PC maker and direct seller (so far in India) Dell is now leaning towards Indian retailing chain for selling their products. Although in this country IT product resellers chain or distribution channel is quite strong and generates effective result, Dell s decision is unconventional.
Selling telecom products (namely cell phones and their accessories) is comparatively easy as today it is a utility; exactly the same is true for pharmaceutical products. However, selling a desktop or laptop is not that simple. Indians in the semi-urban and rural areas are still to realise the usefulness of owning a PC. There are many cyber cafes where PCs can be hired for personal use, thus the thought of ownership is yet to sit firmly in the minds of Indians, especially, those who live out of highly urban areas.
Resellers not only sell the IT products, they convince the customers to buy. They spend time to brainstorm the customers, feel their needs and present the product accordingly. Thus, selling IT products does not mean just give eye-catching display and discount; those who need will peep and pick on their own. It needs special expertise, individual attention, and of course pushing with responsibility (often service assurance, although it is a duty of the manufacturer). No supermarkets, at least in India, right at this moment, can come to this level to assist customers.
When the market research firm IDC points out that the PC market in India has grown by 22.1%, obviously it s a credit of the resellers. While international brands like HP, Lenovo are already dominating the PC market in India along with the local players like HCL, Xenitis, Dell s search for a new distribution route indicates an attempt to stay away from the (channel) crowd. But why?
Dell s low-cost PCs are coming next month. Those products, customised for India, will be manufactured in its Chennai plant. However, those will not be sold through the existing IT products sales channel route, they will come to market through limited number of retail outlets. Will those PCs be something like low-cost yet premium products that re not available everywhere, meant for everyone? It clearly raises a question on the manufacturing cost competitiveness of the Dell s products.
Whatsoever be the reason, it is an experimental approach for Dell. Indian IT resellers have to be more strategic with the brands that are passing through their hands. They need to work harder to expand further to the yet-unexplored areas. Remember IT products are not like food grains or clothes or medicines, thus develop the skills of creating needs and supplying products. Indian IT Channel is quite strong now, and it will win in the face of all challenges.