Though there are only a few large players in the deal industry, the reality is there are hundreds of successful deal and coupon websites based around the globe that help millions of customers find great deals and coupons. The majority of them are not running massive organizations, nor do they have workforces in the thousands.
Instead, the majorities are very small businesses or single entrepreneurs with either no employees or just a couple, yet we’ve watched site after site do incredible things, generating revenues and stimulating the economy in their geographic or niche specific markets.
So how do they do it and what are some of their secrets?
Here are 5 common traits that smaller, yet successful, daily deal and coupon websites have that enable them to run a lean, mean, start-up machine.
1. Don’t re-invent the wheel.
Unless your organization has a large development team and / or funding behind you, you are better off using a platform or pre-built solution. It makes zero sense to NOT utilize technology that has already been developed.
There are ample opportunities for your company to get off the ground more quickly and effectively by working with a deal site platform provider such as our company, Daily Deal Builder. When you start a deal site using a deal platform, you are going to spend less money than you would if you were to hire a team of developers and create a deal site from scratch.
Along with saving money by using a deal platform, you can save time. Creating a deal site from scratch will probably take you anywhere from four months to well over a year. Using a deal platform can expose you to a wide range of knowledge and contacts that you would otherwise have to learn and gain on your own.
2. Utilize 3rd Party Deals
One of the most time consuming aspects of operating a daily deal site is getting businesses and merchants to run a deal with you. Groupon and LivingSocial have thousands of employees that are always hitting the streets and working on locking in deals. If you don’t have the workforce, you can also provide additional deals and coupons to your subscribers by utilizing 3rd party deals, aggregating, and offering promotions as an affiliate.
3. Outsource and Crowdsource
Outsourcing and crowdsourcing is hands down the easiest way to accomplish more with fewer employees. Job boards and crowdsource sites such as vworker.com are packed full of high talent individuals and companies willing to do work for you. This can enable you to skip the process of training new employees and help you cut down on costs drastically.
4. Take more interest in existing merchants.
Savvy deal sites realize that running deal promotions for their merchants is only the start of each new relationship. I recently wrote about how the success and future of daily deal sites depends on their ability to go beyond the deal industry, and this holds even more true today.
The majority of businesses and merchants that deal and coupon websites work with can most likely benefit from a website re-design, SEO help, video services, organic and paid traffic help, photography services, Google Places listings, Social Media help, mobile applications, etc. By staying flexible and putting more energy into working with your merchants, you will not only provide more value, but also increase revenues.
5. Grow strategically
Success is defined differently to each individual and each organization. Many of the smaller, successful deal sites are in a position where they could easily grow or expand, yet they do not. Bynot growing too fast, these deal sites have a unique advantage. Merchants enjoy working with more localized businesses who can dedicate more energy and time to making sure their promotion is a home run. Smaller deal sites are typically not indebted to investors or shareholders. Smaller deal sites can remain flexible, and smaller deal sites are not tied down to a large workforce.
A workforce helps a company grow, but don’t forget that it also brings its own set of HR problems, training, and not to mention expenses.
Make moves today,
Marc D. Horne
www.DailyDealBuilder.com
I originally posted this article on DailyDealMedia.com.
