Asking the right questions: payoff quote

Called the credit card company this morning to find out whether or not--provided we pay the balance indicated on the statement by its due date--if our balance will then become zero. S/he responded by saying "No," and that what I'm really fishing for is the payoff balance, because interest accrues daily, and then proceeded to give me the payoff quote. Mind you, this is for a credit card with a low interest rate where we were carrying a balance month-to-month. You see, even if I payoff our entire balance sooner than the due date, the total amount due will be less than the amount indicated on the current statement. Generally speaking, subsequent entries will not be this technical, but suffice it to say that the amount we'll be saving by going ahead and paying this bill in full today versus waiting until its due date is $10.92. Theoretically, this is money we can redirect and apply towards the principal on another credit card.

Lesson learned: If you don't ask the right questions, you won't get the answers you're seeking.