Blog Move

Hello, All!

We haven't been getting SEO love here at blogger, so we've moved to wordpress.

http://acmetechworks.wordpress.com/

See you there!

Things Qwest should do

I admit it. I'm angry. Qwest has given Acme terrible service and they've treated some of our customers poorly. I write this blog having cancelled one of our Qwest accounts today. I plan on killing the other account we have with Qwest within the next 30 days. We'll recommend other service providers whenever possible from now on.

I'm not going to list my complaints. I'm just going to throw out some observations as I look back via my rear view mirror.

Qwest,

Go back to paying outside agents or show you are going to take care of the customer.

Back in the day, a subagent would get a kicker and residual from Qwest for taking care of customer needs. The subagent was local, so the customer would have a local number to call for help. The customer also benefitted because the subagent was always looking for the best Qwest deals. Now Qwest doesn’t pay the subagents if they improve the customer’s package. Qwest only contacts the customer to sell them more services by mail.

Make notes for installs/changes and make sure they are followed.

A business customer needs to move. They have a static IP that needs to move with them, plus the building they’re moving to has other Qwest customers, so the customer needs their stuff tagged so they can tell what’s theirs. All of this should be noted when explained to the Qwest rep at customer service. The rep schedules the move. The move happens ON TIME and a tech comes out. The customer can’t wait two or three days (soonest a Qwest tech can come out) so they pay someone to figure out what DSL line is theirs. The Qwest rep should also note static IPs and make sure they move with the customer. This is not hard.

Find out what will happen when you turn off services.

Of all my gripes, this one may be the least fair. What I do know is that Qwest came out looking pretty bad when they allegedly turned off Iptimize’s T1s. The story as I have heard it was that Iptimize didn’t pay their bill to Qwest. They were reselling Qwest T1s. So Qwest pulled the plug and a number of businesses went down. It seems like there could have been a better way to handle this. I think Qwest should have sent mail to all the locations first. They run the T1s, so they had to have the physical addresses.

Make it possible for a customer to break a contract if they upgrade other services.

Let’s say I have two DSL contracts because I have two locations. I need to consolidate to one location but I need more bandwidth and more services. Qwest won’t let me out of my contract with them, even though I’m going to increase services. I can’t even bond the DSLs together for more upload speed, because Qwest chooses not to offer it. Notice I said it’s a choice. You can bond DSLs with other providers. Why should Qwest treat contracted customers so poorly?

Don't create a new 3 year contract out of the blue--talk to the customer!

Aahhh. I feel better. Buh-bye, Qwest!

Customer service is more than skin deep

I had a couple great customer experiences yesterday on a business trip. I blogged about one of them at http://jeremeyweeks.blogspot.com/2009/08/brush-with-excellence.html.

I've decided to post the second one here because it's about an organization inculcating customer care into their employees.

I'm talking about McCall Memorial Hospital.*

My presentation was scheduled to take place at the hospital. I was glad to come because I had worked there a few years before. I'll talk about my experience there in a bit. First I want to share my wife's experience at the hospital.

My wife came with me on the trip and did some shopping while I was in the meeting. She came in the hospital to pick me up. When we got in the car, she mentioned that there must be someone in town that looks like her. She said several people had stopped and said, "Hi, how are you?" in the hall. I smiled and said that the hospital is that way with everyone.

My experience with McCall Memorial began with two interviews. The first was with the IT director, Guy Rivers. It was a typical IT interview. The second interview was with all of the department heads, who came in pairs and interviewed me. It was a grueling experience that lasted for hours, but it was necessary. The hospital expects employees to work well with each other. What surprised me was the intensity considering I was there for a network position with no management responsibilities.

I got the job. Guy began teaching me the hospital philosophy by telling me this...

"I don't care if it takes you half an hour to get back to the office when you go get coffee. Stop and talk to people."

I learned not just to say, "hi" but to look at people and smile genuinely, investing some of my time in them. The interesting part of this was that these people all had different personality types. Doctors and nurses were friendly and not patronizing or coldly clinical. No-one was better than anyone else and departments were expected to get along. Patients were number one.

I think my wife encountered a little bit of McCall Memorial's attitude of service.

I don't believe that the hospital was perfect when I was there. There were agendas and perhaps business direction was lacking. But I believe that they had the most important thing down:

They're in the business of relationships.

McCall Memorial Hospital, thanks for a great lesson, one that I'm still learning!

*You may wonder if McCall Memorial is a customer of mine. They aren't. I was employed by McCall Memorial about five years ago and that's the extent of our relationship.

The Bare Minimum to start a Tech Consultancy: Part 6

Welcome to the 6th installment in the series of posts about starting your own tech business!

Here are the previous posts... Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

You have all the pieces now! Oh, you may need to buy some tools for your trade, but you are ready to go! There are but a few more things to cover, but they can make all the difference.

So let's start out right.

Get the right attitude. This is especially important if you have never had your own business. Sign up for some free podcasts about business and marketing. (you don't need an Ipod, figure it out!) It doesn't matter if the podcast isn't related to a tech business. You need to absorb the attitude, understand the challenges and gain the enthusiasm.

You can listen to those podcasts on your PC or laptop. Personally, I redeem the time I spend driving by listening to podcasts. You can't get a college education that will teach you what you need to know for this bold new venture. The right podcasts will give you a wealth of information that you can apply. They're gold!

Dress appropriately... all of the time. I'll never forget the time when I was grocery shopping and ran into an old friend. He works in finance and has contacts with a lot of businesses. I can't imagine that I made a positive impression in my torn up jeans and my worn "Rock On!" T-shirt! Ask for advice from those you respect if you have an inkling you aren't dressing appropriately.

Join! I'm talking about the local chamber of commerce, local networking events and community projects. Don't just spout about your business and hand out cards. Get to know people and help them out.

Pursue business relationships. Find businesses that can find value with your services. Be willing to subcontract or take a lower rate initially. Give local companies your business.

Be open. Always watch for ways to make your business more profitable. This may mean dropping a service that you thought would be a money maker. You might end up finding a niche that isn't being filled.

Look for marketing avenues. Never stop doing this. Unless, of course, you have too much business.

A final note. I can't tell you how much local exposure Twitter has given my company. Jump on Twitter, learn the etiquette of tweeting and join the community!

We hope you've found this series valuable. Please let us know your story, either here or at www.acmetechworks.com!