A Case Study on Dell's Marketing Strategy: Evolution and Analysis

This report presents a case study on Dell's marketing strategies, tracing its evolution from direct sales to online platforms and retail stores. Initially, Dell focused on direct customer interaction, enhancing profit margins. Faced with competition, the company experimented with retail channels, including kiosks and partnerships, but ultimately found success through online platforms and strategic retail partnerships. The report analyzes the company's adaptation to market changes, highlighting the importance of distribution channels and the impact of competition on marketing strategies. It covers the changes in the company's distribution channels over time, starting with direct sales, and then examining its attempts to expand through retail channels, and finally, its successful adoption of online platforms and partnerships. The analysis includes the company's response to competition from companies like Apple and HP, and how it adapted its strategies to maintain a competitive edge in the market.

Running Head: PRINCIPLES OF MARKETING 0
Principles of Marketing
(Student Name)

PRINCIPLES OF MARKETING 1
Dell is one of the leading companies in the international market. It has started the business of
computer in the year 1984. During the success and growth of the company, it has adopted
innovative distribution strategies that made them competitive in the international market.
In place of selling its product to a wholesaler, or retailers, the company dealt directly with the
consumers. It helps in enhancing a bond among the customer and company to a certain extent as
well as it also helps in controlling the overall cost of the company. With the help of such a
strategy, the company enhanced its overall profit margin effectively. Afterward, Apple and HP
entered the market, the competition level for Dell increases to a certain extend. It forces the
company to adopt other distribution strategies to compete with its competitors to a certain extent.
Therefore in the year 1990, Dell tried to selling its computers through a few big US related
chains. However, the company discontinued such a platform due to the reason it affected the
profit margin of the company as the cost of the company increases through such channels that
forced them to discontinue such distribution channels.
Furthermore, Dell has also opened a series of retail kiosks in most of the US markets to display
products as well as to answer the questions raised by the customers. However, through Kiosks,
the customers could only place an order for future delivery. It does not raise any sale. Therefore,
the company closed such a channel as well. In the year 2007, the company rethinks its
distribution channel strategy. It has started using an online platform for distributing its product.
The company has also opened its stores in malls, as well as downtown shopping districts. The
company started selling its limited edition through US Stores as well such as Wal-Mart, Car
phone Warehouse, UK stores, Gome’s Chinese stores. In the end, the company strategies
working with VAR partners that majorly cater to small and medium-sized businesses and it has
lined up wholesale for Europe, Latin America, and other countries as well.