I am not knocking the idea of Groupon – it is a great idea and a great company that has dealt well with hiccups along the road. As a concept, Groupon is a real life provider of promotions marketing using the power of social, which is a constant struggle for businesses. While companies are starting to get the hang of brand management and caving to the advent of social customer relationship management, promoting goods and services in a way that keeps true to the “spirit” of social media is a different ball game entirely and an area where a lot of companies fall short despite major efforts and investment.
I don’t wonder why Yahoo wanted to buy them, they have so little. And Google – well they are like Eric Cartman’s Trapper Keeper after it absorbs Rosie O’Donnell – not ugly like that, it just rolls around collecting everything around it and then the thing just disappears. But they could not sway Groupon who seemingly have it all under control. Then again, can it really last?
The competition is fierce, copycats are appearing and maybe the biggest threat of them all I could see – wouldn’t this be better achieved by reaching out to already existing loyal customers and fans online, give them the opportunity to share this opportunity with their networks on platforms that are already familiar. Without Groupon. I see this a far better solution and it will solve two problems I see with the Groupon model:
- Most people will not trust this site. Plain and simple – it will never fly. Right now there is a buzz, but unless they feature only the most reputable businesses or align themselves with a recognizable leader in online shopping, they are doomed to be a fad. Generally, I try to think of everyone in my large extended family – if none of them would use it probably not that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things.
- Can they scale as they grow? I see it difficult to maintain not only the quality of the offers that are provided on the site as the reach their tipping point, nor can I see them being able to provide the same exposure as more businesses jump on the bandwagon.
I am sure that there are lots of naysayers out there, and I don’t want to be a spoilsport. I think this is a great way to socialize promotions online, but I would rather see businesses doing this for existing customers and fans who will reward them for the offer by raising awareness and with increased loyalty rather than show up once and never come again. Not that Groupon does not allow it, but at the end of the day did you get the deal from Groupon or the business? Will you go back to Groupon to find more deals or back to the business to be a loyal customer? So who does this benefit?
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