Are group buying sites really that good a deal?
Although it seems that most of the deals on group buying sites are for spa or nail services, they’re no denying their popularity. There are over 100 sites in Canada and over 50 aggregators at last count.
While not everybody signs up, 49 per cent of us have at least visited a daily deal site, according to a recent survey by OneSpout, one of the many services that aggregates deals, filters them and summarises the most likely to appeal to you in a single e-mail.
Of those who bought, 40 per cent say they like group buying because it allows them to try out a product or service they wouldn’t consider at regular price.
At the same time though, roughly three quarters of us admit to signing up for deals that we weren't really looking for. The top of the list: 2 for 1 restaurant deals, it seems.
So, are you really saving money when you jump on a Groupon or TeamBuy, or are you simply giving in to impulse shopping that has long plagued Costco shoppers?
And is it really money well spent? If you use a $10 voucher to receive $20 worth of drinks at a local eatery, you’re almost guaranteed to spend more than the voucher is worth. After buying dinner for at least two people, you’re likely looking at another $50 in charges.
As well, naive or simply stunned vendors underestimate demand (here's a real horror story and a tale of unhappy customers), which means your coupon is either devalued somehow, subject to more restrictions than you’re willing to put up with, or simply becomes a mistake that you’ll dump at a discount.
But people are obviously coming back for more.
What’s your experience? Have your group buys paid off? Or your neighbourhood butchers and hair salons simply over-selling their offers?
By Gordon Powers, MSN Money
* Follow Gordon on Twitter here.
Posted by: Mommy on a Budget | Jul 8, 2021 9:49:47 AM
The idea of group buying sites is fantastic. With the discount, both the vendor and the purchaser are benefitting. I have used Wagjag to book my daughter's birthday party (something I would not have paid for if it wasn't fo the 50% discount), I got my salon/spa services for over 50% off and even as of yesterday, I had a nice lunch out that didn't cost me anything more than the value of the coupon. The only downfall to these items is the fact that they have expiry dates and sometimes people forget to use the voucher or it must be used before a certain date. But, it's up to the buyer to assess that fact and keep track of their voucher purchases in order for the deal to work. Keep the discounts coming!
Posted by: Free money deals | Sep 10, 2021 10:27:14 AM
Coupons and money discounted price of the immense of the choices to visit the blogging blogs and many more.
Posted by: προσφορες | Dec 14, 2021 11:56:27 AM
This model has been proven to work! But like every model, people should be cautious!
Small businesses should be very careful on the group buying model, there are hundreds of examples where the businesses actually lost tons of money because of a daily deal.
My opinion, they should negotiate a maximum number of coupons they can support!
Also, if small businesses are doing a groupon for loyalty purposes (to attract new loyal customers) they should be very careful on the % of reduction. No client will pay 100 dollars for a service he paid 10 dollars a few months back! Also, there is the possibility existing loyal customers who pay the normal fee, to be dissapointed with the business selling coupons with very cheap prices!