Date post: | 01-Nov-2014 |
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Business |
Upload: | acuity-scheduling |
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Daily Deal Sites
From the Small Business Growth Strategies Series
Presented by
INTRO• Nearly 80 percent of
daily deal customers are first-time customers.
• About 68 percent of daily deal customers are between 18 and 34 years old.
• Great for attracting new customers.
• Immediate return on investment is rare.
• Can be a valuable addition to your marketing strategy.
INTRO
How it Works
PROS
Brand Awareness
New Users
Access to Analytics
BENEFIT #1Brand Awareness
You’re presenting your business to a
whole new audience!
BENEFIT #2New Users
We mentioned earlier that about 80 percent of daily deal customers are new
customers. This can be a tremendous way to build
your customer base.
BENEFIT #3Analytics
If you ask for them, some deal sites will provide you with
detailed analytics about your new customers, including age, where they’re located and what
other brands they like.
CONS
Profits Can Be
Disappointing
A “Deal” Business
Reputation Can Be Damaging
DRAWBACK #1Profits
If you use a daily deal site expecting it to dramatically affect your bottom line, you might be setting yourself up
for disappointment. Daily deals are a form of marketing
DRAWBACK #2“Deal” Reputation
If you offer daily deals too frequently, you run
the risk of branding yourself as a “deal”
business, which is often synonymous with
cheap.
TIPS
Make Sure Your Staff is
Prepared
Be Strategic About When You Offer a
Deal
TIP #1Prepare Your Staff
This is where using an online scheduling platform like Acuity Scheduling can save
time and money, taking a lot of pressure off of your employees and allowing them to
focus on delivering the product or service you’re offering.
TIP #2Be Strategic
Is your business seasonal? Do you tend to get more business during the summer months? Then offer a deal in the winter! Use the daily deal sites to pick up new customers at times when business is
usually slowing down.
Groupon makes it simple to set up a deal in just a few minutes. Log on to the Groupon homepage and scroll to
the bottom. You’ll see an option to “Run a Groupon Deal.” Click on that
and it’ll take you here.
After you click on “Local Deals,” you’ll be prompted to fill out your business information. Complete that and you’ll be taken to the Deal Builder section where Groupon will help you design your deal. This is what it looks like.
Step 1Choose Service & Price
Once you decide what service you’d like to offer, choose the discount to accompany it.
Step 2Set Your Fine Print
It’s common to set a limit of one discount per person. In the step, you hammer out
those types of details.
Step 3Confirm Location
It’s common to set a limit of one discount per person. In the step, you hammer out
those types of details.
Step 4Sign Agreement
Are you happy with how the deal looks? Time to sign the agreement and post it then.
The Contract
It’s pretty straight forward, but keep in mind that Groupon takes a certain amount of each
sale. This is referred to as the Remittance Amount, which is at the bottom of this list.
The LivingSocial Difference
One thing that makes LivingSocial unique is that it incentivizes its users to share deals. If
a user signs up for a deal and gets three friends to sign up, it’s free for them. Here’s
what the application looks like.
The Amazon Local Difference
There are a few things that make Amazon Local different from Groupon and LivingSocial.
There are the more than 215 million active Amazon users. A long history with its customers allows
Amazon to more accurately recommend deals to potential customers based on their past behavior.
Amazon customers are extremely loyal, and to have your business featured is a sort of
unofficial endorsement.
When you sign up, Amazon Local representatives will help you write content to increase the chances of
users being interested in the deal you’re offering.
Other Daily Deal Sites
Setting Up Daily Deals on Acuity Scheduling
It’s a simple process and will help simplify your life when the phones
are ringing off the hook!
Setting Up Daily Deals on Acuity Scheduling
We’ll use Groupon, the most popular, as an example.
On page 6 of the Merchant Center User Guider, Groupon shows you how to download a spreadsheet or PDF
version of the vouchers from your Merchant account to manually track and verify them.
Download a CSV (spreadsheet) version.
Setting Up Daily Deals on Acuity Scheduling
Log on to your Acuity Scheduling account and go to Promotions in the Appointments section.
Choose “Add New Coupon” and enter the informationDownload a CSV (spreadsheet) version.
Enter the Groupon codes from the list you downloaded into the “coupon codes” box and make
them one-time offers.
Setting Up Daily Deals on Acuity Scheduling
In just a few simple steps, you’ve set up a daily deal and integrated
it into your calendar!
“Thanks for taking the time
to view our presentation!”
“Thanks for taking the time
to view our presentation!” Acuity Scheduling
Small Business Growth Strategies
@AcuitySchedulin
Acuity Scheduling is an online scheduling platform that saves thousands of small
businesses time by allowing their customers to book appointments online, on their own time, at any time, from anywhere in the world. For more
information about services and pricing, visit AcuityScheduling.com.
About Acuity Scheduling