Dell 2006 Annual Report Download - page 8

Table of Contents
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Client Support Services. Our suite of scalable support services is designed for IT professionals and end-users whose needs range from basic phone support to rapid response and resolution of complex problems. We offer flexible levels of
support that help keep desktop and notebook PCs up and running so customers remain productive.
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Managed Lifecycle Services. We offer a full suite of services for companies who need to outsource all or part of their IT management. From planning to deployment to ongoing technical support, we can deliver the services our customers
need when they need them. Our Managed Lifecycle Services are modular in nature so that customers can customize a
plan based on their current and future needs. We can manage a portion of their IT tasks or provide an end-to-end
solution.
Financial Services
We offer various customer financial services for our business and consumer customers in the U.S. through Dell Financial
Services L.P. ("DFS"), a joint venture between Dell and CIT Group, Inc. Financing through DFS is one of many sources of
funding that our customers may select. For additional information about our financing arrangements, see "Part II — Item 7 —
Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations — Off-Balance Sheet
Arrangements" and Note 7 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in "Part II — Item 8 — Financial
Statements and Supplementary Data."
Sales and Marketing
We sell our products and services directly to customers through dedicated sales representatives, telephone-based sales,
and online at www.dell.com. Our customers include large corporate, government, healthcare, and education accounts, as
well as small-to-medium businesses and individual consumers. Within each of our geographic regions, we have divided our
sales and marketing resources among these various customer groups. No single customer accounted for more than 10% of
our consolidated net revenue during any of the last three fiscal years.
Our sales and marketing efforts are organized around the needs, trends, and characteristics of our customers. Our direct
business model provides direct and continuous feedback from customers, thereby allowing us to develop and refine our
products and marketing programs for specific customer groups. Customers may offer suggestions for current and future Dell
products, services, and operations on an interactive portion of our website called Dell IdeaStorm. This constant flow of
communication, which is unique to our direct business model, also allows us to rapidly gauge customer satisfaction and
target new or existing products.
For large business and institutional customers, we maintain a field sales force throughout the world. Dedicated account
teams, which include field-based system engineers and consultants, form long-term relationships to provide our largest
customers with a single source of assistance and develop specific tailored solutions for these customers. For large,
multinational customers, we offer several programs designed to provide single points of contact and accountability with
global account specialists, special global pricing, consistent service and support programs across global regions, and access
to central purchasing facilities. We also maintain specific sales and marketing programs targeted at federal, state, and local
governmental agencies as well as specific healthcare and educational markets.
We market our products and services to small-to-medium businesses and consumers primarily by advertising on television
and the Internet, advertising in a variety of print media, and by mailing a broad range of direct marketing publications, such
as promotional pieces, catalogs, and customer newsletters. In certain locations, we also operate Dell stores or kiosks,
typically located within shopping centers, that allow customers to view our products in person and purchase online with the
assistance of a Dell expert.
Although the focus of our business strategy is selling directly to customers, we also utilize some indirect sales channels
when there is a business need. In the U.S. we sell products indirectly through third-party solution providers, system
integrators, and third-party resellers. During Fiscal 2008, we began offering Dell
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