EXAMPLE: Dell Computer Corporation uses many of the same design and
manufacturing systems as their competitors, but they differ significantly in
terms of how they serve their customers’ needs. What originally set
Dell apart from its competitors and arguably helped build its significant
market share was its strategy of skipping the middleman (i.e., the sales
agent) and allowing customers to configure their computers to their own
requirements. This was coupled with a manufacturing system that could
produce the goods very quickly and provide an all-important service and
distribution process. Dell’s service was also significantly boosted by use of
the Internet and the availability of the Internet to potential customers.