TDAmeritrade Reduced Commissions, Part II

$3 Off Commissions

If you missed the first part, I tried to get the generic response from TDAmeritrade in regards to reduced commissions. I tried to push harder for a further reduction and here are the results. The general idea is you must be aggressive to get what you want or else you will get pummeled over. 

After their initial response, I felt very insulted because although they claimed I was a "top client," they did not respond to me within a reasonable time frame. I used this to start my argument for further reduction. At this point, they knew the numbers, but I wanted to let them know that I knew too. I calculated the money I spent for last year's commissions and explicitly stated it. The idea here is to show them your worth and show them that you know as well. I also included why I was worth lowering the commission for by stating things that will benefit them in the future.

 

Over here, the support said no. At this point, people may quit because they think it is hopeless. But, note, he did leave a backdoor. He basically told me that all I needed to do was transfer my other assets, so I just took advantage of that. As a bonus, I also got 10 free trades.

I didn't fall for any traps and I pushed even harder now. I originally aimed for $6.95, but after the last e-mail, I decided to raise it to the halfway point to make it fair. That was $7.45 and I immediately told them exactly what they wanted to hear and that was to transfer assets to the account.

AND FINALLY...

The end result.

The lesson here is to know what you are worth and not give up. Never take the first offer and always push for what you want. However, sometimes you also have to know when to take a step back. If the last message was a no, I would have stopped there and tried again next year. These are the things I am working on applying in everyday life to make it suck less.

Why do I use TD?
I am planning to use TDAmeritrade for pennies and maybe long swings. I am still thinking about it. I use their ThinkorSwim platform and their LVL2s for trading. I think all the benefits I am receiving are worth it for the price.

If you missed the first part, go here!