Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/81195
SHOULD MTS OFFER A DAILY DEAL? Our wellness center was the first in San Francisco to offer a massage Groupon deal. That was in June 2009. "Wow," we thought, "that was cool—fast, easy money, with no out-of-pocket expense to us!" Cool indeed, until the phone started ringing off the hook and we couldn't figure out Groupon's system of how to track the buyers who were frothing at the mouth to come in as soon as possible. In two days, Groupon sold 272 certificates for hour- long massages at our center for $39 each. We received a revenue share of 60 percent (negotiated up from their original offer of 50 percent), less a small credit card processing fee, which gave us our nice little windfall. But boy, did I learn a lot from that experience. WHAT IS GROUPON? In November 2008, Groupon was the first company to offer what are now called Daily Deals. These online promotional and marketing services offer a discount that is available for a few days to their list of subscribers. Daily Deals are usually 50 percent, if not more, off the regular prices of restaurants, services, and events in and around individual cities. There are now deals in almost every major city in the United States. Groupon's name comes from combining two words, group and coupon, because, in order to receive the deal offered, a specified number of people must purchase it, otherwise the deal is off. New Groupon-like companies are coming onto the scene every day, vying for a piece of what may (or may not) be a lucrative business, depending on how you value a company, but the numbers are declining. In 2010, there were 430 "deal" websites in the United States. Now, there are only half that number. Companies like Amazon, Facebook, and Yelp have jumped on the bandwagon, offering their own version of the Daily Deal. Interestingly, though, Facebook bowed out after only four months of testing and is not pursuing offering deals at all, and Yelp is scaling back its efforts. Google, however, is still cautiously testing the waters with limited offerings. OUR EXPERIENCE Since we were one of the first businesses to work with Groupon in San Francisco, very few consumers understood that first promotion. The customers were calling us directly to purchase the deal, not understanding they needed to go through Groupon's website. We were given This is a huge advantage for a therapist or a small business because there are no upfront costs and, although you are selling your services at a discount, you are guaranteed the revenue. 88 massage & bodywork march/april 2012