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Case: A Business Case on Dell and AdPeople – A new perspective on effectiveness Per Henrik Lings Allé 4 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark +45 3344 5100 adpeople.com worldwide

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

ADVERTISING AGENCY: ADPEOPLEADVERTISER: DELL COMPUTER CORPORATION EMEA

Case:

A Business Case on Dell and AdPeople – A new perspective on effectiveness

AdPeople

A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

ADVERTISING AGENCY: ADPEOPLEADVERTISER: DELL COMPUTER CORPORATION EMEA

Case:

A Business Case on Dell and AdPeople – A new perspective on effectiveness

AdPeople

A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

ADVERTISING AGENCY: ADPEOPLEADVERTISER: DELL COMPUTER CORPORATION EMEA

Case:

A Business Case on Dell and AdPeople – A new perspective on effectiveness

AdPeople

Per Henrik Lings Allé 4

2100 Copenhagen, Denmark

+45 3344 5100

adpeople.com

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

1. Executive summary .................................................... Page 01

2. Introduction ................................................................. Page 02

3. The effective marketing function? ............................... Page 03

4. PC market in the UK .................................................... Page 04

5. Dell ............................................................................... Page 05

6. AdPeople’s answers to Dell’s challenges ...................... Page 09

7. Results ......................................................................... Page 14

8. Summary ..................................................................... Page 17

9. The future .................................................................... Page 18

10. BrandShareTM ................................................................ Page 19

1 1 . Contact information ..................................................... Page 20

index page

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

1. Executive summary

For Dell, AdPeople developed the tool DellShare™,

which provides Dell with the technological platform

for the introduction of ‘Lean’ processes and improving

organisation of the marketing function.

This has led to the following key results:

Internally:

• Reducing overall agency costs over 5 years by 50%.

81 morf seicnega fo rebmun eht gnicudeR •

to 2 at European level.

• Reducing ‘time to market’ by 60%.

tnemeganam gnitekram fo rebmun eht devlaH •

employees on Dell’s European business.

Externally:

rieht devorpmi evah lleD ,sraey evfi tsap eht gniruD •

market share in the European market by significant

yearly growth rates in a very competitive market.

hcihw tekram eht no dnarb ylno eht egral dna yb si lleD •

performs well in all product categories – both in the

private and business markets.

The basis for Dell’s great success in the PC market is to

a large degree due to their business relationship with

AdPeople on creative development of relevant and

integrated communication as well as development and

implementation of the DellShare™ marketing portal.

The cooperation between Dell and AdPeople has made

Dell Marketing in Europe a “Lean marketing machine”.

A marketing organisation based on the recognition that

‘effectiveness’ must be seen in a greater perspective,

where both internal processes and external results are

optimized to achieve ‘Marketing efficiency’ and thereby

the best possible ROI.

The purpose of this case is to put into perspective the

concept of effectiveness within the marketing function.

The case describes how Dell and AdPeople have

developed an effective marketing function. A function

which has produced continuous effective gains in market

communication, in the marketing organisation, in the

cooperation with partners and in the optimization of

marketing processes.

The case will demonstrate that the marketing function,

in close cooperation with the agency, can deliver effective

results in relation to business opportunities and problems.

With the improvement in AdPeople’s ‘marketing

efficiency’, the relationship with Dell has developed over

the past 6-7 years. The relationship began in 1999 with

ad hoc tasks in the Nordic markets and has expanded to

AdPeople now having responsibility for all of Dell’s DM

communication in Europe.

The cooperation with Dell has been a learning curve

– starting in ‘the good old fashioned way’ with chaos,

lack of vision and work duplication, to today being an

optimized marketing process.

In 2005, the extent of cooperation covered:

• + 20 Pan European DM campaigns

• + 840 million tactical activities

• + 15,000 unique ad pages

• + 6,000 unique emails

• + 40,000 unique banners

To manage tasks of this magnitude requires that systems

and management tools are developed and in place for Dell

to build a uniformed and streamlined marketing process.

