There is much truth in Ben Parr’s Mashable story about the end of the “Daily Deals Era”. The end of Facebook Deals last week was viewed as a benefit for sites that specialize in the arena such as Groupon and Living Social, but now it might have sparked another question: what did Facebook learn that made them pull out so quickly?
The concept is a brilliant one. Connect businesses and individuals in a way that is beneficial to both by applying the rise of social media into a bulk-buying arena. The concept was strong but there was one major flaw – the hype machine can only cover up the truth for so long. Many of the deals weren’t real with stories of Groupon asking businesses to inflate prices to make the deals look better. This combined with financial challenges making Groupon look like a bad financial deal came at worst possible time.
The traffic has taken a sharp turn for the worst. The concept will likely survive, but it simply hasn’t manifested itself in the final version yet. When it does, it may be a much better way to buy, but it appears as if Groupon will not be the place to buy it.
When it does, it may be a much better way to buy, but it appears as if Groupon will not be the place to buy it. and more