Dell’s ‘Back To School’ campaign aims at showcasing the power of personal computing to both students and their parents through the concept of interactive learning. It signifies the commencement of a new school session and marks the beginning of a year filled with new possibilities for young minds. In an interaction with Ritu Gupta, Director, Marketing, Consumer & Small Business, Dell India about the innovative campaign and company’s future activities.
What are the motives behind the Dell’s Back to School campaign?
The idea of PCs being incorporated into education to enthuse students with engaging content formats, has been explored for some time now, and is increasingly being recognized as not a novelty but a necessity. Not only parents, but even educational institutions across market tiers, be it metros or tier 2 or 3 cities, the demand to learn using the PC as a companion has become a reality to a great extent. That said, it is necessary to understand the value of technology and how to optimally utilize the power of computing to make the process of education more holistic, and to add value to overall individual growth. Dell’s Back To School campaign takes Dell’s consistent education focus to the next level, offering users the capability to purchase PCs at Re. 1/-, bringing them closer to a unique learning experience for school students. One of the key objectives of the campaign is to reach out to students (who are the users) as well as parents (who are the decision makers) just before the beginning of a new school term. This time is associated with the purchase of new things – a set of books, a new uniform, and we are encouraging parents to add the PC to this list of essentials, this season.
What are the roadmaps of this programme?
The Back to School campaign is an annual initiative by Dell in India. With PC penetration still at approximately 10% in Indian households, there is a need to address the apprehensions which users face when considering the purchase of a PC – which is attributed a lot of importance in a market like India. One of the greatest factors that may cause users to be apprehensive is the fact that it is a significant investment. For this, it is necessary for them to understand the value addition of computing in their lives and lives of their family. Alongside, the Re. 1/- plan is a device which reduces the hesitance to invest in their PC, especially for first time buyers. With the easy financing option, anyone can buy a Dell PC at Re. 1/- and pay the rest of the amount in 6 easy EMI-free instalments. This offer is the next step towards sustaining the momentum achieved with the offer introduced in December with the PC Literacy Days outreach that enabled users to purchase a PC at just Rs. 749.
What are the offers through this programme?
This Back to School season, customers can purchase Dell Inspiron Desktops, All-in-One or Inspiron 3000 series notebooks (only on Intel 4th Gen, Core i3 notebook models) for Re. 1 and pay the remaining amount in interest-free easy EMIs. On purchasing any Inspiron Desktop or All-in-One, customers can pay an additional amount of Rs. 999/- to avail: 2 Year Additional Dell Next Business Day Onsite Warranty,1 Year Edurite Content Pack and Shopping Voucher from Bata. On purchasing the Inspiron 3000 series notebook (only on Intel 4th Gen, Core i3 notebook models), customers can pay an additional amount of Rs. 999/- to avail 2 Year Additional Dell Next Business Day Onsite Warranty.
For this programme, did you tied up with any organization?
We tied up with Edurite to provide interactive content packages for school students. It is a combination of innovative technology and engaging content makes the computing experience seamless. With Edurite content packages, students gain access to interactive and engaging learning-based content, which tie back to the syllabus taught in school.We also collaborated with Bata for this year’s Back to School program. On the purchase of every Dell Inspiron, Desktop, All-in-One, and Inspiron 3000 Series notebook, the customer also receives a Bata voucher. This is an initiative meant to encourage students and parents to view the PC as another essential part of the student’s academic kit. We also collaborated with Marvel’s Avengers – Captain America: Civil War, offering exciting merchandise to young school students.
What progress has Dell made in terms of activities and business in the last financial year?
Dell is the World’s fastest growing large integrated IT company in India. With the growth in demand for user needs, Dell has consistently innovated in its bid to keep in step with technology evolution. On the products front, Dell has strived to deliver seamless technology solutions, keeping the customer at the heart of the innovation that takes place at the company. Computing solutions have been transformed to incorporate the diverse and unique needs of our various customers, to keep technology intuitive as its core becomes more complex, and its interface grows simpler. We have incorporated business-class features into personal use devices, to ensure a comprehensive personal computing experience. From the beginning of the year when we launched our flagship Inspiron laptops and AIOs with touch, to the unveiling of the Dell XPS 13 – the thinnest ultrabook, and the most recent, high-performance Dell Inspiron 15 7000; we have grown our device portfolio to ensure that we have something for every customer. As of the end of CY2015, we were the number 1 consumer PC company in terms of shipment, according to IDC; and we plan to maintain this momentum, building trust among our customers to create long lasting relationships. To complement our end to end product offering, we have enhanced our focus on retail, making brand Dell available to the customer in every retail format that they consider. The idea is to make Dell accessible to customers where they are comfortable interacting with it – be it online, in multi-brand retail or in a Dell Exclusive Store. Our efforts are aligned to surround the customer in an immersive brand experience and to aid them in understanding the value of a device of choice, and how they can best utilize it to complement their everyday technology requirements. Through our vast retail network of over 600 Dell Exclusive stores, and service capabilities in over 30,000 pin codes, we have been able to augment our presence across the Indian market – in metros, tier 1, 2, 3 and 4 cities and towns.
What are your future plans?
We intend to sustain and further build the momentum we have achieved in the Indian market, reinforcing the legacy of the brand among our vast customer base. Through consistent innovation and an active customer listening program, we are keen to deliver to each PC user’s unique requirement. As is evident from the recent financing schemes, a major focus for the coming year, will be to make the PC accessible to first time users, as they begin to discover the immense potential of technology to transform everyday life. Dell hopes to enable thousands of young, enthusiastic minds, so they may fulfill their aspirations towards contributing to a robust, digital-first nation.