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Dell and indirect channels

Although the focus of Dell’s business strategy has been 

selling directly to its customers, it also uses some indi‑

rect sales channels when there is a business need. In 

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Part 2  Strategy and applications

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Chapter 8  Digital marketing

the US it sells products indirectly through  third‑  party 

solution providers, system integrators, and  third‑  party 

resellers. During financial year 2008, Dell began offer‑

ing Dimension desktop computers and Inspiron note‑

book computers in retail stores in the Americas and 

announced partnerships with retailers in the UK, Japan, 

and China. Dell says: ‘These actions represent the first 

steps in our retail strategy, which will allow us to extend 

our business model and reach customers that we have 

not been able to reach directly.’

Question

Describe approaches used by Dell within their site 

design and promotion to deliver relevant offers for 

different types of online customers.