DeLl HapPEnS

I received a Dell freebie today. At first, I thought it might be a part that a co-worker ordered that was sent to my attention by mistake. Then, upon closer examination, it became clear that it was a marketing tactic.... although it was not executed well at all. The teaser text on the outside of the shipping box says "Don't take this personally, but you've got problems." There is also a Dell logo and an Intel logo. When you open the outer box, there is a nicely printed pamphlet, again with the Dell and Intel logos, that promotes Dell products from servers to laptops.... "Take IT problems off your hands with help from Dell and Intel."

Then... the disconnect happens. After you take the pamphlet out, you see this black box that says "Solar Charger" on it. There are no brand names on the front of the black box, so you first assume it is a Dell product. On the back of the box, "Bensussen Deutsch & Assoc. Inc." is printed in small type, so I have to assume they are the manufacturer. The box is clearly not for a resale product, as there is no UPC code and very little "marketing-WOW" text... truthfully... the box graphics (none) and type are pretty bad. (I think "China" when I see it.) Anyway, the box says it's a charger to recharge mobile devices such as iPods, cell phones, PDAs, etc. There is nothing that implies that this little gadget is a freebie to you to "solve the problem" you might face of being stranded in the middle of nowhere with a dead phone or iPod battery.

It's an interesting little gadget and I have yet to charge it up and try it out (...again... I just got it about an hour ago), but I do have to say that as a Marketing professional, this marketing effort was not executed well in connecting the dots. If Dell made the product, then it might be a great way for them to promote it.... again if only they connected the dots. Dell doesn't make it, nor do they instruct the recipient on any call to action. (Marketing 101) Why on Earth would you give away a product, spend money on FedEx freight to a large mailing list, incur labor costs and the costs of printed collateral pieces if you didn't want SOME kind of ROI? Good grief people!

So they give you a pamphlet, which you quickly ignore as you start inquiring about the unidentified gadget "gimmie" inside the box. Even a C-level marketing student could come up with some kind of sticker to put on the black "gimme" box that tied it all together... "At Dell, we provide the IT solutions to your business problems. Here's a gift from us to solve your problems down the road." Get an A-level marketer and it would all have made sense right out of the box! :-)

YAY for freebies... =D