“In a move to improve its bottom line, Dell is changing its shipping options for its low-end desktop and notebook computers, ending a promotion that offered free shipping to customers’ homes,” Red Herring reports. “The policy, which goes into effect October 10, encourages buyers of the company’s least expensive computers to go to the post office to pick up the boxes if they still want the free shipping. It is part of a “hold for pickup” program launched by the U.S. Postal Service Thursday.”
“Dell, like many computer makers, has been cutting back on prices to ship more units and grab market share. But the severely reduced prices are cutting into hardware makers’ profit margins,” Red Herring reports. “Dell PCs lately have been suffering in consumer ratings of reliability and service, according to BusinessWeek. Complaints filed with the Better Business Bureau increased 23 percent in 2004 compared to 2003, and rose another 5 percent in 2005. The company’s customer satisfaction rating also fell 6.3 percent to the industry average of 74 in a survey by the University of Michigan.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Get free ground shipping on all in-stock orders totaling $50 or more at the Apple Store.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
Apple continues to lead in customer satisfaction, Dell loses more ground – August 16, 2005
Apple Macintosh leads in personal computer customer satisfaction – August 24, 2004
Apple Macs top PC Magazine’s ’17th Annual Reader Satisfaction Survey’ – August 10, 2004