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Youpreneur with Chris Ducker
Zero to Book
Copyblogger FM: Content Marketing, Copywriting, Freelance Writing, and Social Media Marketing
hosted by Darrell Vesterfelt and Tim Stoddart

How to Kick Groupon to the Curb and Become a Local Hero

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Previous Episode:Convert ... Or Die More Episodes Next Episode:How to Write (and Execute) a Simple but Powerful Business Plan

All Episodes:

March 30, 2020

The Advantage of Email Marketing, Featuring Nathan Barry of ConvertKit

March 15, 2020

How to Write Content That Resonates

March 9, 2020

How to Conquer Your Fear of Selling, with Leah Neaderthal

March 2, 2020

How to Build Remarkable Products to Grow Your Business, with Ramit Sethi

February 17, 2020

What You Should Talk about on Your Podcast, with Tara McMullin

February 9, 2020

How to Win at Search in 2020

February 3, 2020

How to Turn Pro as a Freelance Writer

January 27, 2020

Marketing Segmentation and Personalization with Brennan Dunn of RightMessage

January 20, 2020

Podcasting Still Matters, with Pat Flynn from Smart Passive Income

January 13, 2020

The New Look Copyblogger in 2020

January 8, 2020

New Year, New Copyblogger

October 23, 2019

The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur with John Jantsch

October 2, 2019

Consistency Will Take You Further

September 25, 2019

The Past, Present, and Future of Online Learning

September 16, 2019

How to Get More of the Right Things Done

September 9, 2019

Why the Future Is Still Email

September 3, 2019

What’s Next for
Copyblogger Media?

August 26, 2019

How Smart, Nimble Companies Are Using Webinars Today

August 19, 2019

The Clarity Method: A Conversation with Tim Brownson

August 12, 2019

Digital Business Trends and the Latest on the Rainmaker Platform

August 5, 2019

4 ‘Naive’ Business Principles for Enduring Success

July 8, 2019

How to Write an Epic Blog Post, Part 3: Polishing and Promotion

July 1, 2019

How to Write an Epic Blog Post, Part 2: Getting It Written

June 24, 2019

How to Write an Epic Blog Post, Part 1: Thinking and Research

June 17, 2019

3 Almost Magical Headline Ingredients for More Traffic, Engagement, and Shares

June 10, 2019

Lessons Any Business Can Learn from an Impressive Influencer Marketing Fail

June 3, 2019

13 Ways of Looking at a Headline

May 27, 2019

The 7 ‘Bad’ Habits of Incredibly Successful People

May 20, 2019

Writers: How to Move from Making a Living to Driving Revenue

May 13, 2019

Choose the Right Frame to Boost the Power of Your Content

May 6, 2019

How Copywriting Teacher Belinda Weaver Reenergized Her Email List for Massive Engagement

April 29, 2019

3 Reasons Why Really Good Writers Sometimes Can’t Find Great Clients

April 22, 2019

3 Slightly Embarrassing Emotions that Drive Effective Copywriting

April 15, 2019

Get 10 Content Marketing Boosters in 20 Minutes

April 8, 2019

Becoming the ‘Chief Empathy Officer’ of Your Copy and Content

April 1, 2019

One of the Most Important Marketing Decisions You’ll Ever Make

March 18, 2019

What Nobody Wants to Hear about Content Marketing

March 11, 2019

Getting Your Big, Scary Projects Finished: A Conversation about Growing Gills

March 4, 2019

When Is It Time to Bring in a Professional Copywriter?

February 25, 2019

Using Content to Systematically Move Prospects Toward a Purchase

February 18, 2019

Understanding the Lifecycles of Your Website, with Pamela Wilson

February 11, 2019

5 Ways to Manage a Stress-Induced Creative Slump

February 4, 2019

3 Ways Strategic Content Can Drive Measurable Business Outcomes

January 28, 2019

The Social Media Platform Every Content Creator Should Be Using in 2019 (Nope, It’s Not Facebook)

January 21, 2019

Real Talk about Generating High-Quality Content

January 14, 2019

A Conversation with Paul Jarvis about Staying a ‘Company of One’

October 29, 2018

The 3 Plus 1 Foundational Elements of Effective Persuasion

October 22, 2018

5 Essential Copywriting Techniques from Copyblogger

October 15, 2018

5 Ways to Recover Your Professional and Creative Confidence

October 8, 2018

5 Stinky Sardine Secrets to Make Your Content More Fascinating

September 24, 2018

The Mindset ‘Hack’ that Frees Your Creativity and Makes You Happier

September 18, 2018

How to Kill Your Sales and Mess up Your Business: Lessons from a Used Car Salesman

September 4, 2018

The 7 Things Writers Need to Make a (Good) Living

August 27, 2018

Are You Making These Social Media Marketing Mistakes?

August 20, 2018

Fix These 7 About Page Mistakes for More Traffic and (Possibly) Better SEO

August 13, 2018

7 Ways to Boost Your Creativity

August 6, 2018

A 10-Step ‘Checklist’ for Your Content Marketing Site

July 30, 2018

The 3 Keys to Publishing Strong Content … Even If You Aren’t a ‘Great’ Writer (Yet)

July 23, 2018

Fix These 3 Points of Failure to Get Better Results for Your Content

July 16, 2018

Big Changes at ConvertKit: A Discussion with Founder Nathan Barry

July 9, 2018

3 Skills to Master to Become a Marketing Badass this Year

June 18, 2018

The Quiet Power of Conversational Copy

June 11, 2018

5 Rules of Thumb to Relieve SEO-Induced Stress

June 4, 2018

How to Use the GDPR to Make Your Business Stronger than Ever

May 14, 2018

‘Good Karma’ Selling that Works: A Conversation with Tim Paige

April 30, 2018

How to Get More Comfortable (and Effective) at Selling

April 23, 2018

Privacy and Permission in the Wake of Cambridge Analytica

April 16, 2018

Seth Godin and How to Create Change

April 9, 2018

Email? Chatbots? Social? How Are We Supposed to Reach People?

March 26, 2018

The Double-Edged Sword that Can Make (or Break) Your Content

March 19, 2018

Make More Progress by Getting (Gently) Out of Your Comfort Zone

March 12, 2018

Are You Doing Content Marketing Wrong?

March 5, 2018

Storytelling for Modern Content Marketing (Part 2 of 2)

February 26, 2018

Storytelling for Modern Content Marketing (Part 1 of 2)

February 19, 2018

10 Quality Factors Search Engines Need to See on Your Site

February 12, 2018

A Simple Content Strategy to Make Your Site Massively More Useful

February 5, 2018

How to Avoid a Heartbreaking Business Failure

January 29, 2018

Hey Writers: Let’s Get You Paid What You’re Worth

January 15, 2018

5 Keys to Making Your Content More Shareable

December 18, 2017

3 Observations on Trends (but not Predictions) for 2018

December 11, 2017

3 Tips Now to Build a Strong Foundation in 2018

December 4, 2017

The 3 Success Factors that Help Writers Earn a Great Living

November 27, 2017

How to Recognize a Great Content Idea

November 20, 2017

How to Cultivate a More Meaningful Gratitude Practice

November 13, 2017

Advice for Poets, Advice for Killers

October 30, 2017

Face Your Business Fears on Halloween Week

October 23, 2017

How to Make Smarter Decisions about Your Website

October 2, 2017

A Series of Unfortunate Content Events

September 18, 2017

The Evolution of a Successful Copywriter

August 28, 2017

7 Ways to Improve Your Marketing by Harnessing the Power of Evil

August 14, 2017

Smart Questions from our Brilliant Audience

August 7, 2017

Does the Web Have Enough Patience for Your In-Depth Content?

