Boston Globe

I was spared much of the delivery disruption experienced by so many Globe subscribers last month, but have begun to notice a subtle, but meaningful, impact on my service. In a likely effort to give its new distribution system a greater chance of success, the Globe appears to be sending out earlier editions of the paper than in the past. Today’s paper, for example, did not have the outcome of the second Beanpot hockey game which concluded before 11 pm. The Iowa caucus coverage reported results that also had been updated by national media well before 11 pm. I have always felt that a business should never transfer its problems into problems for its customers. Yes, the Globe has improved its home delivery service, but has devalued its product in the process. I’ll look for the price reduction with my renewal.

John Henry has destroyed this paper and put a permanent wedge between its loyal readers and the paper. Nice job John. I cant even get thru to cancel the paper. No one answers the phone or emails. If they don’t allow us to cancel the paper, then they can still call us customers to their advertisers and therefore keep getting advertising $$. Another BS move by the Henries. FYI; my neighbors who never even ordered the Globe are getting the same sporadic delivery as I am. In fact, get this, one day they both got a paper and I didn’t. My only reasoning for this is; give away the paper and call them all customers. The advertisers will be thrilled with this until they catch on.
Here something ironic, I used to be a globe paperboy in the 60’s. I’d get up at 4am to deliver and if I wasn’t there on time I’d here about it. Its all about the power and the $ now right John?

Just to echo previous reviewers, I had the same problems. After calling and calling to get the delivery service better I gave up and was actually able to get through and cancel my subscription. We were a 30 year subscriber.
At roughly $ 750 a year, if 10,000 people cancel their subscriptions isn’t that $ 7.5 million a year in revenue they are losing?
And just think of all those delivery people who would get up at 3 a.m. to get us the papers and are now not getting wages and tips.
I think if any of us readers had made such a decision in the company we worked for we would have been promptly fired.
Perhaps whoever did this was hired by the Globe after being in charge of the Flint, Michigan Water System, hm?

Horrible service — haven’t gotten the sunday paper in 3 weeks. Put on hold for hours. After i realized that i didn’t miss the paper, i cancelled it. they wouldn’t refund money from missed papers, but assured me that «they hadn’t charged anyone since they had their problem». I lived with that response since i had cancelled. The next day they billed my card for the next month. Over an hour on hold and still haven’t been able to get through. They suck.

I am updating my 3÷9÷2014 review from two stars down to one.
For years, we had reliably late delivery. I.e., it was always late, but the delivery person was reliable in eventually getting the paper to us, and in all sorts of weather.
Now that the Globe has finally «addressed» their delivery problems, we don’t get a paper at all. The ineptitude of this company is astounding.

this review has to do with the delivery situation – the Globe REALLY dropped the ball. Ostensibly, it was to cut costs and, of course, that means that long-​time delivery personnel get screwed, they pay lower wages (great loyalty to these hard-​working people) and, guess what, it causes a major disruption that will obviously cost them a lot of business. It’s been over two weeks since we’ve had any regular delivery. They’ve been crediting our account and also sent out coupons for free papers – that’s just fine until you learn that very few stores in my area will accept these coupons (for instance, Walgreen’s). Since I’m not going to shell out cash for something I should get for free, I end up without a paper.

The worst customer service and support in history. An incompetent and uncaring management. I wish I could give zero stars.

Email I sent to Boston Globe reporter: (great article today about crisis)
Thank you for your article.
I am sending my comments to you as I don’t know where else to send them. I am generally sympathetic to businesses undergoing transitions. A couple weeks of missed papers is not a big deal in the grand scheme of things.
However, I would hope the Globe management appreciates how completely miserably they have managed this situation. Don’t blame the distributor. This is your paper and this was your decision. Take responsibility.
Personal update, I called AMEX, charge disputed, merchant block put on account. Globe, fight it out with AMEX and call me when you are ready to offer a proper apology and start regular service again.
Why? Ambiguous statements, false information, unanswered phone lines, useless chat lines, no one taking responsibility, no one telling telling me the plan. The Globe has done all things possible to aggravate and disappoint this loyal reader. I am done!
The imaginary article I should have been reading.
John Henry takes control of this crisis. «I take full responsibility I will do everything possible to get the papers to our loyal readers. Whatever it takes, whatever the costs. There is nothing more important to us than our subscribers.» he is quoted. John Henry commandeered all free taxis and delivery services to get the paper out. If you did not get your paper, call this 800 number and they will do their best to send someone out with your paper. We will continue until normal service is restored.
What I actually heard when I finally got through to automated customer service (paraphrasing). «We are sorry for the delay. Unfortunately we cannot offer re-​delivery. Press # 1 to receive credit.»

