• Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Supplier Directory
  • SCB YouTube
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Logout
  • My Profile
  • LOGISTICS
    • Air Cargo
    • All Logistics
    • Express/Small Shipments
    • Facility Location Planning
    • Freight Forwarding/Customs Brokerage
    • Global Gateways
    • Global Logistics
    • Last Mile Delivery
    • Logistics Outsourcing
    • LTL/Truckload Services
    • Ocean Transportation
    • Rail & Intermodal
    • Reverse Logistics
    • Service Parts Management
    • Transportation & Distribution
  • TECHNOLOGY
    • All Technology
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cloud & On-Demand Systems
    • Data Management (Big Data/IoT/Blockchain)
    • ERP & Enterprise Systems
    • Forecasting & Demand Planning
    • Global Trade Management
    • Inventory Planning/ Optimization
    • Product Lifecycle Management
    • Sales & Operations Planning
    • SC Finance & Revenue Management
    • SC Planning & Optimization
    • Sourcing/Procurement/SRM
    • Supply Chain Visibility
    • Transportation Management
  • GENERAL SCM
    • Business Strategy Alignment
    • Education & Professional Development
    • Global Supply Chain Management
    • Global Trade & Economics
    • HR & Labor Management
    • Quality & Metrics
    • Regulation & Compliance
    • SC Security & Risk Mgmt
    • Supply Chains in Crisis
    • Sustainability & Corporate Social Responsibility
  • WAREHOUSING
    • All Warehouse Services
    • Conveyors & Sortation
    • Lift Trucks & AGVs
    • Order Fulfillment
    • Packaging
    • RFID, Barcode, Mobility & Voice
    • Robotics
    • Warehouse Management Systems
  • INDUSTRIES
    • Aerospace & Defense
    • Apparel
    • Automotive
    • Chemicals & Energy
    • Consumer Packaged Goods
    • E-Commerce/Omni-Channel
    • Food & Beverage
    • Healthcare
    • High-Tech/Electronics
    • Industrial Manufacturing
    • Pharmaceutical/Biotech
    • Retail
  • THINK TANK
  • WEBINARS
    • On-Demand Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
    • Webinar Library
  • PODCASTS
  • VIDEOS
  • WHITEPAPERS
Home » Managing a Successful Trade-in Program for High-Tech

Managing a Successful Trade-in Program for High-Tech

May 7, 2015
SupplyChainBrain

Out-of-warranty products present a special challenge to tech companies that are offering an upgrade path to their customers. Customers must weigh the benefits of repairing or replacing a device. In the event, the original vendor might find itself competing with the open market for that customer's continued business.

"If we offer a trade-in program, they pay a little extra and get a top-line product, they tend to respond actively in a positive way," says Brown. "We figured that out. It was one of the drivers that caused us to begin offering trade-in programs. We were losing our customers in the open market by offering just repair."

The decision on how long to support a product in the marketplace depends on whether it was made for the consumer, commercial or enterprise sectors. The period might be just one to two years for the consumer, stretching to 12 years for enterprise customers. "As lifecycles compress," says Brown, "feature sets expand. We get a shorter period of time for consumer products, and strangely, a longer time for enterprise."

It's up to the manufacturer to make the case for an upgrade, using a "faster, better, cheaper" argument. Customers are further swayed by the offer of longer warranties for the new equipment.

Nevertheless, there remains a contingent of users that insist on sticking with older models, despite the fact that it becomes increasingly difficult for those individuals to download new apps. "All of us are pressuring the consumer where we'd like him to go," says Brown.

The other side of the coin, of course, is the challenge involved in managing reverse logistics when customers opt for upgrades. Brown says HP mostly hires third parties around the country to handle that flow. Recycling becomes an important element in the returns process as well, as high-tech manufacturers strive to meet the requirements of rules such as Europe's Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) regime. Very little of a high-tech product ends up in landfills today, Brown says.

