I came across this article after doing a bit of research in to groupon:
BBC News - Groupon given deadline to improve
The amount of complaints I have seen on forums and blogs of people not receiving there goods after they had purchased through a Groupon scheme is unbelievable, you would think the businesses would predict a boom in sales and ensure they had the man power and stock to be able to deal with it.
I don't understand why they don't, fair enough they will have many sales in the short term, but in the long run, this seriously damages there reputation.
I do think groupon are also to blame, they should also ensure the business can cope to prevent people from getting ripped off.
Was talking about this during dinner. Groupon seems to be turning into a name for "crap deal". You could sit in a nice restaurant and have a nice meal, or you can have a groupon meal with your restricted menu, limitations and very cheap plonk (sorry everything else is extra)  Does seem to be endless horror stories. Does make you wonder now if the Groupon board look back in hindsight at that obscene offer Google made to buy them, which they turned down...
I get emails from Groupon every day offering discounts, the problem is though the discounts are so high and out of proportion to the realistic product value that the only business making money is Groupon. I feel sorry for the businesses that get sucked into this method of selling. It's a sure fire way of getting a bad name for your business and helping you to close the doors permanently. A lot of the blame can however be put on to the british public mentality who seem to think that by paying peanuts entitles them to a 3 course gourmet lunch whilst the business suffers a loss. Thanks, Barney
For the right business Groupon can work. The cost of supplying the product or service must be small as the percentage the business gets from the offer price is only about 40%. The key is to have a sell up once the Groupon 'client' there. e.g. paintaballing where most people buy extra paintballs at normal price and the marginal cost of having people doing the gig is low. I know a photographer who does it too and again the selling up is the key. He is careful not to offer to many gigs and that there are times when the offer can be used so it is done to suit him. Bill Ryan
I have always thought that Groupon would be a fad. It seemed like everytbody wanted a piece of it - I didnt know anyone that wasnt constantly looking on grouponn for deals. Then they realised that their products were discounted for a reason! I have bought a substandard feather pillow and a meal that i wouldnt have given to a dog (limited menu and stung for expensive add ons to the meal that actually made it normal price!). I will not be buying anthing from groupon ever again and I dont think I am alone. I think in the years to come Groupon will be long forgotten and confined to business history. lcurrall
Almost kind of sounds like Groupon is going through what EBay did in the beginning with "reputable" sellers being allowed to do business under different aliases. |
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