Groupon
is a daily deals website that gives you coupons which can be used at local or
national companies.
Groupon
was established in November 2008 and it started off by marketing its services
to Chicago.
At this time, it has spread to over 150 locations across North
America and 100 in Europe, Asia and South America and has 35 million registered
users.
Groupon
works by providing businesses a platform where they can advertise daily deals
or special discounts on certain products. If a predetermined amount of people
sign up to that product on the day of the deal, it becomes available to anyone
else as well.
This way, a business can work with Groupon to get a sudden influx
of customers that may or may not become loyal.
Features
Great products and services — Groupon has a team of
specialists who constantly check the quality of the services and products that
they partner up with, so they only offer their customers the best of the best.
No hidden catches — There are no hidden catches in
the Groupon deals. All information is presented up front and there are no
surprises for clients.
Great customer service — Groupon has a customer service
team that is renowned for its speed and efficiency. You can contact them by
email or telephone.
Daily “Your Deals” section — This daily section changes
based on previous preferences and choices, so you are constantly being updated
with deals that will interest you.
Getaways section — This section is designed to
present all the daily deals in travel, to locations all over the world.
Goods — These are the products that
are constantly on sale through Groupon. Toys, gadgets, appliances, books and
many more are always available.
Seasonal deals — Every season there are many
deals available on Groupon for services, tourist attractions, eating out,
furniture, cleaning and gardening services as well as many more.
Full refunds — If the coupon that you bought
expires before you use it, you can redeem it for the full value according to
their Terms of Sale.
Flexible coupons — Coupons do not have to be used
on the day you buy them. In fact, you can use them whenever you want up to when
the merchant has specified.
Flexible cancellation policy — You can cancel and edit your
coupon up until midnight of the day that you bought it. Refund requests are
handled case by case.
GrouponLive — This service finds deals for
you in the latest concert and show tickets or sports events in your area.
Discussion boards and interactive
website —
Groupon runs a discussion board and a blog where you can interact with staff
and other customers to discuss the deals you have found.
Refer-a-friend bonus — For each friend that you sign
up who makes a Groupon purchase within 72 hours of their membership, you will
be given $10 in Groupon Bucks in your account.
Smart phone apps — Groupon is now available on
smart phones so you can purchase on the go and get deals on demand.
Pricing
Groupon
does not have pricing in the traditional sense. You sign up for the service and
give them your contact information and then you are given access to the daily
deals. Groupon divides the cost of each deal 50/50 between the merchant.
For
example: if you sign up for a manicure at $20, then Groupon will earn $10 and
the merchant will earn $10. You usually get a discount of 50%-90% of the
original price on many products.
Pros
The
biggest pro to Groupon is that you can get great deals very easily. The deals
are updated every day, sometimes even every few hours. Many goods and services
are available, including travel.
Cons
One
disadvantage of Groupon is that because the majority of the users are women,
the deals are mainly focused in the health, fitness and beauty markets.
Conclusion
Groupon
is a good service to get coupons for many different businesses in your local
area, or even to use for goods and services nationally.
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