Groupon Offer

[pfix]

I thought some of you might find this interesting. Local mobile detailer using Groupon to drive business.

STL Mobile Detailing Co. Deal of the Day | Groupon St Louis (http://www.groupon.com/stlouis/deals/stl-mobile-detailing?date=20110713&p=@counter&s=body&utm_campaign=stl-mobile-detailing&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&c=image&utm_content=all-deals_stlouis_out-of-test&user=6f4cd5a880aa2c9d1dc930c70b14124d2cdc8b701cdac ec47b3f2e686bf8ac88)

[Flannigan]

Who hand polishes a car for $75? Either that guy is totally screwing himself, or he is using the wrong terms in his advertisement. Also what is "Aircraft wax" and why would I want it on my car? :D LMFAO. It always cracks me up the terms "detailers" use to try and get customers in the door....

I think the only people who can really benefit from groupons are high volume shops. They are great to get people in the door and try to make up sells. But for those of us that spend 15-45 hours working on one car, a Groupon really has no use. Not to mention when you read all the fine print you only get half of what the custom pays anyway.

[Meghan]

I think the theory is to get a customer in, not make any money off the deal but hope to get a long term customer. I have bought a couple Groupons at great deals, nice way to try out something. If you like it you will be back for full price, Groupon marketing IMO works in a lot of cases.

[Flannigan]

I think the theory is to get a customer in, not make any money off the deal but hope to get a long term customer. I have bought a couple Groupons at great deals, nice way to try out something. If you like it you will be back for full price, Groupon marketing IMO works in a lot of cases.
I too have bought a lot, and for restaurants, spas (not me the wife, I SWEAR...lol), and other services, my only point was that if you aren't doing volume it won't really help. I would hate to give 50% off my service, and then give another 50% of that to Groupon when I'm only doing a couple cars a week. Now the guys that do 10 cars a day, this is a GREAT marketing tool to get people in the door. Hope I explained myself better that time.

[05xrunner]

there was a local deal on Groupon recently for a detail..it was $75($150value) they washed it and waxed it and would call you back after 2 days to see if it was still clean..### and they called that a detail. you had to choose for interior or a vac on interior..it wasnt both for $75..they are a joke of a place..

[CrownKote]

I have ran 2 Groupon's and have been very successful on both generating quite a bit of money quickly... I offer my Level One detail (maint) @ $69.00 Groupon takes 40% I take 60% The actual cost to detail the car is on average $6.00 each take $5.00 from each car and that goes towards rent on the shop and I take the rest...

If the Groupon is done correctly it works well! I have a bunch of customers that bought the first one and have been back several times now at full price... It has helped grow the business very well...

I have also had many customers that bought the Groupon and have upgraded it to a Level Three or a full paint correction... There again a great tool...

No it is not going to be your end all on work and advertising but it works well if you have the right rep and pr skills to make it work...

I will be running a Living Social deal in the next few months just to see if it will be working the same or not...

I have gotten a ton of referrals from my Groupon customers also!

[ShineTimeDetail]

I've been watching these sites lately and the wording these guys use us hilarious! Blasts of forced air search the under seats? Freewheeling clean freaks lol

[embolism]

these things can also backfire too if you aren't ready to handle the increased volume.

Case in point, a store called The Butcher here in Toronto ran a dealfind ($55 for $175 worth of meat), then a buytopia ($100 for $400 worth of meat) and I think even another one which I can't remember...

This organic place is not cheap, 2 nice steaks will set you back $65 and chickens go for $25 a piece. Nevertheless, he sold over 11,000 of the dealfind ones (don't know the others, cause I only bought the dealfind).

In a nutshell, he started running out of meat cause ppl would come in to redeem the whole voucher amount since the lineups were so long. This alienated his regular customers so he created a separate lineup for them. Then people were getting PO'd b/c you wait so long and all the steaks were gone by the time you got served so he started limiting how much you could buy, then he started limiting the days you could use coupons, had to hire cops b/c his employees felt threatened by people who were complaining about all the restrictions that were not stated on the deal. Long story short, the business is now closed for "renovations" while they add new freezers.

I think the guy has totally screwed up his business b/c the regulars are gone, and the people who bought the deals won't be back to pay regular prices for his meat.

As for me, I only bought one to try it out but heard about all the commotion and didn't even try to redeem it. Tried to put in an online order but never heard back. My buddy (who bought 4) said they had over 1000 online orders so they shut that down too...

I guess I'll be getting a credit from dealfind for something else...

[ScubaCougr]

I doubt the detailer wrote the copy, the ridiculous ad was probably Groupon's doing to sound cute (kind of like woot.com).

Comments were interesting. Multiple complaints of missed appointments and other issues, which underscores the cautions Embolism and others raised.

[CrownKote]

these things can also backfire too if you aren't ready to handle the increased volume.

Case in point, a store called The Butcher here in Toronto ran a dealfind ($55 for $175 worth of meat), then a buytopia ($100 for $400 worth of meat) and I think even another one which I can't remember...

This organic place is not cheap, 2 nice steaks will set you back $65 and chickens go for $25 a piece. Nevertheless, he sold over 11,000 of the dealfind ones (don't know the others, cause I only bought the dealfind).

In a nutshell, he started running out of meat cause ppl would come in to redeem the whole voucher amount since the lineups were so long. This alienated his regular customers so he created a separate lineup for them. Then people were getting PO'd b/c you wait so long and all the steaks were gone by the time you got served so he started limiting how much you could buy, then he started limiting the days you could use coupons, had to hire cops b/c his employees felt threatened by people who were complaining about all the restrictions that were not stated on the deal. Long story short, the business is now closed for "renovations" while they add new freezers.

I think the guy has totally screwed up his business b/c the regulars are gone, and the people who bought the deals won't be back to pay regular prices for his meat.

As for me, I only bought one to try it out but heard about all the commotion and didn't even try to redeem it. Tried to put in an online order but never heard back. My buddy (who bought 4) said they had over 1000 online orders so they shut that down too...

I guess I'll be getting a credit from dealfind for something else...

This is why I run a cap on all of my deals...


I doubt the detailer wrote the copy, the ridiculous ad was probably Groupon's doing to sound cute (kind of like woot.com).

Comments were interesting. Multiple complaints of missed appointments and other issues, which underscores the cautions Embolism and others raised.

I just noticed that... I found the one where they showed up in "wife beaters" to do a BMW was interesting...

[LegacyGT]

From the website, here is the 'exclusive' 10 step cleaning process:


Featured Services:Our Exclusive 10-Step System

Step 1
A thorough hand wash of all exterior paint and trim using safe biodegradable cleansers.
Step 2
Restoring your surface texture by removing gritty rust and metallic particles.
Step 3
Our special hand polishing system and polishes removes swirls and fine scratches creating a brilliant luster.
Step 4
All exterior rubber, metal, and plastic trim are cleaned and conditioned.
Step 5
Finally, your finish is protected with our high-gloss wash-resistant aircraft wax coating that is guaranteed to out last and out shine the competition
Step 6
Our forced air thoroughly cleans between and underneath seats, inside dash seams, venting ducts, and all hard to reach areas.
Step 7
Deep brush vacuuming removes deeply embedded sand, dirt, hair and animal dander.
Step 8
Brushing and our biodegradable shampoo loosens and emulsifies dirt, oils, and stubborn stains.
Step 9
Our exclusive Steam System lifts and removes any remaining residues, leaving your carpets and upholstery bright, soft, and dry.
Step 10
All vinyl, leather, and plastic surfaces are hand cleaned with our unique cleansers and conditioners leaving a non-oily protected surface.

Your interior will look and feel like new again!