Dealing
with Dell
- from a customer's perspective
by Adrian Redmond,
Head-of-Production,
Channel 6 Television Denmark |
 |
Many Dell customers choose,
configure and buy their Dell computer via the internet - immediately reaping
the benefits of dealing directly with the manufacturer. These benefits
are not only economic, the Dell direct model gives the customer access
to a wide range of products, and to a choice of components which are not
made available on the configuration website, until they have been validated
by Dell themselves.This system gives the end-user the confidence that the
system will work without time-consuming hardware or software conflicts.
As new products are released,
the range of optional components increases almost every day, as they are
validated for the specific computer platform, operating system and regional
market. As optional components are superseded by new ones, they are removed
from the website options, ensuring that the equipment you buy is as up
to date as possible. Every Dell product is manufactured to order, eliminating
the need for an expensive warehouse stock, the components of which would
be out of date before they are sold.
When you buy a Dell product,
you can track its progress through the production line and follow the tracking
number through the freight-forwarding chain, giving you clear information
about when the product will arrive at your door. And when it arrives, you
will discover that the packaging and handling is superb, and that attention
has been paid to every detail including connection cables, mechanical parts
and screws, documentation and software.
Every Dell product has a
unique service tag number - your key to an efficient and friendly after-sales
service and support system throughout the world. By calling Technical Support
in your region and quoting your service tag number, the support staff know
exactly which product you have and which options the product includes.
Any faults or problems are logged to the tag number, so that staff handling
subsequent service calls know exactly what they are dealing with. It may
sound complicated, but it's simple and it works!
Customers who buy systems
for critical applications - such as servers, mass-storage or complicated
workstations, usually choose to subscribe to Dell's same business day or
next business day on-site support service. If you run into a problem, you
make a telephone call to the support centre in your region, and you receive
immediate support - spare parts are delivered by courier, and a site-engineer
arrives and handles the necessary support. Because of the experimental
nature of the EDIT2 project, we encountered a few issues which required
support - each time, within hours, the solution was in place. Through the
initial telephone support call, we agreed with Dell's support staff on
the action required and the spare parts which could be needed. Our calls
were always handled without difficulty.
As a professional customer
with a specialised, often complicated, application, we were given access
to support staff whose knowledge, access to higher support and - above
all - positive attitude, is second to none and has always lived up to our
demanding expectations. Unlike so many major manufacturers in the computer
industry, Dell is able to combine the strength of the world's largest computer
manufacturing corporation, with the personal, direct and loyal approach
which is so vital in business-to-business relationships.
Dell has achieved in practice,
that which so many corporations only achieve in the text of their public
relations material. Thanks Dell!
Adrian Redmond
Head-of-Production
Channel 6 Television Denmark
September 2001
channel6@post2.tele.dk |
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