Week 12B - Other Social Media
Coupon Networks
Coupon networks could effectively boost the market for "Greek to Me - Treats to Go." Networks such as LivingSocial attract customers trying new businesses for the first time. My Church's Greek festival has used Groupon and LivingSocial for their annual Greek Festival for the past 2 years. The festival saw significant growth in attendance of these social media followers. I studied Wolferman's mail order gourmet foods business as a comparable business to "Greek to Me" to evaluate possible benefits and pitfalls of adding coupon networks to marketing strategy and business for the mail order pastry business. I would offer a 50% discount on a box of desserts for a first time customer as a marketing boost.
Coupon networks increase traffic from a faithful coupon customer base to a specific business. They are another road leading to one's product or service. For example, I just took my dog to a new veterinarian that I had been meaning to try because they offered a Groupon coupon. I will probably take her back to this office.
LivingSocial ads prompt action and urgency using terms such as "Selling Fast" and "Limited Time." They show how many items have been bought and the percentage discount a customer will receive on a particular deal. Also, as an owner, I can easily monitor competitor trends and what other gourmet food businesses are offering, such as the popularity of gluten free items in the pastry world. LivingSocial and Groupon offer another avenue for customers to offer product reviews for others to see.
Coupon networks do come with costs and some potential consequences. LivingSocial and Groupon keep a percentage of sales. Also, the discounts offered tend to be higher (often 50% or higher) on Groupon or LivingSocial than what the business would offer directly, which would further erode profitability.
Coupon networks can introduce opportunity for confusion or technical error. With my mail order business, a customer would have to buy the coupon voucher on Groupon or LivingSocial, then redeem it on my business website. For less technical customers, this two step process may spark confusion. In addition, my business is dependent on the technical and network strength of these coupon platforms as an intermediary. For my Church's Greek Festival, we had to have adequate network strength to redeem all of the Groupon coupons we received as hundreds of people entered the festival. Also, many people would present a screen shot versus an actual link to their Groupon, which could not be redeemed automatically on entry, and posed a potential loss of revenue if overlooked.
Yelp
After researching Yelp, I don't think it adds value for product mail order businesses. Yelp focuses more on services such as restaurants and hair salons. Yelp seems more one sided and does not facilitate the business owner response or conversation that other platforms allow.
Coupon networks could effectively boost the market for "Greek to Me - Treats to Go." Networks such as LivingSocial attract customers trying new businesses for the first time. My Church's Greek festival has used Groupon and LivingSocial for their annual Greek Festival for the past 2 years. The festival saw significant growth in attendance of these social media followers. I studied Wolferman's mail order gourmet foods business as a comparable business to "Greek to Me" to evaluate possible benefits and pitfalls of adding coupon networks to marketing strategy and business for the mail order pastry business. I would offer a 50% discount on a box of desserts for a first time customer as a marketing boost.
Coupon networks increase traffic from a faithful coupon customer base to a specific business. They are another road leading to one's product or service. For example, I just took my dog to a new veterinarian that I had been meaning to try because they offered a Groupon coupon. I will probably take her back to this office.
LivingSocial ads prompt action and urgency using terms such as "Selling Fast" and "Limited Time." They show how many items have been bought and the percentage discount a customer will receive on a particular deal. Also, as an owner, I can easily monitor competitor trends and what other gourmet food businesses are offering, such as the popularity of gluten free items in the pastry world. LivingSocial and Groupon offer another avenue for customers to offer product reviews for others to see.
Coupon networks do come with costs and some potential consequences. LivingSocial and Groupon keep a percentage of sales. Also, the discounts offered tend to be higher (often 50% or higher) on Groupon or LivingSocial than what the business would offer directly, which would further erode profitability.
Coupon networks can introduce opportunity for confusion or technical error. With my mail order business, a customer would have to buy the coupon voucher on Groupon or LivingSocial, then redeem it on my business website. For less technical customers, this two step process may spark confusion. In addition, my business is dependent on the technical and network strength of these coupon platforms as an intermediary. For my Church's Greek Festival, we had to have adequate network strength to redeem all of the Groupon coupons we received as hundreds of people entered the festival. Also, many people would present a screen shot versus an actual link to their Groupon, which could not be redeemed automatically on entry, and posed a potential loss of revenue if overlooked.
Yelp
After researching Yelp, I don't think it adds value for product mail order businesses. Yelp focuses more on services such as restaurants and hair salons. Yelp seems more one sided and does not facilitate the business owner response or conversation that other platforms allow.
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