Once again, no Boston Globe delivery. The absolute worst transition from a vendor I’ve seen, including launching several papers and magazines from scratch myself. They’ve literally turned off their customer service tools (chat, email and phone) since the transition on the 28^th. Myself and thousands others haven’t received a paper since that date. You can’t even cancel or request a credit — awful customer service. Don’t buy the baloney about their writers pitching in to help, that’s a stunt to distract folks from how poorly this was managed. They knew about this switch months ago and still royally screwed it up. I’m cancelling my subscription, if they’ll ever let me!

Globe customer service: the poster child for what not to do.
First, announce an «improvement» when there was no problem in the first place.
Then, fire your local delivery company and its people and hire one from California.
Make sure that your automated customer service system is as awkward to use as possible, then prevent anyone from contacting a human being through any means of communication.
Outsource your human customer service to the Philippines, where they can’t help you anyway.
Apologize by thanking people for their «patience,» and offering not to charge them for the papers they never got. Unprecedented generosity!
Send out coupons for two free papers to make up for the seven missed (and counting) and then mess up the barcode so that the coupon won’t scan and therefore won’t be accepted.

When the Globe sends out coupons for 2 free papers weeks before they make a major change in their delivery service, aren’t they planning to fail?
Fail they did. I only receive the Sunday Globe, and it was never delivered today. When I went out to try to use my free coupon, I could not find a store that had any papers left to purchase. I stopped at 4 locations.

I have not received a paper for the past 3 days. You cannot get through via the customer service line, as it just rings busy or hangs up on you. You can also not get through via the live chat. I have contacted the attorney generals office to see if they can do anything as this is a problem with not just me, but thousands of subscribers who are not receiving something that they paid for

Its a shame Unilocal won’t allow a lower rating. All my siblings and I delivered the Globe as teenagers and perhaps they should go back to this method. My mother still subscribes and has not received the paper for the past 5 days, nor has she been able to make contact with customer service. I’m sure John Henry wouldn’t put up with this type of service so neither will we. The Globe has been cancelled and I have cancelled my online subscription. I am also contacting Globe advertisers and letting them know I will not use their products because they advertise in the Globe

Much less than 1 star, actually! Nice Catch 22: Yesterday, no delivery, promised re-​delivery, then asked for credit online but told: you asked for re-​delivery so can’t get credit. Chatline «open» but searches for someone and searches for someone, then fades away. Phone: one-​hour wait, then busy signal. Had to email CS, good luck to me on that! And the reason for all of this: not better CS but. .. the bottom line.

If you are a Boston Globe home delivery subscriber and you have not received your paper this week don’t bother going to the Globe. You will just be sitting on the phone for hours.
Better to call the newly hired company that is supposed to distribute the paper but has failed miserably.
The company is ACI Media Group out of Long Beach, California. Their telephone number is: 310−233−2750, Email:
Keith Somers is the President and COO. Address is: 330 Golden Shore Suite 410 Long Beach, Calf. 90 802.
Let’s bombard them with phone calls !

This one star rating is a comment on home delivery, not on the paper’s content. Today is our third day in a row with no paper and no explanation! My theory is that the Globe wants to ease out of the costs associated with printing and distributing a physical edition — and is waiting to see how many subscribers can be «nudged» into going all-​digital. Globe management may welcome canceled print subscriptions just as long as the same folks continue to pay for digital access. If that’s their strategy, it’s diabolical and underhanded — but clever.

Incompetent idiots. They let our old delivery woman go and now they can’t get a paper to my house. Although their inept delivery service did manage to deliver the Herald on Monday which I do not subscribe to. Their main phone number and customer service lines are busy, if you do get through on the latter there is an hour plus wait time and all online services are down including chat which gave this message:
Status: Canceled
There are no agents available to chat with you right now. Please try again later.
Given my ongoing issues with their equally inept billing department I can’t say I’m surprised.

Two days, no physical paper and no responses to multiple inquiries through multiple channels…
The New York Times is getting delivered. How about we get with the program Boston Globe? I know they are owned by different companies and they have decided to use a new delivery service.
We shall see if we ever get a paper again.

I’m another furious Globe subscriber. No paper for 3 days. All methods we’re supposed to be able to use to contact customer service are useless. No one is taking ownership of this issue; they’re merely posting worthless fake «apologies» whining about how difficult it is for them to coordinate the change over of 600 drivers. Seriously? That’s what businesses are supposed to DO when they make a change like this: manage the transition so that it is as seamless as possible for the end user. And stop using the word «delay» to describe what’s going on. These are not delays; the papers are not being delivered at all! I don’t know where they all are, but they aren’t on our doorsteps. I’m very close to just cancelling my subscription after more than 25 years. Get it together, Globe!

Got an email yesterday that delivery would be late, Still waiting for it today. There’s been no email today, but no paper either. Can’t get anyone at customer service — they must be busy listening to other complaints. Last winter, deliveries in all the snow were more consistent than the post office. Wondering why we bother to subscribe when the quality of the paper — Saturdays are a joke! — has deteriorated so badly. Bad delivery service is the last thing this dying business needs!