Can AT&T out-geek the Geek Squad?

(Last in a series. Part 1. Part 2.)

AT&T yesterday announced it is adding technical support for consumers’ PC, TV and home theater setup needs. Called AT&T ConnecTech, the carrier’s foray into the home-services industry pits it against Best Buy’s Geek Squad, and according to some analysts, the ultimate frontrunner may be a result of both timing and branding.

“I think people tend to want help when they are in the middle of a crisis,” said Natalie Petouhoff, senior analyst for Forrester Research. “It will be interesting to see if consumers end up buying a technical service plan because any time you run into a problem it is actually cheaper to go that way, or if they will wait until they are faced with a crash and then pay for the service.”

The answer may also indicate whether the consumer picks AT&T or Best Buy. A customer going to Best Buy or another electronics company and spending $1000 to $2000 on a TV purchase may be inclined to buy the tech-support right then versus calling an actual TV provider, Peouhoff said. Today Best Buy’s Geek Squad is the largest tech support service in the US. Up and running since 1994, the Squad employees almost 20,000 techs around the country. Just last month, Wal-Mart also entered the tech game by testing Dell-run support kiosks at 15 stores in the Dallas area.

Urgency-driven purchases could be the biggest opportunity for AT&T. The telco already has a presence in many consumers’ homes for the services they offer, but Petouhoff said building a brand relationship through positive interactions will be key to associating fixing technical problems with AT&T. ConnecTech will be available in all 50 states for AT&T customers and non-customers alike through existing AT&T techs. Outsourced contractors will provide the support where the provider doesn’t have a substantial presence – another potential barrier for the telco.

“Whether it’s a customer service agent or someone that is a representative of your company coming into someone’s home, the demeanor, how that person acts, how helpful they are, is a representation of your brand,” Petouhoff said. “If you haven’t trained those people and if you don’t have quality control over how they approach problem solving, it could leave you vulnerable.”

AT&T must do an exceptional job every time, or it will ruin this brand association, she added. For consumers, this might come down to price. ConnecTech can cost a customer anywhere between $69 for PC and home-network support by phone to $179 for in-home support. The packages includes access to next-day service installation, seven days a week and over-the-phone support. Technicians are also equipped to do basics like sync iPhones – although cellular support is not offered, eliminate spam and set up wireless networks in-home. The rates get cheaper if customers combine service calls.

“There is definitely a market for technical help,” Petouhoff said. “In the past a lot of the help was offered for free, and now companies are realizing they are losing money by offering it free so they want to charge, so I think there is a transition that is going to have to happen in the mind of consumers where paying for it is a trade off.”

That being said, there may be room in the tech support market for several service providers. AT&T’s move into tech support also comes as the move toward the connected homes is increasingly equitable to the complicated home. Petouhoff said that last year 30% of HDTVs purchased were returned because people were disappointed with the picture quality, yet the picture quality had nothing to do with the TV itself. Rather, consumers weren’t setting it up right, bought the wrong HDMI cable or a cheap, ineffective one, or didn’t realize their cable box had to be HD-ready. A tech-support service could help alleviate the problem, as well as let AT&T tap into what it sees as a billion-dollar marketplace.

“The great thing about technology is that it offers so many features and functions now, and the bad thing is that it offers so many new features and functions,” Petouhoff said. “It is a double-edged sword. With every feature and function that companies offer, it also adds a layer of complexity in either set-up or use or fix.”

Petouhoff said that it is possible other carriers follow suite in the in-home tech support market but the question becomes, ‘Is this approach really going to meet the needs of the consumer from the consumer’s point of view?’