For users in ArcMap consuming ArcGIS Online Basemaps it may help if they set the mxd Map Scales to use "ArcGIS Online / Bing Maps / Google Maps" scales.
Click on Map Scales -> "customize this list" -> "Load" -> select "ArcGIS Online / Bing Maps / Google Maps".
Also make sure to Check on "Only display these scales when zooming".
Imagery was pretty quick to load when I panned around AK after changing these settings.
Not sure if this will help, but it might!