Brand Focus #10: A Grouposal and 4 things Marketers Can Learn From It

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November 21, 2011

Okay, this isn’t exactly a brand but it won my vote for being innovative – this guy proposed to his girlfriend using Groupon.

How did it work? He ‘sold’ himself by publishing his deal on Groupon Malaysia, knowing that his girlfriend checks Groupon on a daily basis. The deal garnered almost 48,000 ‘buys’ which indicated the support he received for the proposal. The girl said “Yes”.

4 things Marketers can learn from this proposal:

#1: Know your target audience

How many marketers out there actually sit down to really understand their target audience? I ask this because it is tough. Many businesses out there want to expand too soon, without thoroughly understanding their existing audience and it goes beyond just demographics. What are their behavioral patterns online? What are their interest? The closer you get the better it gets, just like how the guy knew the girlfriend checks out Groupon every morning without fail.

#2: Don’t limit your marketing tools even before it starts

A common scenario
Client: I want a Facebook campaign.
Marketer: Sure! Let’s do one.

I must admit I fall into that once in a while too, simply because it is the easy way out. However the real question to ask is: Will _________ be THE effective tool? Could there be a better tool out there that your target audience is using? Many pick Facebook / Twitter simply because it has a huge user base. But let’s face it – how many will actually participate in your marketing campaign? Think of other tools that can make your campaign fun and memorable outside of the usual Facebook.

#3: Get people talking

Mark Hughes in his book Buzz Marketing says that there are 6 buttons to get people talking (buzz): the taboo, the unusual, the outrageous, the hilarious, the remark-able and the secrets. In the case of the Grouposal, it is the unusual – and it generated more than 6,000 shares on Facebook alone. How’s that for a proposal? Give your campaign an angle that people can talk about.

#4: Be on the look out for opportunities to promote

Sometimes you do not need to create your own successful marketing campaigns – you can hitch a ride on the hype. Traditionally, marketers rely on festive seasons such as Christmas, New Year’s, Halloween and etc to market themselves. What about weddings, birthdays, anniversaries or proposals such as the above? This hair salon saw the opportunity to promote themselves using this proposal that was stirring much buzz.

See the Grouposal here

What do you think of this Grouposal? Is there anything else that can make a better campaign?

Brand Focus #8: How to Manage A Groupon Campaign For A Small Business?

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September 12, 2011

| Jan Wong

Just a week ago I popped by a small restaurant just slightly away from town for dinner and managed to have a chat with a small restaurant owner. Somehow the conversation landed on the topic of Groupon – he loves it.

Recalling from my past conversations with other business owners on Groupon in Malaysia, I instantly wanted to know more about this liking of his towards Groupon. What is it that made his Groupon campaign successful? Why is it that he is able to make Groupon work while others find it difficult to handle?

Here are some tips from our chat:

#1: Don’t Stinge on Quality

The restaurant owner insists that the proportion of the meals served during the campaigns have to be the exact proportion of how it is off-promotion, if not better. Customers can tell the difference – especially those that frequent you. Business owners should not opt for a cheaper alternative just because of a lower profit margin.

#2: Know How Much You Can Handle

If your restaurant operate 8 hours a day with a total of 40 seats and if each customer takes an average of 30 minutes per meal, you’re likely able to handle no more than 640 customers per day. And that’s if you operate back-t0-back without rest. This figure will let you know whether you’re able to take in X amount of reservations daily. This restaurant owner drew up a reservation chart to make sure he does not overdo it. By doing so, he will be able to operate at full capacity, yet maintain the quality and service efficiency.

#3: Know Your Limits

If the number of customers flooding your store isn’t a concern, how about the number of staff on duty? He pointed out a valid point – the more customers you have, the more manpower you’ll need and that will cost you money. If that still isn’t a concern, think about the workload – will your staff be able to handle two, three, or even four Groupon campaigns back-to-back? Give them (and you) a break…

#4: And Measure Your Results

The simplest method suggested is to give out vouchers for their next visit. Have them printed with unique codes / colors so you can track which campaign your customers are coming back from.