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

A business case on Dell & AdPeople – A new perspective on effectiveness

more specific and describes the business working

relationship between Dell and AdPeople – a relationship

which has solved many of the challenges, which both now

and in the future are needed for an effective

marketing function.

In order to provide a background on the results which

Dell have achieved working with AdPeople in the past six

years, an insight is given into: The PC market in Europe,

Dell’s business model and improved market standing

as well as AdPeople’s fulfilment of and role in Dell’s

challenges in Europe. Finally the case looks at the

results achieved.

The purpose of this case is to put into perspective the

concept of effectiveness in the marketing function. An

effectiveness suitable both for the market orientated

marketing activities and optimization of the internal

processes in connection with marketing.

The perspectivising aspects are illustrated via AdPeople’s

business relationship with Dell Computers Europe from

the early start in 1999 up to today’s extensive and

integrated cooperation.

The case begins with the debate on the marketing

function and its challenges. Thereafter, the case becomes

denfinoc si dna nwohs eb tonnac lleD tuoba atad sisylana cfiiceps yna ecneh dna evitcirtser si ytilaitnedfinoc ssenisub no ycilop s’lleD :etoN

to other references or main conclusions. In cases where market data is shown in non-indexed format, such information comes either

from generic or publicly available sources.

2. Introduction

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

The above mentioned market conditions are some of

the demands and terms which producers must take into

account in today’s PC market environment.

Customer buying behaviour and IT infrastructure

Another decisive factor lies within the changes in buying

behaviour. In today’s lifestyle, the PC is to a large extent

considered a generic benefit, which becomes more

accessible to people. This is both the case within the

private market of PCs as well as within the business

market. Only a few years ago, buying a PC was more of

an investment in a long lasting commodity than today’s

experience, when the purchase bears more characteristics

of ‘impulse buying’ based on a good deal.

At the same time, the IT infrastructure is developing

increasingly faster across Europe. Broadband, mobility,

new applications etc. are available to most people across

the whole of Europe.

End users demand the latest technology to manage the

constantly increasing opportunities and solutions which

the PC offers in their daily activities – both when it comes

to simple and advanced user situations.

Producers under pressure

The above factors tell us about a market which is under

constant development and where suppliers are squeezed

to produce their best in order to enjoy a ‘raison d’etre’ in

the market.

To be able to achieve the optimum, the producers will

need a strategy and a very effective business model,

which can adjust to new market trends instantly.

The crucial market conditions referred to above mean

that PC suppliers must have very effective production

facilities ensuring low costs, a market model (for their

product range) which can be speedily adapted to meet

new market demands as well as optimized processes

and tools, which ensure that these are communicated

effectively in the market.

All in all a ‘Lean mean machine’ is required throughout

the entire value chain, if a producer is to be a successful

player in the PC market in Europe.

An intense competitive market

The market for PCs in Europe is characterised by intense

competition - a competition which, over the years, has

become more and more focused on price.

In the market, there are both established PC suppliers like

HP, Fujitsu Siemens, Toshiba and others as well as new

aggressive suppliers entering the market such as Acer,

Asus and Lenovo. In addition, there are powerful local/

regional PC suppliers within individual markets in Europe.

All suppliers use, on the whole, the same component

technology and this means that this parameter cannot be

used as a differentiating element in the competition. On

the other hand, this very much enables the potential PC

buyer to compare specifications and thereby let the price

element decide

choice of PC.

Large scale production benefits and retailer mergers

Pricing is squeezed further by the new aggressive players

with low cost production in the Far East, selling their PCs

close to production cost in order to ‘buy’ market share.

This causes pressure on profit margins. The ensuing

effects are that it becomes essential that large scale

production benefits be brought about, but this requires

constant added volume of products to be sold in the

market.

At the same time retail mergers take place, whereby retail

chains become bigger and bigger. This enables the chains

to squeeze price even further in their powerful position

when negotiating pricing with producers.

