Will customer support become extinct?
Dell, like any big company, is always on the lookout for new opportunities. But the PC maker seems to be pursuing them at break-neck pace: In just the last few days, it has announced that it will offer luxury models, sell open-source PCs and make a push into the overseas printer market.
While all this could be chalked up to aggressive expansion, it could also be read as a sign of desperation for a company that urgently needs to find more business as it faces growing concerns over the bottom line. Around the same time it made its product announcements, for example, Dell decided to end free home PC delivery as a cost-cutting measure.
The real kicker came when the company said it would close its customer message boards--a particularly curious move, considering how Dell has always touted its service expertise. All of which leads us to ask a heretical question: In an era of greater computer knowledge among the masses, constant complaints about phone consultations (both onshore and offshore) and a seemingly infinite number of free resources online, is customer support all that important to PC owners anymore?
Blog community response:
"Since we demand dirt-cheap PCs, the one easy way to cut costs is to cheapen support. That lowball price means nothing when you have a problem with the product and can't get help. I've said it many times: computers are too complicated for non-technical people to own. You should not buy one if you aren't going to be able to act as your own technical support."
--Hyde and Geek
"I had some bad experiences with Dell before I switched to Mac, especially with tech support. After that, I suggested people to buy HP computers, instead of Dell. But some people are too afraid to not get a Dell, thinking that Dells are the best. But you know, they are all the same, only with a different box on the outside."
--The Macintosh Blog
"Computer Hope is a collection of free services that allows any user to access its database of extensive free computer related information. With these resources available Computer Hope has become a popular destination for end-users as well as computer support facilities for answering computer related questions."
--Whattal