Have you purchased a deal on Groupon or similar sites? What is your experience with the businesses running the campaigns?

Brand Focus #5: Groupon in Malaysia – Friend or Foe for Your Business?

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July 5, 2011

| Jan Wong

It has been a couple of months now since Groupon officially came into Malaysia by acquiring GroupsMore.com and many businesses have hopped unto what I call the Groupon hype – a similar scene happening around the world. Businesses go on Groupon for marketing purposes, to draw crowd or bargain hunters to their store / outlet and hopefully translates into future sales (click here if you’ve never heard of Groupon before).

I managed to talk to two different business owners recently and we somehow got to the topic of Groupon and it would seem that they both have been badly ‘pinched’ by Groupon.

Initial Observation: Groupon As a Foe

1. Their business actually experienced losses. Groupon deals attracts the crowd, that’s for sure. If your products already have low margins to begin with, you may experience losses – especially when the crowd pours in for your awesome deal.

2. Their business cannot cope with the crowd. So you’ve got a deal up and you’re fully booked for the whole of next month – but you do not have the resources and the capacity to manage each and every customer. Mismanagement may turn away customers for good and if you’re planning to invest into more manpower and equipment, you better have the margins well calculated because…

3. Your existing customers (that may not be on Groupon) will also want discounts because of the awesome deal you’re already giving to others.

4. On top of that, the customer retention rate is said to be very low, at about 5% – 10% and in some cases it still does not make up to the ideal margin.

While the above may not be true for every business out there, many have experienced the negative affect of Groupon which led me to think – is Groupon really that bad of a business / marketing model to adopt?

My answer is: no.

7 Tips on How to Maximize Groupon for Your Business

#1: Know Your Margins

Understand this before proceeding: while every business can use Groupon, not every business should use Groupon. The reason is simple – if your business operates on very low profit margins, you’ll definitely end up with a loss – especially if you’re a small business without any marketing budget set aside. Know how much of a margin you’re able to spare (and survive), even if there’s a large crowd. Set the group discount rate at a level in which you’re comfortable at and yet remain attractive.

#2: Know Your Business Operations

This applies best to the service industries. Know when are your peak and off-peak seasons or timings in a day. ‘Sell’ your off-peaks cheaper in return for crowd. This is where Groupon can truly shine – put in terms and conditions specifying that the offer / deal will only work during specific timing of a day (e.g. 3-5pm) to boost sales rather than not making any sale during the off-peak hours.

#3: Never Give in Quality for Quantity

Use the crowd to your advantage – show them what you’re able to offer even when you’re under pressure. Whether it is customer service or food preparation, make sure you’re showing your customers the best you can offer. This is the time to give them a reason to come back for more!

#4: Build Your Database – Engage

Take this opportunity to build your database by engaging with your customers individually. Talk to them, get them to subscribe to your newsletter, ‘like’ you Facebook page, ‘follow’ your Twitter handle, sign-up for a loyalty programme, participate in a contest or even to write a testimonial for you. In other words, do not let them leave without leaving you with something valuable for your business. On top of that…

#5: Follow-up Offers

Don’t let them leave empty handed! Give them something in return to invite them to come back for more. Something along the lines of “bring a friend on your next visit to enjoy a similar treat” can do wonders. Retention rates are low because businesses do not give the customers sufficient reasons to stay. So why let them leave empty handed?

#6: Make The News

Make use of the crowd to spread the news! Snap pictures, tweet away, launch a Foursquare special and create buzz across existing social media platforms. Customers are drawn to crowd and if you are already attracting one, let them know you have one!

#7: Encourage Feedback

This is the most important of all – always ask for feedback from your customers so that you’ll know what went wrong / right to do better in your next Groupon deal. Offer as many feedback options as possible – through Twitter, Facebook, contact forms or emails and be sure to respond to everyone of them positively.