Frequent changes in technology

New technology replaces old technology at greater

frequency and puts demand on producers to always

include the latest technology in their product range.

This requires that management control of products and

production are always optimized in relation to supply and

demand. Stock control and stock inventory levels become,

therefore, a critical factor in the changing situation.

3. The effective marketing function?

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

Customer buying behaviour and IT infrastructure

Another decisive factor lies within the changes in buying

behaviour. In today’s lifestyle, the PC is to a large extent

considered a generic benefit, which becomes more

accessible to people. This is both the case within the

private market of PCs as well as within the business

market. Only a few years ago, buying a PC was more

of an investment in a long lasting commodity than

today’s experience, when the purchase bears more

characteristics of ‘impulse buying’ based on a good deal.

At the same time, the IT infrastructure is developing

increasingly faster across Europe. Broadband, mobility,

new applications etc. are available to most people across

the whole of Europe.

End users demand the latest technology to manage the

constantly increasing opportunities and solutions which

the PC offers in their daily activities – both when it comes

to simple and advanced user situations.

Producers under pressure

The above factors tell us about a market which is under

constant development and where suppliers are squeezed

to produce their best in order to enjoy a ‘raison d’etre’ in

the market.

To be able to achieve the optimum, the producers will

need a strategy and a very effective business model,

which can adjust to new market trends instantly.

The crucial market conditions referred to above mean

that PC suppliers must have very effective production

facilities ensuring low costs, a market model (for their

product range) which can be speedily adapted to meet

new market demands as well as optimized processes

and tools, which ensure that these are communicated

effectively in the market.

All in all a ‘Lean mean machine’ is required throughout

the entire value chain, if a producer is to be a successful

player in the PC market in Europe.

An intense competitive market

The market for PCs in Europe is characterised by intense

competition - a competition which, over the years, has

become more and more focused on price.

In the market, there are both established PC suppliers like

HP, Fujitsu Siemens, Toshiba and others as well as new

aggressive suppliers entering the market such as Acer,

Asus and Lenovo. In addition, there are powerful local/

regional PC suppliers within individual markets in Europe.

All suppliers use, on the whole, the same component

technology and this means that this parameter cannot be

used as a differentiating element in the competition. On

the other hand, this very much enables the potential PC

buyer to compare specifications and thereby let the price

element decide choice of PC.

Large scale production benefits and retailer mergers

Pricing is squeezed further by the new aggressive players

with low cost production in the Far East, selling their PCs

close to production cost in order to ‘buy’ market share.

This causes pressure on profit margins. The ensuing

effects are that it becomes essential that large scale

production benefits be brought about, but this requires

constant added volume of products to be sold in

the market.

At the same time retail mergers take place, whereby retail

chains become bigger and bigger. This enables the chains

to squeeze price even further in their powerful position

when negotiating pricing with producers.

Frequent changes in technology

New technology replaces old technology at greater

frequency and puts demand on producers to always

include the latest technology in their product range.

This requires that management control of products and

production are always optimized in relation to supply and

demand. Stock control and stock inventory levels become,

therefore, a critical factor in the changing situation.

The above mentioned market conditions are some of

the demands and terms which producers must take into

account in today’s PC market environment.

4. The PC market in Europe

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

Dell’s background

Dell was established by Michael Dell in 1984, as a private

fi rm. Today Dell is ‘The no. 1 PC Manufacturer in the

World’ with more than 65,000 employees and a turnover

of 56 mia. USD (2006). The starting point for Dell was

the US market and they have since expanded to cover

markets throughout the world. Dell’s fi rst involvement in

Europe was in the UK in 1987 and today Dell now have

organisations in 13 European markets. Of Dell’s total

production, 23% is for the European market – their largest

market area in volume terms.

The direct model

In reality, Dell products are available to all who have

access to telephone and internet. The reason for this is

Dell’s direct business model – a model based on direct

contact between producer and end users.

