Geek Squad Remote

I’ve spent a fair amount of time in coffee shops—truly, the undeniable “third space.” Ambrosia (pictured above) is my current haunt, mostly because it’s right next door to my agency’s new office. And the latte is done right.

So I had this idea the other day. I articulated it over the phone to Joe Jaffe’s Across The Sound podcast call-in line (you can hear me slather up Joe's ego on ATS #73 around 11 minutes in). And then I gave this idea to my friend Jeff Graham at CPB, since he’s working on Best Buy's Geek Squad business. Seems like a worthy post topic since Best Buy just put their accounts into review. Here’s the preamble…

Most people will acknowledge they aren't getting the most from their computers, software, online tools, etc. And they probably don't have the time to research it all themselves. I don’t. For example, I know I could be podcasting--even listening to them, or leveraging del.ic.ious or any of the other social network tools. I just don't have the time. And the same thing goes for music. Who has time to figure out which bands from SXSW you should download? Thank goodness for things like Music For Picture’s periodic new music review discs.

What I need is a personal concierge and a taste maker. But I need them to be convenient, and available when I'm ready.

The answer is "Geek Squad Remote."

GSR is a person—an army of persons—who hang out at wi-fi enabled coffee shops. Each GSR team member has a hefty courier bag with the most popular spare cables, chargers, flash drives. They've got the latest Mac OS, Vista, Linux OS installs on flash drives. They've got other popular software. And most important, they've got skillz. They know to help you maximize your computer experience. And they're culturally aware--they can point you towards new music, websites and movies. (In fact each team member would be encouraged to develop their own reputation as a taste maker in whatever areas of culture they want. Maybe they each have their own GSR blog or podcast.)

So you've got these super-equipped, walking, human Best Buy stores sitting in hundreds of coffee shops across the US. Here's how the average person takes advantage...

If you're a BestBuy.com member (with a credit card associated with your membership), you just walk up, sign into a portable keypad (or SMS from your cell phone)...and you can buy anything from the GSR dude. Or get service. Advice is free.

If you're not a member, you can sign up with the dude. And maybe he even does debit/credit transactions with a credit-card equipped cell.

Again...advice and goodwill are free. Think of this army of ambassadors dispensing IT help and new music/movie ideas across the US. Who wouldn't want to join?

And let's say you've got a small company down the street from the coffee shop. And you've got network issues. Well, the GSR dude could be dispatched to help you. So it's also kind of an extension of the guys driving around in the New Beetles.

Obviously it would be cool if this was part of a marketing partnership between a national coffee shop chain and Best Buy, and perhaps a national wi-fi provider.

It's not about opening a kiosk or even a desk at each location. The key is mobility. Just a well-stocked courier bag. And attitude. And entrepreneurialism. And empowerment.

That’s the idea.

Geek Squad Remote. (Here’s a free tagline.) “They're out there.”