Groupon – Are You Using It?

Written by Zac Johnson
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Groupon has been out for a while, and I’m always interested in how many people are using it. I’ve been using it for a while now, it’s so easy through their iPhone App. Most of the Groupons can be used through the iPhone at the cashier, but some places are still baffled and confused on what to do when they are given a cell phone or Groupon offer. This has been my experience so far…

  • Barnes and Noble Groupon
    One of the first Groupons I used was for Barnes and Noble. I walked in and asked if I could use it off my cell phone, and they said I would have to print it out… which was annoying. So I made another visit later in the month with my printed coupon. Handed it to the cashier at checkout and the kid just had no idea at all what to do… first he said it wasn’t valid til a specific date, which was actually the expiration date. After I pointed this out, he manually put the discount in, but was only for half of what it supposed to have been. Finally he called the store manager and they finally got it right.Thumbs down!
  • Old Navy & Chili’s Groupons
    Two great places to shop and eat, and even better when you have a $10 for $20 coupon through Groupon. Both places had no problem accepting the Groupon promotion through the phone. Thumbs up!
  • Trump Plaza Groupon
    My latest purchase through Groupon was for a 2 night stay at the Atlantic City Trump Plaza, which was a $149 purchase (originally $309, 52% off). A few limitations with this promotion. Friday was only a one night stay, and Sun-Thurs was for a two night stay. I called up to make a reservation and they were booked for the remainder of the month, except for a Thursday. I told them I had a Groupon and they were familiar with the offer and I would like to use it for Thursday. Going back and forth between the front desk and the manager, they eventually said they could not use the Groupon on a Thursday since it “had to be a two day reservation” and the Groupon wasn’t good on Fridays and Saturdays. I told them I just wanted the Thursday stay… still nothing. I finally talked to the manager and they said to call Groupon for a refund, as they are having to turn away a bunch of Groupon requests. Thumbs down!
  • Groupon Customer Support
    Continuing with the Trump Plaza Groupon… I had to call Groupon and ask for a refund. They were awesome and this took less than five minutes to setup. Thumbs up!

Groupon is a new concept and I’m their system and partners will improve heavily over time. It’s great to see the daily promotions and save money here and there. Depending on your location, you can find some great deals… or not to many at all.

In a future post I will follow up with an exciting article on the actual numbers behind Groupon and how it’s working (or not working) out for their business partners, merchants and customers.

So the big question is… have you tried Groupon yet?

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14 Replies to “Groupon – Are You Using It?”

  1. I have purchased many deals from deal sites – today I got this one from LivingSocial – a great price to remember our trip to Arches National park a week ago. https://livingsocial.com/deals/65985-personalized-… (not an affiliate link)

    Deals can be really good – as long as they process the coupon effectively as you point out.
    I think they are becoming easier and faster to redeem.
    My recent post New Camera could be very useful to genealogy

  2. I have purchased many deals from deal sites – today I got this one from LivingSocial – a great price to remember our trip to Arches National park a week ago. https://livingsocial.com/deals/65985-personalized-… (not an affiliate link)

    Deals can be really good – as long as they process the coupon effectively as you point out.
    I think they are becoming easier and faster to redeem.
    My recent post New Camera could be very useful to genealogy

  3. I'm excited to see the numbers because I'm really interested in seeing if it works. I'd love to see how people have used it to sell products online. I have a few informational products I'd love to setup a Groupon for. Not sure if it's worth it though. Has anyone else tried doing that?
    My recent post 5 Small Business Marketing Campaigns You Can Execute Today

  4. with all the buzz, i think its time for me to try groupon. There have been some bad words about it lately too.
    My recent post How to Market Your Blog Content to Generate Viral Traffic

  5. When I checked the groupon, I realized that it was only for US since it indicated Las Vegas, San Francisco etc. Then I check other sites, which are similar to the groupon. I think these kind of sites could help people find their expected deals that they really want especially if it is trip to other cities or just pampering spa session. Thanks for suggesting groupon.
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  6. I've used Groupon about 5 times now but I haven't tried it on my iPhone, only with a printout. No trouble otherwise, all the vendors were ready for it. I'm really interested to see the stats. There was one restaurant that I used it at that I'm pretty sure they lost money. It was hard to tell with the others.
    My recent post How to Create a Badass Personalised Email Address

  7. Love Groupon! I did purchase two RedBox coupons once that were advertised in another state. I purchased them for use here in my home town without a glitch. Yes, I spent $2 for 6 rentals, saving money on $1 rentals. I get flack for being so frugal but Groupon makes it is so easy!
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  8. I only use groupons that are for affordable products. 🙂 I couldn't afford something from Trump. I am such a frugal person right now. LOL
    My recent post Apartment Rentals in Sunbury

  9. yes, groupon is really picking up speed, I hope to see more companies kick off that are as dynamic as them, as we dont want to wind up with one suppier covering all the top sites when it comes to ad publishing
    My recent post intramedia will be attending the igb Barcelona Affiliate Conference

  10. Groupon is a great system that will get more and more users and lovers as the time passes by and as they get more involved in the market and expand.It's what makes the life easier,so why saying "no" to it?We got nothing to lose,only to benefit out of it.
    My recent post Diskeeper Coupon Code

  11. I have used Groupon for a few deals and my experience has been a positive one so far – also the option to get your friends to sign up and get a commission on their purchases is a great idea. Have also seen a few copy cat sites popping up recently so they're clearly doing something right!
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  12. You have to be careful using groupons. Some deals are fantastic, some are really no deals at all. Today they have the trump plaza deal listed. You get two nights during the week from september to december. You get spa passes for both days and a $20 food coupon. All for $149. But go log into trump plaza's site, I pick two days during the week in september and its $109 for both days (same beachview room) I add on two spa passes and thats $30. So we are at $139. I add 410 for food and we are at the groupons rate of $149. Only thing I would be getting extra is $10 more for food. Great to get an extra $10 if I was going anyway. but in no way is this a super duper deal as some other groupons have been

  13. I've never had it before and now I'm really intrigued. I would love to have one of those. It sounds like an awesome thing to have.
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