The direct model does not include the traditional links

such as distributors and retailers, as used by most of

Dell’s competitors.

This means that Dell supply PCs direct in accordance with

the customers’ wishes at time of ordering. Dell’s starting

point is having standard confi gurations for their various

products and these can thereafter be tailor-made to meet

specifi c needs of end users.

The advantage with this business model is that Dell

can manage their market prices in direct relation

to their production costs without the added cost to

intermediaries. Dell can thus maintain a better margin

than their competitors and still offer competitive prices in

the market.

5. Dell

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

This direct model has a further advantage in that all

demand is known immediately at the point of customers

placing orders and, therefore, enables Dell to manufacture

without a stock inventory of components. All production is

based on ‘Just in Time’ and this means that Dell can have

the most up-to-date and relevant technology available.

Suppliers of components to Dell keep stock stores at their

production plants and Dell have thus secured access to all

necessary components without the cost of keeping stocks

themselves.

Distribution takes place direct to end users from Dell’s

production plants around the world.

Dell’s vision

“Be the most successful computer company in the

world at delivering the best customer experience in

markets we serve...”

With the direct customer contact, Dell believe they can

deliver the optimal solution based on the customer’s

specifi c wishes. Dell know the unique confi guration of

every unit sold and can therefore also deliver tailor-made

service and support. The direct service and support

means that Dell do not need to go through intermediaries

(distributor and/or retailer) to solve any after sales

problems – the customer is in direct contact with the

PC manufacturer.

5. Dell (continued)

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

Distribution takes place direct to end users from Dell’s

production plants around the world.

Dell’s vision

“Be the most successful computer company in the

world at delivering the best customer experience in

markets we serve...”

With the direct customer contact, Dell believe they can

deliver the optimal solution based on the customer’s

specifi c wishes. Dell know the unique confi guration of

every unit sold and can therefore also deliver tailor-made

service and support. The direct service and support

means that Dell do not need to go through intermediaries

(distributor and/or retailer) to solve any after sales

problems – the customer is in direct contact with the

PC manufacturer.

The advantage with this business model is that Dell

can manage their market prices in direct relation

to their production costs without the added cost to

intermediaries. Dell can thus maintain a better margin

than their competitors and still offer competitive prices in

the market.

This direct model has a further advantage in that all

demand is known immediately at the point of customers

placing orders and, therefore, enables Dell to manufacture

without a stock inventory of components. All production is

based on ‘Just in Time’ and this means that Dell can have

the most up-to-date and relevant technology available.

Suppliers of components to Dell keep stock stores at their

production plants and Dell have thus secured access to all

necessary components without the cost of keeping stocks

themselves.

5. Dell (continued)

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

Unique coding and response

In Dell, the management constantly evaluates the

communication effect via input reporting to the marketing

and sales data bank. The results are relayed daily to

relevant partners (including AdPeople). Each marketing

element has a unique code and can thus be traced in

relation to results.

Dell’s direct response model is made up of three response

elements and all effects of marketing activities are

evaluated in relation to these:

All accessible channels – both offline and online:

Step 1: esnopser( egapemoh no stih/sllac enohpeleT

rate per unique code)

Step 2: selas ot dessap stih ro sllaC

department (conversion)

Step 3: Achieved sale (ROI – Return on Investment)

The marketing activity must both provide attention,

relevance (branding) and buying stimulus (price) in one

and the same element in such a way that all activities can

be directly converted into sales.

Simple - but massive

To be able to handle this apparent straightforward model,

which really is massive in size, requires that the agency

have a deep understanding of both the market place and

Dell’s processes.

A message

Dell’s use of media channels is horizontal in relation to

the traditional vertical model, where the communication

message develops from image and product position

messages to pure tactical ‘call to action’ messages. Dell

use all media channels (offline and online) for by and large

the same message viz. that Dell can always deliver high

quality at a competitive price.

