Dell Hell.....

This week our Information Systems assignment is on Dell Hell. Basically, in July 2005, a blogger named Jeff Jarvis caused serious damage to Dell's reputation by blogging about his negative experiences. Basically, he bought a Dell computer which turned out to be a "lemon". Jeff had also purchased 4 years of premium support, but his experience with Dell's customer service was quite terrible.

Our assignment is to blog about what we would do if we were acting as the CEO of Dell.

The Dell business model is centered around keeping a low inventory and manufacturing personal computers (just in time) after the order for the computer has been made. Dell has also been very focused on giving the customer what they want. This has been through the product customization methodology which has enabled customers to customize a solution for their needs.

However, through the blogs of Jeff Jarvis, it has become evident that the company has not been placing sufficient resources on satisfying it's customers through quality customer service. As the average consumer replaces their personal computer every 3 years or so, customer service is critical in generating brand loyalty. Brand loyalty is essential in retaining customers and retaining customers is essential in sustaining sales over the long run.

In addition to this, negative publicity has driven negative market sentiment about the Dell stock and this has lead to a significant decline in the stock price.

Hence, my plan for resolving the situation would involve the following 3 components:

• Enhance the company strategy to ensure that the customer is not forgotten after the product has been delivered.

• Engage with customers using Web 2.0 technologies.

• Attempt to hire Jeff Jarvis as a Public Relations Officer.

I think it is critical that when such public relations disasters occur, the company under the spotlight reflects upon itself and makes the necessary changes to it's business. In this instance, it is quite clear that the customer service provided by Dell was not up to the mark. Hence I would attempt to try and make the mid-level managers and customer service professionals believe that long lasting customer service is indeed crucial for the long term sales of the business. I would attempt to do this by making a series of speeches that would be sent to our employees through the company's intranet. In addition to this, I would also make these speeches available on You Tube as this would show the world that we are changing.

Secondly, I would hire an IT service provider to deliver a system that would enable Dell to engage it's customers through Web 2.0 technologies. By that I mean that I would implement an online platform where users would be able to provide their thoughts on Dell and would be able to interact with other customers on their thoughts and experiences. They would also be most welcome to provide any ideas and solutions that they might have. In addition to this, I would also have a constant update on this platform mentioning how Dell is improving it's focus on customer service. I would also encourage my employees to blog about their experiences at Dell and I would encourage them to link their blogs to the new platform.

Finally, I would also attempt to hire Jeff Jarvis. Jeff has been hugely critical about Dell and he has also made some elementary suggestions. At one point he made a comment in jest where he said that he would provide additional services for a fee. I would take him up on this offer. I would also encourage him to continue blogging about Dell. As an employee, it would be his responsibility to improve the customer service of the company. Jeff's blog already has a lot of visibility and using his blog as a communication channel to send out positive messages about the company would definitely improve the image of the company in the eyes of the skeptics. I also think it would be in Jeff's best interest to blog positively about the changes in the company as this would make him appear to his followers as the "hero" who turned Dell around.

So, that is what I would do if I were running Dell during Dell Hell.......till next time, Caio.