My Experience with Groupon

[DaVinci Detail]

I have zero incentive to offer my services at a discount when I have all the full priced business I can handle.

THIS. Nothing more needs to be said. I'm not going to beat myself up, try to come up w/ some pricing plan, and regret it in the end. F that. I had a rep from

LS call me last week. Told her I wasn't going to whore myself out. She didn't appreciate it, I didn't care. Next.



Here's a thought; build your clientele through outstanding results and people will come to you. Charge them full pop and the folks who can't afford that, oh well. You get what you pay for.

 

[Envious Eric]

Isn't there a popular service that detailers could offer that can be discounted to the point where you're still profitable? If you had enough volume and the proper help there's gotta be a sweet spot to winning?

wash, spray wax, interior wipe down for $100, dicounted and sold for 1/2 = 50, then minus the 50% groupon takes from that = $25...



needs to be done in an hour, paying the employee 12/hr = 13 for supplies and rent/utilities, etc...



I dont see how groupon works for a service industry...for goods with a 80% profit margin, yep

 

[MirandaDetailin]

I have run 3 Groupons so far. At first it was good, we were just starting out, so the influx of business was nice. we did however feature a very limited detail, wash/wax, vacuum. Nothing fancy, just enough to make people happy, which out of 100's of customers, maybe 3 were unsatisfied, but they were jerks anyways, they didnt read the fine print either, plus I reported to Groupon to flag them and said they were difficult customers. With the two of us working, we could do about 4-5 vehicles a day, about 1.5-2 hours on each. like I said, we offered an express service, very basic.

Each time we ran the Groupon it got harder to keep up, mainly because we did get some regulars, and the hits our website had gave us a huge boost.

I know for many Groupon has hurt them, but I think many need to be forceful when it comes to telling Groupon what YOU need to offer, the price, the service, and a limit or cap on how many sold. If controlled by the type of detailing service, and limit the number sold, it can help a business get noticed.

But once established you dont need them anymore.

For an existing business that needs just a small boost, Groupon is not the way to go.

 

[safetyman2010]

Just an FYI for anyone regarding these "deal" type sites and whether or not the business model works.

Groupon has been hanging on by its fingernails, but it appears to have lost that tenuous hold. The company that popularized daily deals is on an accelerating downward spiral -- at least where its share prices are concerned -- as disappointed merchants increasingly reject the business model and frustrated investors turn their backs.

"Living Social is piling up losses, and Amazon was forced to write down its investment in Living Social as a result," Andreas Scherer, managing partner with Salto Partners, told the E-Commerce Times.



The daily deal industry is struggling across the board, with some firms faring better than others. The macro economic climate is one big reason -- and it's affecting a lot of companies, Scherer said, "but that doesn't explain the landslide in [Groupon's] stock price from $25 in November of 2011 to sub-$3 only 12 months later."

These companies are bleeding cash with no end in sight. I've said since the beginning that business model was seriously flawed and wouldn't last once they ran through and pissed off the retailers they roped into doing these deals.

 

[Scottwax]

Good info!

 

[David Fermani]

I was in a body shop in the metro Detroit area today (Royal Oak) and noticed that they do detailing as well. Started talking with the guy and he mentions Groupon. He did an ad for 1/2 off of his inside/outside "detail" package. From $220 >>$110. He sold 360 spots and has been booked up doing 3 details per day for the last several months. His did a 60/40 split with Groupon. He'd basically doing a quick interior cleanup, wheel clean/dress, spray wax, door jambs & windows. It keeps his detailer busy and puts a couple bucks in his pocket. The big thing he said is that he's sold a bunch of body work, windshields and complete paint jobs. He's basically being paid to advertise.

 

[IHA Mark]

Isn't there a popular service that detailers could offer that can be discounted to the point where you're still profitable? If you had enough volume and the proper help there's gotta be a sweet spot to winning?

DrivePur Odor removal, bar none. I can do an anti bacterial treatment in 15 minutes and make $30 off of it, I can do a complete smoke and odor removal in 30 minutes and make $50 - $80 off of it. I could discount these treatments pretty significantly (if I had the volume, right now it is just an add on service) and still make good margins.

 

[Envious Eric]

I was in a body shop in the metro Detroit area today (Royal Oak) and noticed that they do detailing as well. Started talking with the guy and he mentions Groupon. He did an ad for 1/2 off of his inside/outside "detail" package. From $220 >>$110. He sold 360 spots and has been booked up doing 3 details per day for the last several months. His did a 60/40 split with Groupon. He'd basically doing a quick interior cleanup, wheel clean/dress, spray wax, door jambs & windows. It keeps his detailer busy and puts a couple bucks in his pocket. The big thing he said is that he's sold a bunch of body work, windshields and complete paint jobs. He's basically being paid to advertise.

now this is a reason why it would work...Didnt think of that...



keeps your employee busy and working even in dead times (maybe only offer the deal when you know it will be slow (winter time), keep it express type of job, etc



Then use those new customers and give them estimates every time on what else can be done, maybe even offering a slight retail rate discount like 10%.