By not differentiating the message on the whole in the

various media channels, the communication model

becomes very straightforward. Direct results of efforts

can be measured and can, unlike others who use a more

traditional communication model, immediately know the

isolated communication effect and thereby measure

ROI directly.

In the more traditional model, it can often be a problem

to identify which part(s) of the communication has led to

customer demand and when it happened and this makes

it difficult to work out the real ROI.

Dell’s business model is unique and the communication

model should be looked at in this context. It would not be

possible to have such a straightforward communication

model with the more traditional business model.

5. Dell (continued)

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

Everything is measured and weighed

Dell is always a challenge to work for and with. All of Dell’s

business culture and ideology are based on an on-going

measuring of initiatives.

In AdPeople’s relationship with Dell throughout the years,

this challenging situation has always been the agenda

– there have never been times ‘to rest on one’s laurels’.

It has been an on-going process of development, where

every situation and opportunity is challenged, everything

is tested, measured and documented.

Meeting such a challenging situation, requires a

fundamental and deep understanding of Dell’s business

model as well as a readiness by the agency to accept

changes. The ability to react spontaneously to new

situations and/or opportunities is key.

3 fundamental concepts

The three fundamental concepts in

Dell’s world of marketing are:

• Direct response communication – in all elements

• Cost reduction - ‘leaner’ marketing management

’tekram ot emit‘ fo noitcudeR •

– rapid reaction to market forces

How is this possible?

It demands an attitude and dedication from both the

client and the agency, as well as a working relationship,

which goes much deeper in both organisations than is the

case in the more traditional client/agency relationship.

AdPeople’s vision

AdPeople management speak of ‘Marketing efficiency’

and not ‘only’ about ‘Advertising effectiveness’.

The effective marketing should be judged by the

communication AdPeople develops simultaneously

focusing on processes, agency tools and organisation.

The ambition of AdPeople is to be the creative force in

Marketing efficiency, which means:

“We deliver high creative quality – at low

implementation costs – as quickly as possible”

Creativity and effectiveness should be evaluated evenly

for these to be attractive to a client like Dell who is ‘value

driven’ both in respect of internal and external activities.

Relationship development

With the improvement in ‘Marketing efficiency’, AdPeople

have extended and developed their relationship with Dell

in Europe over the past 6-7 years.

The relationship began in 1999 with ad hoc tasks in the

Nordic markets and has expanded to AdPeople now

having responsibility for all of Dell’s communication in

Europe. DM includes all marketing activities except for

ads and TV advertising, which are developed by DDB in

London for the European region.

AdPeople have now responsibility for the following

marketing elements in Europe – 13 countries and 15

language versions:

Offline Online

Inserts E-mails

Catalogues & mailers Banners

Direct mails, postcards etc Website content

Fax alerts

AdPeople’s business relationship with Dell from 1999

to present day has been a learning curve – starting in

“the good old fashioned way” with chaos, lack of vision

and work duplication, to today being a super optimized

marketing process.

Throughout the period constant development has taken

place of new effective marketing elements and activities,

optimisation of internal and external processes – and the

development of the DellShare™ portal. A shift from a

decentralised (local) marketing organisation to one that

is central. The developments and changes have ensured

better use of resources in relation to the business model

and the marketing model which has evolved from it.

6. AdPeople’s answers to Dell’s challenges

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

Integrated communication

The creative work developed from being ad hoc elements

without much reference to a brand’s identity and hence

its limited contribution towards the perception of Dell as

a brand.

Today - all marketing activities are fully integrated

and there is ‘harmony’ in style and tone at all levels of

exposures in the market place.

All marketing elements include the ‘direct response’

approach as well as a uniform identity, which throughout

contributes to the overall perception of Dell as a brand.

This integrated communication shows, of course, regard

for individual channels/media and their premises, but

will always bring the same fundamental message of high

quality at competitive prices. Likewise, the message

emphasis is varied in relation to the specific target group

– private or business.

