"Very small business customers who have had issues with their business lines view their provider as less trustworthy and reliable, but if you look at the large enterprise segment, that is not the case," said Ian Greenblatt, Managing Director at J.D. Power. "Smaller business customers may be less profitable, but if wireline companies can address the opportunities in very small business customer service, they will see an increase in satisfaction and, ultimately, retention."

Study Results

For the large enterprise segment, AT&T ranks highest with a score of 844. Verizon (833) ranks second and CenturyLink (806) ranks third.

For the small/medium business segment, Verizon ranks highest with a score of 813. AT&T (812) ranks second and Cox (789) ranks third.

For the very small business segment, Verizon ranks highest with a score of 762. Cox (756) ranks second and Comcast (739) ranks third.

The 2019 U.S. Business Wireline is based on responses from 3,424 customers who contacted their carrier's customer care department within the past three months. The study evaluates business wireline experiences across 6 different factors: performance and reliability, cost of service, communications, sales representatives and account executives, billing, and customer service. The study was fielded from April-May 2019.