Monday, April 18, 2011

Groupon

Groupon is another incredibly fast growing social media marketing tool.  Very popular with small local services or mom and pop stores, restaurants and also used successfully by large retailers like Gap, Barnes & Noble and online favorites like fandango.  The idea is word of mouth selling through a 'coupon', only effective if a significant 'group' buys it - Groupon.

This is how it works -
Get it - sign up to get the daily email of special discounts or facebook or Twitter...
Share it - if you are interested in any particular vendor, buy the coupon online, typically for $25, and share it with your friends through social media for word of mouth buzz.   If you market it well enough, your deal can be free - it is activated only if enough people buy it within the time frame allotted. 
Enjoy it - enjoy your discount by using it before the expiration date.

A win win for everyone.  The vendor commits to the discount only if there is a sufficient predetermined volume - which helps their ROI.
The customer gets discounts to their favorite businesses, and has an opportunity to learn about and try new vendors through a channel way more convenient compared to traditional coupons in magazines and newspapers.  Groupon makes money on every transaction ofcourse.  Great for the environment - retailers may finally do away with the plethora of discount and coupon mailings. 

I had used the Groupons for stores I frequent regularly, but the ones I really enjoyed were trying something new - like a new local restaurant.  We recently tried a Mexican restaurant in West Chester called Mas Mexicale Cantina  .  We had not heard about it before and went on a Sunday evening - had a delightful experience.  Saw the reviews on West Chester dish and thought - Uh Oh - we should have checked this before we bought the Groupon - but thoroughly enjoyed our experience.  Have you tried it?  Please share your experience.  Will you do it again?

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