Speakeasy and Best Buy? There goes the neighborhood.
I don't personally use
Speakeasy and wasn't going to initially blog about this.
However, after reading my friend Ricardo's post entitled
We're Totally Screwed I have to say I also have some
trepidation about the acquisition. Like I've said, I don't use Speakeasy, but
I have wanted to for years and couldn't due to service not being available.
Anyone who hasn't been sleeping under a rock knows that Speakeasy is well known
for it's outstanding customer service and for employing technicians who have a
clue. At most other ISP's clueful technical help is somewhere between rare and
non-existent which I'm sure has been a reason for Speakeasy's success.
We use Speakeasy at work so we were sent the announcement E-mail about this.
One particular paragraph kind of made me chuckle a bit.
Best Buy, like Speakeasy, is known for its high level of customer service. Our
reputation as a trusted provider of voice and data services with stellar
customer service will not change. Our values are similar too -- Best Buy shares
our customer passion, respect for individuals, and drive to do the right thing
while achieving results.
Best Buy is
far from
being known for it's customer service. I'm not just repeating what I've
read on this subject as I've had several horrible experiences there myself. If
I only had one issue I'd call it a fluke, but having had several I can't
believe it's just bad luck. Usually I make a point of avoiding Best Buy if I
at all possibly can. I think the only store I avoid more is Walmart.
Even so, the letter does claim that,
"All aspects of your service will continue
to be managed by Speakeasy and the excellent service and support you expect
will continue uninterrupted." Well, that sounds good. Hopefully Best Buy
will learn a bit of something from Speakeasy rather than the other way around.
It'll be interesting to see if anything noticeable changes. As long as
Speakeasy stays Speakeasy I'd still be open to switching if they
ever come to my area. And if Best Buy becomes more like Speakeasy I'd be open
to frequenting their stores again.