Operational guidelines

In addition to the market-orientated marketing activities,

AdPeople have developed an internal strategy on

corporate design guidelines for Dell in Europe. The

guidelines have been developed in such a way that they

are consistent across all channels and always with an

operational and practical aim based on templates to suit

all marketing elements.

Extent of the business relationship

between Dell and Ad.People

As mentioned, all marketing activities carried

out by Dell are based on a ‘simple’ marketing

and communication model.

However, this does not tell the full story about the

business relationship between Dell and AdPeople

– because behind this apparently simple model lies a

massive marketing effort which AdPeople manage for Dell

in Europe.

The extent of the relationship is illustrated in the

following figures (2005):

• + 20 Pan European DM campaigns

fo rebmun eht( seitivitca lacitcat noillim 048 + •

distributed elements in the market across all channels)

• + 15,000 unique ad pages

• + 6,000 emails

• +40,000 unique banners

As also mentioned, to manage tasks of this magnitude

calls for systems and management tools to be developed

and in place for Dell to build a uniformed and streamlined

marketing process.

The DellShare™ portal

AdPeople have developed for Dell a tool under the

trade mark DellShare™. In essence, this is a Marketing

Operation Management system or, in other words, a portal

for managing marketing processes.

DellShare™ is a tool which provides Dell with the

technological platform for the introduction of ‘lean’

processes and organisation of the marketing function.

The overriding objective with the development and

implementation of the DellShare™ system, has been the

need to make Dell’s marketing processes more effective.

6. AdPeople’s answers to Dell’s challenges (continued)

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

6. AdPeople’s answers to Dell’s challenges (continued)

The situation before implementation of DellShareTM

Divided planning & work execution

• Manual processes

• Coordination-demanding

• Too time consuming

• Heavy costs

The situation after implementation of DellShareTM –

‘Lean Marketing Excellence’

• Optimized work distribution between global and

local marketing functions and external partners

• Best practice processes and work fl ow control

• Improved overview and coordination of the

planning process

• Enhanced productivity

• Cost effectiveness

IT-platform

Processes and management tools

Organisation & employees

Asset Management

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

6. AdPeople’s answers to Dell’s challenges (continued)

DellShareTM supports optimization on all aspects of

Dell’s value chain within marketing and covers the

following main areas:

The implementation and further development of

DellShare™ have made Dell more effective – both today

and in the future.

This has been possible by reevaluating the most

important processes in relation to:

• Production and execution of marketing materials

and campaigns.

.sehcnual ngiapmac lacihpargoeg fo noitac fiilpmiS •

These changes have brought about considerable

reductions in marketing costs.

These changes have brought about considerable

reductions in marketing costs.

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

Benefits for Dell Marketing

The process optimization has generated the following

benefits to Dell’s marketing function:

retteb dna erom – ssenevitceffE •

marketing at lower costs

htiw dna semit noitcudorp retrohS •

it faster time-to-market

• Greater uniformity in marketing materials

• Higher quality and fewer mistakes

dna esuer ,gnirahs-egdelwonK •

application of best practice

• Independence of time and place – open 24-7-365

rof noitacinummoc tnetsisnoc dnarb dna desilartneC •

local adaptation and execution

(‘Think global – act local’)

Motivation within Dell’s marketing organisation has also

improved with the introduction of DellShare™ in that their

marketing people find that they are performing ‘smarter’

than their competitors.

The daily work

The entire workflow and all deadlines during the

development process, from strategy to production-ready

materials, is managed through the DellShare™ system. All

communication and exchange of materials pass through

this channel. The relevant employees in Dell and AdPeople

have access to materials and information which precisely

their functions need in relation to the process.

All processes are automated in reference to the

defined business procedure. DellShare™ is operated via

AdPeople’s server

DellShare™ also handles work from AdPeople’s division in

Bangladesh. In Dhaka, AdPeople have a staff of 30 Desk

Top Publishing artists who put the finishing touches to

the creative material before approval and production.

