I’ve lived in London most of my life and if you were to ask me last week, did I know most of what was going on in my home city, I would have replied, ‘of course!’ Since being a young boy, my parents had taken me to the usual major attractions and sights of London. I’ve had packed lunches, day trips, family outings to The London Dungeon, The Tower of London, The Natural History Museum, The Science Museum, Thorpe Park- the list goes on.
But, it wasn’t until my girlfriend introduced me to discount voucher websites that I realised how many London deals there were and how many new attractions were right on my door step. After checking out the many websites, I saw restaurants, quirky days out, romantic days out, many more young adult activities that I wouldn’t have dreamed of doing (rock climbing, health spas, go karting), all at affordable prices.
We even checked out the other city links and pretty much immediately booked a weekend away to Ireland (and also gained many ‘Brownie points’ as it cleverly coincided with my Girlfriends birthday…)
I’ve been explaining my new found hobby and website to as many of my friends as possible, so we can get as many discounts as possible. You may have guessed from the amazing deals that they are usually loss-leaders for businesses. The company offers their product or service for a loss to get you in the door. The business then takes even more of a loss than you may think – the product or service could be offered around 40-50% off the normal price. Also, in addition to that, the business pays the discount voucher website about half of what they take in, so they’re actually looking at getting only a quarter of the normal rate. However, there’s usually no up-front fee, so it is deemed a marketing budget- what they pay to get someone in the door. The logic is based on repeat business.
Although the “deals-of-the-day” may only be featured for one day, deals are usually available for a few days or until the allotment has been filled, so it is definitely worth checking back on the site, discount voucher customers cash in their deals by printing out a voucher or by bringing it up on their mobile and presenting it where they want to redeem it.
And is there a catch? Well it depends how you look at it. There are a minimum number of sales needed to be made before everyone can enjoy a discount. For example, our recent Go Karting ‘party’ needed to have at least 20 places sold, otherwise the discount wouldn’t be offered. Of course, that is what makes the likes of Groupon and other discount voucher websites special: users spread the news to everyone so that they can get a discount. Mob or mass appeal is what it’s all about and our friends are hooked!