Socially Local Series: 2. Do And Donts When You Are Getting A Group-Buying Deal For Your Local Business
Dos And Donts Of A Group-Buying Deal
This is a small series I prepared for our clients at Rock&Social. It is not necessarily news but it might help you get some insights. Make sure you read Socially Local Series: 1. What Is The Deal With Group-Buying Deals?
Here are a couple points to take into account if you are thiking of getting a Groupon deal for your local business.
DOS AND DON’T WHEN YOU ARE GETTING A GROUP-BUYING DEAL
1. Know your numbers: make sure you understand and calculate exactly how much money you will be making or losing.
2. Don’t treat your deal consumers as second class clients. And if you do want to fill up specific time slots be very explicit about it. Don’t ask your deal clients to mention the coupon just so you can give them unwanted tables or later time slots (‘gravy’ as one restaurant owner is calling the 9pm service).
3. Be on your best game. A group deal is like an open house. You need to have exquisite customer service. Everything must look impecable. Prepare your supply chain for the amount of new orders. Staff up.
4. Be ready to build your social brand community. A group deal is an investment. Set up all the tools to build a brand community. Don’t just expect your customers to come back. Make sure all the tools are in place to acquire repeat customers. Have your Facebook page well managed, referenced. Have your newsletter ready. Have in-store call-to-actions for your clients to join your online community and stay in touch via newletters, etc.
5. Take extreme care of your current consumers. No one wants to see their favorite restaurant flocked by strangers who don’t understand the vibe and who create a crappy experience for everyone. Inform current clients of the ongoing deal and explain what you are doing to keep the same quality of service during the promotion.
6. Follow up / Lessons learned. Make sure you have a way to sample and contact your new clients. Learn from this experience.