To view the video in its entirety, click here

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED VIDEOS

Product Lifecycle Management Sales & Operations Planning Inventory Planning/ Optimization Supply Chain Planning & Optimization High-Tech/Electronics
KEYWORDS global product lifecycle manager Hewlett-Packard Co. high-tech supply chain High-Tech/Electronics inventory control Inventory Planning/ Optimization Product Lifecycle Management retail supply chain Reverse Logistics Sales & Operations Planning SC Planning & Optimization Steve Brown supply chain Supply Chain Management Supply Chain Management: High-Tech/Electronics Supply Chain Planning
  • Related Articles

    Managing a Successful Trade-in Program for High-Tech

    Planning a Successful Global High-Tech Product Launch: Part 1

    Managing the High-Risk Business of High-Tech

SupplyChainBrain

Watch: Introducing the Global Supply Chain Marketing Summit

More from this author

Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter!

Timely, incisive articles delivered directly to your inbox.

Popular Stories

  • DOCUMENTS BEARING THE INSIGNIA OF US CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION LIE ON A TABLE

    New CBP Regs Call for Greater Diligence by Brokers in Reporting Security Breaches

    Freight Forwarding/Customs Brokerage
  • A WORKER IN A WAREHOUSE, SUPERIMPOSED WITH GRAPHICS SHOWING SUPPLY NETWORK

    Enabling Intelligent Visibility With Supply Chain Analytics

    Data Management (Big Data/IoT/Blockchain)
  • A GROUP OF WORKERS RANGED IN AN OFFICE, OF DIVERSE RACE, GENDER, AGE AND PHYSICAL ABILITY

    Podcast | The Supply Chain Workforce of the Future Is Already Here

    HR & Labor Management
  • GSCMS-Promo.png

    Watch: Introducing the Global Supply Chain Marketing Summit

    Education & Professional Development
  • A HAND TURNS A LARGE, LIGHTED DIAL WITH THE WORD RISK ON IT iStock-NicoElNino-1364371014.jpg

    Measuring KPIs and KRIs for Comprehensive Supplier Performance Management

    Technology

Digital Edition

Scb nov 2022 sm

2022 Supply Chain Innovator of the Year

VIEW THE LATEST ISSUE

Case Studies

  • New Revenue for Cloud-Based TMS that Embeds Orderful’s Modern EDI Platform

  • Convenience Store Client Maximizes Profit and Improves Customer Service

  • A Digitally Native Footwear Brand Finds Rapid Fulfillment

  • Expanding Apparel Brand Scales Seamlessly with E-Commerce Technology

  • How a Global LSP Scaled its Security Program and Won More Business

Visit Our Sponsors

Orderful Yang Ming Alithya
Barcoding Blue Yonder BNSF Logistics
CoEnterprise Data Capture Deposco
E2open GAINSystems Generix
Geodis GEP GreyOrange
Here Honeywell Intelligrated IFM
Infor Inmar Keelvar
Kinaxis Korber Lean Solutions Group 2H
Liberty SBF Locus Robotics Logility
LogistiVIEW Lucas Systems MCA Connect
MPO Nvidia Old Dominion
OpenText ORTEC Overhaul
Parsyl PMMI QIMA
Redwood Logistics Ryder E-commerce by Whiplash Saddle Creek Logistics
Schneider Dedicated Setlog Holding AG Ship4WD
Shipwell Tecsys TGW Systems
Thomson Reuters Tive Trailer Bridge
Vecna Robotics Verity
Verusen
  • More From SCB
    • Featured Content
    • Video Library
    • Think Tank Blog
    • SupplyChainBrain Podcast
    • Whitepapers
    • On-Demand Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
  • Digital Offerings
    • Digital Issue
    • Subscribe
    • Manage Your Subscription
    • Newsletters
  • Resources
    • Events Calendar
    • SCB's Great Supply Chain Partners
    • Supplier Directory
    • Case Study Showcase
    • Supply Chain Innovation Awards
    • 100 Great Partners Form
  • SCB Corporate
    • Advertise on SCB.COM
    • About Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact Us
    • Data Sharing Opt-Out

All content copyright ©2023 Keller International Publishing Corp All rights reserved. No reproduction, transmission or display is permitted without the written permissions of Keller International Publishing Corp

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing