A guide to the features and weaknesses of the four major deal providers.
Daily deal sites—like Groupon and LivingSocial—can be an effective way to introduce your business to new customers.
Proceed with caution, however. Partnering with a daily deal site? is primarily an advertising and marketing effort; your goal should be building your brand and customer base long-term rather than turning a quick profit. Daily deal sites generally operate by charging nothing up front and then taking a portion of the revenue generated by your business’ deal, often 50 percent or more.
To further evaluate deal sites, consider dealVITA, a newly launched matchmaking service for merchants and daily deal providers. Simply sign up for a profile, write up the deal you’re hoping to offer and evaluate the deal sites that respond wanting to run your promotion.
To help you decide if daily deals are right for your business, below is an overview of four of the major deal providers, which offer customers savings on restaurants, retailers, service providers and travel.