I myself considered doing something like this in the past before I realised it simply wasn't worth the hassle for me - esp with all the tech support
This idea is possible, but I'd encourage you to make a much clearer and decisive business stance.
Fact:
You can offer decent prices but never enough to comperte with dell. Finding special offers on your components can help. I hope you have setb yourself up as a reseller and as such to receive special low prices. Perhaps, also you might be able to use a cashback cooperative or such avilable to lower your prices? Over in the UK we've got quidco.com
Problems you will face:
- Trust of your clients - you're a new and run by an individual - will may ask whether they can trust you with their credit card or whether you'll still exist in a few years to support them.
- Ignorance which is why you should include an extensive amount of information as to why you choose each component. (silence, performance, quality)
Given all this, it's obvious that you'll have to be niche-market specific and in fact discern yourself as much from any other manufacturer.
You'll have to justify your higher prices - this by informing the consumer explaining accurately and to the point why each component is the best - use links to proper reviews for further information for your customers to read. They need to be the best in regards of quality (eg choose the longer warranties such as Seagate for 5 years, liftetime on RAM, PSu three years etc), performance (here you could even create a review/test part of your website where you put your pcs under thorough benchmarks but so as to not confuse the consumer so people can compare why your systems are better than X manufacturer and how they compare to each other ie what they really need) and silence (how many OEm PCs are noiser than they should be?
However, you'll need to go further and really stress your specialist customisation services. This broadly includes a wealth of free programs and overclocking/tweaking.
Programs: I am talking about using free and particularly open source programs. In this you can stress how your computer will be far more secure for the internet (greatly reduced risk of spyware etc - ie you can rely on your pc for smooth function and security online). Programs would include Zonealarm free (v5.5.094.000), ad-aware, spybot, ms antispyware, ewido, a-squared, bitdefender (as on demand scanner) and AVG/anti-vir, (hijack this if they need to appeal for onlien support?) winamp/quintessential with skins+plugins (enhancer and stereoexpander), firefox (with something like privoxy?), ccleaner, openoffice?, dvdshrink/dvddecrypter/smartripper? etc etc. Each of these programs will need to be customised themselves as well as all windows settings (use tune xp, xp antispy and black vipers services list which you can disable). The difficulty is in informaing the consumer and ensuring he updates and uses these programs (setup a folder in quicklaunch with all the scanner options in it and then a weekly reminder with ms schedule etc to use it - or else could you set up a batch etc file to simplify it?
If you do all that you'll get some very happy customers and so many times people might buy a pc from dell only to see it become inoperable and lose performance by being loaded with spyware and other nasties which they have no idea how to get rid of it.
Also partition the hardrives into C: and D: for the rest just in case anything goes wrong on so so you'll only need to reformat one and not lose data (setup my documents on D)
Another point is set up user accounts for browsing online - supply a master password for your consumer s to access the admin acount as necessary but encourage them to use limited ones to browse the internet.
Overclocking - offer it as an extra service (i'm not sure how this works legally if they're any complcations here) but only so long as it's within very safe boundaries eg not using more than 1.5V (Venice) and when found your maximum overclock at that setting and then downclock it at least 5% from that timing. You'll need to reassure your customers about this being safe/reluiable etc and that you'll still honour your warranty etc etc
Inform your consumer and empower them with some information and they will trust you more. Offer services and customisations that a larger manufacturing would never offer
ps. nice start on the website but we need more -
here's a good example for something to aim at and is somethign what I was talking about before when discussing how to inform the consumer and assure them of the highest quality components.
Ineloquent and inarticulate, but I hope my reply helps you assess which direction you could take it.