By having this function in Bangladesh, the time zone

difference is a bonus as well as lower overheads.

Both the optimisation and automization of processes

as well as communication have proved to be effective

– both internally and externally – as demonstrated by the

achieved results.

6. AdPeople’s answers to Dell’s challenges (continued)

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

Internal results

During the past fi ve years, Dell have reduced overall

agency costs at European level by 50% - (2002: 8%,

2003: 10%, 2004: 11%, 2005: 21%) – results which can

be attributed to the increasing and extensive use of

DellShare™ as a tool in managing and automizing

marketing processes.

Reduced the number of agencies from 18 to 2 at the

European level – the reason for this big reduction is that

DellShare™ has made it possible to centralize many

functions compared with the previous local focus. In

addition, the centralization has enabled Dell and AdPeople

to negotiate lower prices for production due to the large

and common quantities of marketing materials needed.

Time to market has been reduced by 60% - which proves

that the time from starting a marketing initiative to when

it hits the market and target customers, has been reduced

signifi cantly. This provides a competitive advantage

and means that Dell can track market movements more

effectively. In many instances Dell can be ahead with

market development in relation to their competitors.

The opportunity to centralize many of the marketing

functions via DellShare™ has furthermore meant

that over the years, Dell have been able to optimize

their marketing organisation in Europe. Dell have

been in a position to halve the number of employees

at management level in Europe. Besides reducing

management salary costs, the decision-making process

has been shortened and made more effective.

All in all these improvements and results mean that Dell

– within their allocated marketing budget – can produce

far more marketing elements thereby increase both

product awareness and demand for PCs in the market.

This relationship between cost reductions and greater

product awareness in the market is illustrated in the

following graph:

The graph shows marketing costs (indexed) seen in relation to the growth in the number of unique pages. In other words, the lower costs provide the opportunity to produce more marketing materials and with it greater emphasis in the market place.

Total unique pages should be seen in the context of how much unique marketing materials are produced across Europe including local versions.

7. Results

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

Market results:

The results achieved by making processes more effective, are also refl ected in the market. Through the integrated

communication, the effective processes and the shorter reaction time derived from this, Dell is now better equipped to react

faster to competitors’ initiatives and to challenge these. awareness in the market is illustrated in the following graph:

During the past fi ve years, Dell have been able to

increase their market share in the European market for

PCs. From being a medium-sized player for PCs in 1999

(achieving moderate growth rates), Dell have grown

to become a leading player over the past 5-6 years.

Growth rates over this period have been signifi cant in

what is a very competitive PC market. This impressive

performance applies both to the business market as

well as the market for private PCs.

That Dell’s business and marketing model is effective

in the market, is also manifested in Dell’s growth rates

in relation to the total PC market. Dell expanded their

volume at a greater rate of increase than the market’s

average. At the same time, the increase in growth

rate is also refl ected in the expansion and continuing

development of the DellShare™ system and the derived

positive effects over the years.

7. Results (continued)

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Communication of relevant and topical PC products within the different product categories is important. This helps to

widen the portfolio and make Dell less dependent on developments in individual European markets. The table below

shows Dell’s growth rates within the main product categories in relation to the rest of the market.

Market growth 2004-2005Total units sold as a % of total market – IDC 2006

Dell(index in relation to the overall market growth year by year)

Overall PC market(index = 100)

Total PC market - EuropeDesktops + Notebooks

28,9 % - (149) 19,4 % - (100)

Desktop Total 21,9 % - (205) 10,7 % - (100)

Desktop Private 31,7 % - (184) 17,2 % - (100)

Desktop Business 19,9 % - (276) 7,2 % - (100)

Notebook Total 47,3 % - (123) 38,6 % - (100)

Notebook Private 78,8 % - (150) 52,7 % - (100)

Notebook Business 40,0 % - (133) 30,0 % - (100)

As can be seen from the table, Dell have index figures higher than the market overall. These results can be traced

directly back to the effective and direct communication, which together with the topical and relevant products, create

the demand for Dell’s PCs.

Several of Dell’s competitors also do well in the market, but Dell is by and large the only brand which performs well in

all product categories – both in the private and business segments.

7. Results (continued)

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8. Summary

This is the main reason that Dell today have a

marketing model in tune with its business model.

The cooperation between Dell and AdPeople has

turned Dell Marketing in Europe into a ‘lean marketing

machine’ - a marketing organisation with optimized and

automized processes as well as a marketing function

which is always at the leading edge in development.

All in all Dell is a dynamic organisation based on the

realisation that ‘Effectiveness’ must be seen in a

greater perspective, where both the internal processes

and external results are being optimized, so that

‘Marketing efficiency’ is achieved and with it the best

possible ROI.

In order to put achieved results into perspective,

65 million PCs were sold in the European market

during 2005 – source: IDC. Comparing this with Dell’s

market share, it becomes clear that by effectivizing

communication and marketing processes, significant

contributions can be made to the bottom line.

Dell products can only be bought via internet or by

telephone due to Dell’s direct business model.

Unlike most of Dell’s competitors, Dell PCs cannot,

therefore, be bought in retail shops. This makes

Dell more dependent on relevant and direct response-

orientated communication to bring about demand.

All of Dell’s marketing is focused on direct response

and a flat and simple communication model is used

across all media channels. Marketing activities are

developed centrally and thereafter adapted for

individual European markets. All marketing activities

are measured and evaluated directly in relation to

effectiveness and customer response.

The basis for Dell’s great success is to a large

extent due to the close business involvement with

AdPeople – on creative development of relevant and

integrated communication as well as development and

implementation of the DellShare™ marketing portal.

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

9. The future

With Dell’s integrated business and marketing model,

they are ready to face challenges in the highly

competitive PC market – a market constantly being

challenged by new producers with cost effective

production methods leading to further pressure on

profit margins.

Experts predict a market where as a result of falling

margins, an elimination race will emerge within the

next couple of years or so. Therefore, there will be

focus on cost reductions among all PC producers.

An advantage for Dell in this context is that they are

not dependent on the retail trade and are, therefore,

not being squeezed in the same way as many of their

competitors.

With Dell’s ‘well-oiled’ marketing function - developed

together with AdPeople – they are able to closely follow

the market and, if necessary, put their competitors

under further pressure.

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The experience gained with the development of the

DellShare™ portal has enabled AdPeople to develop

the product BrandShare.

BrandShare is an IT platform developed to

optimize marketing processes and thereby improve

effectiveness. The product has been designed

modularly and can be adapted to suit the needs of

different businesses.

Today, several of AdPeople’s clients use BrandShare

as a tool to improve ‘Marketing efficiency’.

10. BrandShareTM

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A BUSINESS CASE ON DELL AND ADPEOPLE

AdPeople

Vester Farimagsgade 41,

1606 Copenhagen V, Denmark

Phone: +45 72 21 51 00

Website: www.adpeople.com

Ronnie Job

CEO, Founder

Direct: +45 72 21 51 01

Mobile: +45 22 65 51 01

E-mail: [email protected]

Emre Gürsoy Jørgensen

Managing Director

Direct: +45 72 21 51 33

Mobile: +45 22 65 51 33

E-mail: [email protected]

11. For further information, please contact:

AdPeople

www.adpeople.com

Emre GürsoyGlobal COOMobile: +45 3078 4200E-mail: [email protected]

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AdPeople

Vester Farimagsgade 41,

1606 Copenhagen V, Denmark

Phone: +45 72 21 51 00

Website: www.adpeople.com

Ronnie Job

CEO, Founder

Direct: +45 72 21 51 01

Mobile: +45 22 65 51 01

E-mail: [email protected]

Emre Gürsoy Jørgensen

Managing Director

Direct: +45 72 21 51 33

Mobile: +45 22 65 51 33

E-mail: [email protected]

11. For further information, please contact:

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