Desktops, notebooks, printers, hand helds, MP3 players, televisions, and projectors can all be found online. Their virtual catalog is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. and, many of their products are fully customizable, right online. They also highlight special offers, such as free shipping on Dimension desktops or a free printer with purchase. Just as in their direct mail catalog, Dell is trying to appeal to a wide target audience, including everyone from an individual to a global organization. Dell Products, Life Cycle Position and Pricing Strategies:

There are four primary phases in the product life cycle that a product progress through, in sequence: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. In the introduction phase, product branding is established, while pricing may be low build market share, or it may be high to recover development costs. Promotion is geared towards early adopters and builds product awareness.

The growth stage is where the organization looks to build their brand preference. Pricing remains stable as increased demand is realized. Promotion begins to expand to a broader audience.

The maturity phase, of the product life cycle, is the stage where strong growth in sales begins to decrease. Competition becomes intense, which typically lowers pricing. Promotional efforts focus on differentiating the organization's product from competitors.

Finally, the decline phase is the last of the product life cycle. Sales begins to decline and the organization usually looks to revitalize the product with new features, or by finding new niche markets, reduce the product costs and continue to offer it to their loyal customer base, or discontinue the product altogether.

Computers and computer peripherals are the lifeblood of Dell Computers. For this reason, they are also the primary thrust of their marketing efforts. Dell's computers are in the maturity phase of the product life cycle. They are under intense competition from direct to consumer manufacturers, such as Gateway. For...

At this stage, very little differentiation, in actual product, occurs, as the computers are built with similar, if not the same, components. Service and warranty offers some differentiation, but not significant to secure noteworthy market share. Price and company reputation are the only truly marketable differentiation techniques.
In addition, Dell's secondary strategy is to cater to niche markets, such as the movie industry in Hollywood. By approaching niche customers and providing differentiation in the form of understanding of their unique needs, Dell can price their products higher than their competitors. Their industry expertise supports this pricing strategy, in these niche markets.

Conclusion:

In the end, Dell Computers is an industry leader in the computer and electronics industry. Much of this success is due to their marketing efforts. Dell has utilized, television, print, direct mail, and the Internet in its marketing strategies. Each has a unique focus. Their television advertisement looks to differentiate their products by price, their print effort targets niche markets, their direct mail and Internet marketing offers something for everyone and every budget. As they work in a mature market, price is a considerable differentiation point, however offering industry expertise in niche markets can offset this challenge and allow Dell to sell at higher price points.