Dell needs to focus on giving their customers value, not on the lowest price.
Imagine a restaurant where you could pick and choose every ingredient in your food to find the absolute lowest priced meal-doesn’t sound very appetizing?…Welcome to Dell.
However the return of Michael Dell may not be the same as the return of Steve Jobs. From a 1/31/07 Fortune article…” The CEO emphasized that there were more costs
That can be driven out of Dell’s business.”
Steve Wynn built the most expensive hotel in Las Vegas to date and booked it out with minimal Advertising. To this day people go to Vegas and book months in advance to stay in the Bellagio…even though the room rates are, on average, can be as much as 10 times the rates at other hotels on the strip. Steve provided an over the top hotel that was so good the price was irrelevant…as the value was so great!
Dell could be unbelievably successful providing niche targeted machines, perhaps one for students, one for young professionals, one for accountants etc. Packaged with an array of software specific to each niche, tested so that they work flawlessly for their purpose.
Combine that with 24 hour no charge specialized customer service lines with knowledge of the hardware AND the software. The only profitability problems they would have is where to spend the excess cash.
Dell’s purchased one of the most successful gaming computer companies in the marketplace, Alienware…an excellent example of selling value. They sell a niche high powered machine tailored to gamers.
While the acquisition makes great sense it doesn’t appear that Michael Dell has even been to Miami…perhaps he couldn’t get a good discount airfare.