The Real Deal With Groupon
Groupon focuses on local and mobile e-commerce, offering daily deals and
coupons (“Groupons”), with 75% of transactions occuring on a mobile device.
According to Groupon, it has about 25 million active users, and since its founding in
2008, has sold over 1.5 billion Groupons around the world. According to Groupon,
it has worked with over 1 million merchants through the years. Groupon Now was a
Groupon location-based service that found local deals that customers could buy and
use immediately via their mobile phone. It was also used by merchants to attract
customers during their least busy hours.
Complementar video: Groupon Now--Merchant. URL
1. What are the weaknesses of Groupon’s business model described in the videos?
2. What features of contemporary e-commerce did Groupon Now utilize?
3. What value does Groupon provide subscribing merchants? What value does it provide customers?
4. What kinds of businesses are most likely to benefit from using Groupon?
5. Visit Groupon’s Web site and enter your zip code. What kinds of deals are displayed? Would you use Groupon? Why or why not?