Group Deal Calculator
Where do our numbers come from?
Groupon's self-reported rate of repeat business is 22%. However, a recent survey of 150 businesses found just 15% of Groupon buyers visited the business again. The alternative is a well targeted deal with the right offer to the right audience can produce a profitable repeat business rate. Don't expect to make up a lot on breakage: the redemption rates we've seen have been 90% and above.
Under the Groupon column, we've put the kind of deal we've often seen them recommend to our small restaurant clientele. Under BoomTime Deals, we've put the kind of deal we recommend that you run. That includes doing the following:
- Don't discount a regular offering — create something new for your deal, like a prix fixe dinner. And build a higher margin into it.
- Target a higher sale price to knock out some of the pure bargain shoppers. If your "deal" is a $60 value for $30, and your everyday average service costs $60, you are buying the wrong prospects. Better to offer a $120 value package for $60.
- Use social media to make the deal go viral. Remember, your existing clients are your best sales channel. Provide a deal that they will want to try and share with their friends.
- Limit the number of deals sold to something your business can benefit from without pushing out your regular customers or degrading your service.
- Measure the results. You want to know the total revenue, profit/loss, new customers, return rate, new email or social media contacts and website traffic resulting from your deal.
You can apply these principles equally well to a Groupon or any of its clones. Note the flexibility you have when you keep most of the money collected from customers with a BoomTime Deal rather than paying someone else to discount your services.
Use this calculator to see if group deals makes sense for your business. We've seen way too many restaurants jump into group deals without analyzing the true financial impact and crafting a group deal for financial success.