In the autumn of 1998, Stephens came to my high school to speak to my entrepreneurship class (a course which I forgot to mention in my previous post).  He came in uniform: black slacks, white short-sleeve dress shirt, black tie, and cast-metal badge.  He looked every part the geek, which was appropriate, since he was the founder and owner of the Geek Squad.

Prior to the sale of the company to Best Buy in 2002, the Geek Squad was an independent IT consulting and on-site repair service operating in the Minneapolis area.  The Geek Squad agents — the computer techs — were known for technical prowess, attention to detail, and customer service.  Of course, there were but a few dozen agents in the company, and the Geek Squad was but one of many firms in the area providing computer services, so skills alone might not have been enough.

What set the Geek Squad apart?  Competence and marketing.

Competence #1: Hiring — Stephens hired only people without certifications (e.g., MCSE or A+) to be techs.  His logic was along the lines that the most competent people would be passionate enough to be self-taught, and those people wouldn’t bother with certifications.  They got the job done quickly and correctly.

Competence #2: Reputation — Robert was a frequent guest on local TV news shows, where he discussed technical issues making headlines around the country, such as the latest computer virus or web breakthrough.  And the caption below his face?  Always mentioned his company.  Off camera, the Geek Squad was known as the go-to group for emergency computer service.  When national music acts were in town and were having trouble with their computers, the promoters referred them to the Geek Squad.

Promotion #1: The Cars — The old Geek Squad used restored cars from the 1940s and 1950s, painted black and white to resemble the police cars of the era.  The old squad cars were quite a sight, but to make sure people were actually looking at the cars, Stephens had the tire pressures set artificially low and told his agents to take corners extra fast, thus ensuring large amounts of attention-getting tire squealing.

Of course, 50-year-old cars with squealing tires don’t scale well, but Robert wanted the replacement cars to continue to have some cachet.  The solution?  Black-and-white VW “new” Beatles.  Also, modern cars (and particularly electronic fuel injection) are much more user-friendly in the harsh Minnesota winter.

Promotion #2: The Business Cards — Most business cards receive a quick glance before being tossed or forgotten.  To ensure a longer life for the Geek Squad cards, Robert had them die-cut into ovals, making the card look like a perfect physical copy of the logo.  On the reverse side, he included a number of helpful computer-use tips of the type that would encourage people to keep the cards near their computers.  Then, when trouble would strike, the tip-laden card — and the company’s phone number — would be close at hand.

Promotion #3: The Name — Let’s face it, “Geek Squad” is both catchy and descriptive.  Who knows computers?  Geeks.  What group do you call when there’s a problem?  A squad.  Brilliant.  An added bonus of being memorable and descriptive is that it was often easier to remember the Geek Squad’s name than that of competitors.  Apparently, on more than one occasion, a person called 411 looking for computer help with only a vague sense of the name of a competitor — say, the Repair Nerds.  “Geek Squad” was such a powerful brand that the caller latched onto it instead of the original target company.

Promotion #4: The Uniform — Stereotypes can be used to one’s advantage, as shown by the Geek Squad uniform.  I don’t recall Robert wearing taped black plastic glasses, but everything else was there, straight out of the 1950s: black slacks, white short-sleeve dress shirt, and narrow black tie.  On top of that, since they were agents in a squad, they carried genuine-looking cast-metal badges.  Stephens even went through the trouble of getting the badges made by a company that makes real law-enforcement badges.  Details matter.

Was the service offered by the Geek Squad vastly superior to that of competitors?  Probably not.  It was very good, but equal service was available elsewhere.  What set the Geek Squad apart from its competition was its brand: catchy, consistent, fun, and extremely well-executed.

In fact, one might argue that the service in the current Best Buy-operated incarnation is downright mediocre, but the brand is so strong that it has survived even a massive setback in quality.  Impressive.