Honest question, why daily deals sites are imploding all of a sudden?
I'd like to know this too. I've never used any of these sites.
LivingSocial expected to lay off 400 in U.S.
41–44 of 44 posts
Re: LivingSocial expected to lay off 400 in U.S.
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
Except for the giant screen, I don't see much that looks particularly extravagant. Too much space (why all those meeting rooms?) and too many employees, probably, but it's hardly Ion Storm.
DC office space has to be expensive, they can only build up 7 or so stories by law (nothing can be taller than the Treasury building).
The part about the Treasury building is a common misconception! It's actually related to the size of the street in front of the building:
http://www.welovedc.com/2009/05/19/dc-mythbusting-the-height...
Re: LivingSocial expected to lay off 400 in U.S.
#43Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's not profitable for the customers (mostly small businesses). They take big losses for the events and don't acquire repeat business. The consumers who partake are only doing it for the deal.
Maybe for some businesses it's not profitable, but it could be fantastic for places like a restaurant. Every time I buy a groupon for a restaurant it's one I haven't been to before. It's never enough to pay for more than 1 meal and I don't really ever go alone. I usually buy a drink, soft or alcoholic, they're high margin. If I like the food it's on my list of places that I'll go back to. If I don't like the food, th…
I don't think you're the norm. I've read several articles where small business owners say that most people only come for the deal, get nothing else, and don't come back. It's a similar mentality that couponers have.
Re: LivingSocial expected to lay off 400 in U.S.
#44Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think for the most part daily deals were a macro- experiment. Everyone jumped on board - startups, businesses of all shape and sizes, as well as end-customers with high hopes everyone would win. I think what were finding out through the experiment is that it just isn't really sustainable for much of anyone. I dont know if that segment will be disappearing anytime soon but the model will have to adapt.
I agree and I think it is an important insight. Why did everyone jump onto this thing? My intuition is that the turbulence in media, from mp3 players to PVRs to online newspapers to Netflix and other on-demand video experiences has seriously damaged the way in which small business would "talk" to their potential customers. This is a gaping hole that has yet to be well served. So I wonder if the macro experiment was t…
I think small businesses have always been hungry for more customers, so I believe the dynamic is something slightly different.
I think the Groupon space was basically a big many-sided bubble. Consumers loved the discounts and the urgency of it. Businesses loved the pitch, and the big response was spectacular compared with regular coupons. Investors loved the large user bases and the crazy growth. Groupon loved the high margins and the ability to make the books look great. And media had some great stories to sell.
But I don't think there was much real value there. Many businesses didn't really see long-term benefit from running daily deals. The traffic was large, but fickle.
The only reason this got so big was that Groupon deals had relatively long feedback loops, so it took businesses a while to learn that there were better marketing options. And there were plenty of businesses for Groupon's massive sales team to burn through before their reputation started to wear thin.