In its own business, Dell has enhanced and broadened the fundamental competitive advantages of the direct model by applying the efficiencies of the Internet. Dell led commercial migration to the Internet, launching www.dell.com in 1994 and adding e-commerce capability in 1996. The following year, Dell became the first company to record $1 million in daily online sales. Today, Dell operates one of the highest volume Internet commerce sites in the world based on Microsoft Corp.'s Windows operating systems. The company's Web site, which runs entirely on Dell PowerEdge servers, receives more than one billion page requests per quarter at 86 country sites in 28 languages/dialects and 29 currencies.
The company realizes Internet-associated efficiencies throughout its business, including procurement, customer support and relationship management. At www.dell.com, customers may review, configure and price systems within Dell's entire product line; order systems online; and track orders from manufacturing through shipping. At valuechain.dell.com, Dell shares information with its suppliers on a range of topics, including product quality and inventory. Dell also uses the Internet to deliver industry-leading customer services. For instance, thousands of business and institutional customers worldwide use Dell's Premier Dell.com Web pages to do business with the company online. The name change to Dell Inc. in 2003, reflected the evolution of the company to a diverse supplier of technology products and services.
Dell's high return to shareholders has been the result of a focused effort over time to balance growth with profitability and liquidity. Dell has consistently led its largest competitors in each of those categories.