Make your mobile phone pay its way

Sienna Miller ... who's paying her mobile bills?

Inertia is the enemy! Rise up, ye mobile phone users! Don’t overpay that mobile phone bill again! Discover the cheapest possible phone plan for your needs!

“It’s too much of a hassle for most people,” explains Phonechoice.com.au founder Doug Purdie. “They simply pay the bill and don’t think about it much.”

Phonechoice.com.au estimates most of us can save at least $100 a year by aligning our mobile phone calling patterns with one of the thousands of plans available through Australia’s four mobile phone carriers.

“There are so many twists and turns to the plans but you can cut through it all by writing down on a blank piece of paper exactly what you want to use your mobile for: do you ring friends, text, surf the web, use only during peak for business?” Purdie says.

“You need to get your last three months bills and work out if the way you want to use your phone matches the way you actually DO use the phone.”

Then head to the Phonechoice website at http://www.phonechoice.com.au and enter your calling patterns into a tool that will show you the best plan and provider for your calling patterns. “Most people are not on the best deal for them,” he says.

There are three great tips Purdie offers for those wanting to lower their mobile phone costs:

1. Phone your current mobile phone provider with the information you have gleaned from the Phonechoice website. “It’s amazing what can happen by talking to your existing carrier,” he says. “That first phone call can deliver great results - they will tell you they have a capped plan or combo plan that will suit you better and maybe throw in some extras to keep your business.”

2. Save mobile costs by turning off your voice mail – if you look long and hard at your bill, most of it will be deposits and retrievals which earn the provider a motza. If you can’t bring yourself to turn off the voicemail, at least extend the ring time before it switches the message on.

3. If you’re near a landline, use it. “People seem to forget that you don’t need to use a mobile every time you call someone.”

Pictures: The Sun