Tricia Williams - Bayshore Solutions Project Manager
By: Tricia Williams – Bayshore Solutions Project Management Team
By now, you’ve probably had some sort of interaction with a daily deal platform- multiple outlets are now springing up to bring you time-sensitive goods, in every industry and niche you can dream of. Sites such as Jetsetter even bring you travel deals, offering sales and deals on fabulous locales they offer and soon you too can be whisked away at a bargain price, while Totsy delivers all things ‘mom’ to your inbox.
As the world of the web turns, we’ve seen flash deal powerhouses such as Groupon and LivingSocial begin to shift their efforts away from the daily deal, looking at outside sources of revenue to remain relevant and afloat. This shift has caused a need to look outside the shiny box of flash deals as a marketing tool, and it may be time to do so with your business too.
If you’ve used Groupon or LivingSocial for your business in the past (our COO Doug Pace wrote a great blog post about the platform, which you can read here) you may have come away from an initially optimistic experience disenchanted. Why the shift? While outlets like LivingSocial are great for getting business in the door, they don’t always guarantee a repeat visit or purchase. Yes, you get brand exposure, but keeping and maintaining those newly converted customers is half the battle. The coupon-buffing giants are beginning to recognize just this, and they’re starting to get nervous- moving away from just the daily deal and more towards events that are social in nature (LivingSocial recently opened and entire venue in which they sponsor events in Washington D.C.).
Having a solid marketing plan in place before you use the platform is key to maximizing your efforts, and thinking outside the box on what you will offer can bridge the gap between success and regret. The emarketing team at Bayshore Solutions can assist you in identifying marketing opportunities, and creating effective campaigns.
The future of the daily deal is shifting, and your efforts need to be flexible as well- instead of offering a discount on a product or service, LivingSocial and Groupon may become the IT new way to host a class, event or fundraiser that promotes your business and keeps a customer coming back for more.
Tricia Williams is a Project Manager at Bayshore Solutions—a Tampa Web Design, Web Development, and Internet Marketing Company.