeaway for every business leader, operator, restaurateur, salesperson, and founder in my network:
Customers don’t leave because you raise prices.
They leave when you stop listening.
They leave when loyalty becomes a one-way street.
They leave when staying feels harder than switching.
Great companies don’t win on product alone—they win on effort, empathy, and the feeling they create.
Anyone else have a Verizon war story?
Or am I just the guy standing at the mailbox cheering for envelopes? 🤦
Next battle: AT&T reimbursements…stay tuned. 🤺