What Other Businesses Can Learn From Groupon

Groupon, pioneer of group buying and one the fastest growing companies in history, will have its launch on the stock markets today with an initial public offering (IPO) that's values the business at thirteen billion dollars, more double the $6bn that Google offered for the three year old company last year.

A recent Business Insider profile of Groupon had some fascinating insights on this unique company and its growth, there's a number of lessons that most business owners, entrepreneurs and managers can take from this company's dramatic growth and market leadership regardless of the sector they operate in.

Apply tech to your business Many people make the mistake that Groupon is tech startup when it's actually a sales operation.

Groupon's business model isn't really new, what they have done is applied various web technologies to the directory and voucher shopping industries and come up with a 21st Century way of doing things.

Bringing together different modern tools like social media, cloud computing, local search and the mobile web makes businesses more flexible and quick to develop new market opportunities.

Prepare for quick changes Groupon was born out of another business - The Point. As The Point steadily died, Andrew Mason and his mentor Eric Lefkofsky decided to try something different and Groupon was born.

This ability to change focus quickly - often called "pivoting" - is essential in changing markets. In volatile times like today where today's business conditions can't be taken for granted we have to be prepared for rapid changes.

Fortunately the cost and time to changes your business focus has dropped dramatically with digital and online tools, which is another reason to embrace tech.

Get a good business mentor Eric Lefkofsky bought maturity and a perspective to Groupon's young leadership, having a different and more experienced view of the business helped it develop and grab the opportunity.

An experienced business mentor can be worth their weight in gold.

Back a good idea In Nicholas Carson's Business Insider profile he describes Andrew Mason role at Eric Lefkofski's business before The Point as "an intern, 'kind of squatting in their offices'". Lefkofski was prepared to back the geeky kid camping on his premises.

Putting your prejudices and judgements on the shelf to back good ideas, particularly those that don't cost much to execute, is one way to find where the opportunities lie.

Tell your business story Regardless of what you think of Groupon's claims, they tell a very good story which has lead to their amazing growth and the development of the group buying industry.

Being able to tell your story, in your terms, is one of the great advantages the web, local search and social media deliver. There's no reason why your business shouldn't be dominating the local market in whatever field you work in.

Regardless of what your business does, it can benefit from applying the online tools that are available to all of us.

We may not be the next Groupon but the web gives us the opportunity to build our business to take advantage of the 21st Century. It's worthwhile understanding the new tools at our fingertips.

Group, and places such as Groupon revitalizing companies

From their commencement in 2008 collective buying Web sites increased in number. There are many of them around the world, including every city, where they are present online buyers. The idea of a joint purchase was the first, is broken down, Andrew Mason, author of the group, a company owned by ThePoint in the USA originating in two words, "the group" and "coupon." GroupOn is a marketing strategy is to provide a discount to a group of customers online. With a collective purchase, products are sold on a wholesale basis, thereby businesses thrive with a series of trades every day.

The idea of a group of coupons allowed businesses to spend less on advertising. Displayed as the daily business, product or service is shown in the pages group, where customers can learn about it. Whereas, as the group displays a menu, this form of advertising is even better than that which appears on the TV. But only those who have a Web site or log in and receive e-mail notification, see. It seems that a lot of growth from the links on social networking sites have been effectively spread the word about the "deal of the day. Similarly, customers may search for Groupon shops in their town in order to ensure the validity of the coupons, which they get. Find great deals, customers should key in the word "Groupon," and their State or city, or vice versa, e.g., group, NY, DC group, group, SF, Austin Groupon, the London Group, etc. These keywords should return results for a specific site group, you are looking for.

Recommendations from the purchasers also work as a marketing strategy for the group. The buyer may be friends, who may be interested in buying the same product, what they did. The good thing about it is that every link earns buyers $ 10 in $ Groupon to be credited to his account. As such, the place of purchase or acquisition transactions, customers also get some money from the group. Imagine that ten friends to the agreement in one day. You can obtain one $ 100 just to give a recommendation.

That's what appeals to many online customers get a discount from the group. Other Web sites, such as, for example, BuyWithMe and LivingSocial that provide cheap deals are lagging behind in relation to this opportunity, and group. In particular, BuyWithMe customers can also obtain a loan of $ 10, but it is good to refer to the first buyer. Another company under the name of The customer benefits of recently entered the market a "collective buyer". Have much higher motivation for its customer base outside of bucks group and are in fact promising to pay a substantial portion of their proceeds back to those who refer and to encourage them to their friends.

The benefit of the customer is also set up their program in such a way that gives a great party for any organisation wishing to raise significant funds.

Things on the concession prices at online stores, customers very attractive. Unlike other advertising networks where some purchases are on sale, while others are not, all the things that are on the website of the group are discounted. Discounts are large enough, ranging from 50-70%, so it is advisable to check your pages once in a while to find the best price. The way in which the collective buying Web sites work it won't be long before online buying becomes a better way to shop.

The success of the group, and other Web sites, such as The customer advantage eventually will change how we live. In the future, hopefully, BuyWithMe, GroupOn and LivingSocial customers The advantage and other online sites will be able to cover all the devices in each location, so that people can have discounts on virtually everything they buy. Thanks to Andrew Mason, creator of the group discount is a genius!