dispatches from the new world of work

This Is (Bad) Branding

I was having a really tough time with the CD drive in my laptop yesterday ... I couldn't listen to CDs, I couldn't burn CDs ... it just wouldn't work. I called Dell tech support, and, after trying a few things, Ashley of tech support told me that I had to reinstall the operating system to get the CD drive working again.

Reinstalling the operating system is a fate worse than a root canal ... it basically means wiping the hard drive clean and starting over.

My daughter's 18-year-old boyfriend came to pick her up as I was suffering with my computer. He told me one simple thing to try, and the problem was fixed in less than five minutes.

How many clever, funny Dell ads will I have to see to resuscitate my Dell brand impression after this confidence-shattering brand experience? Hey Dell—don't forget ... everything is marketing, but marketing isn't everything.

Steve Yastrow posted this on 08/15/04.

Comments

I have had to return 3 Dells in one week. On the Inspiron 1150, the modem chip was a dud! Then I got two Optiplex GX 280 only to discover that they both booted to the blue screen of death. Dell, of course, wanted me to reinstall everything which I did on one; however, the chipset and the video adapter aren't compatible! Back to Dell. Unbelievable how this company has lost its sense of integrity.

Posted by Sheila at March 30, 2005 5:33 PM

Hey guys, I'm a technical support of Dell. And I understand what you mean. Sometimes it depends on the skill of the tech. That's why some tech might go stright to reformating the hardrive. But you know it's really frustrating if a caller really needs to open his computer. Even I really want to exchange his computer instead rather than opening his computer. You know that soon the free tech support of Dell will be lost. All the support will be on helpdesk. Even a simple problem you'll have topay for--f#ck!ng $39.

Posted by mastaplann at April 26, 2005 11:13 AM