July 31, 2017

How to Write (Much Better) Blog Comments

July 17, 2017

Which Works Better: Positive or Negative Content?

July 10, 2017

How to Attract the Exact Customers You Want

July 3, 2017

How to Create Stability and Success as an Artist

June 19, 2017

Two Powerful Resources for Life-Changing Growth

June 12, 2017

How to Turn All that Marketing Advice into Action

June 5, 2017

How to Develop a Compelling Marketing Idea in 4 Steps

May 30, 2017

Getting Over the Fear of Selling

May 22, 2017

Talking Community and Digital Business with Tara Gentile

May 15, 2017

Plagiarism, Self-Deception, Bad Sandwiches, and Other Interesting Disasters

May 1, 2017

Professional Writers: Find Out How to Get Certified by Copyblogger

April 17, 2017

The Painful Core Lesson Taught by 3 Astonishing Big-Brand Fails

April 3, 2017

5 Mindset Habits that Actually Work

March 27, 2017

On Grammar, Usage, and Not Being a Great Big Jerk

March 20, 2017

Creative Strategies for Content Writers

March 13, 2017

A New Ultra-Easy Resource for Creating Excellent WordPress Sites

February 20, 2017

Thriving Freelancers and Clients from Hell

February 13, 2017

Politics, Content Marketing, and the 2017 Super Bowl Ads

February 6, 2017

Copyblogger Book Club: Winning the Story Wars

January 23, 2017

3 Content Marketing Strategy Fails (and How to Fix Them)

January 9, 2017

The 2017 Content Excellence Challenge: Your January Assignments

December 19, 2016

Bad Writing Advice: The ‘Post Truth’ Episode

December 12, 2016

Get Ready Now for a Creative and Productive 2017

December 5, 2016

The 4 Pillars Every Online Business Is Built On

November 28, 2016

Orbit Media’s Latest Survey of 1000 Bloggers

November 14, 2016

Have You Already Missed the Podcasting Gold Rush?

November 7, 2016

Getting More Traffic, Links, and Shares to Your Content

October 31, 2016

5 Quick Wins for Content Marketers

October 24, 2016

Announcing: An Intriguing New Tool for Collaborative Content

October 17, 2016

A New Book to Make Content Marketing Easier

October 10, 2016

Behind the Scenes at Copyblogger: Our New Email Approach

October 3, 2016

The ‘Obligatory’ Structure of Effective Content

September 26, 2016

7 Powerful Content Strategies Borrowed from Advertising Masters

September 15, 2016

How to Handle Demographic and Psychographic Segmentation (without Looking Like an Idiot)

September 8, 2016

Ethics, Professionalism, and Good Manners for Content Marketers

September 1, 2016

3 Questions that Can Haunt Creative Professionals

August 25, 2016

How to Give and Get Exceptional Testimonials, Part Two

August 18, 2016

How to Give and Get Exceptional Testimonials, Part One

August 11, 2016

Are You Leaving Money on the Table with Weak Headlines?

August 4, 2016

Content Marketing for Nonprofits

July 28, 2016

The One-Two Punch that Creates the Most Successful Copywriters

July 21, 2016

Pokémon Go: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

July 14, 2016

5 Suggestions When You’re Writing About Controversy

July 7, 2016

Announcing: A Breakthrough Educational Collaboration between Copyblogger and U.C. Davis

June 30, 2016

How to Break Past the #1 Conversion Killer

June 23, 2016

The New Age of Marketing Automation: Powerful, Simple, Cost-Effective

June 16, 2016

How to Make a (Really Good) Living as a Freelance Writer

June 9, 2016

Self-Publishing, Side Hustles, and Doing It All: A Conversation with Linda Formichelli

June 2, 2016

A Process for Content Marketing Success

May 26, 2016

Content Marketing Best Practices: Getting Email Opt-Ins

May 19, 2016

Behind the Scenes: Adventures in Advertising

May 12, 2016

Trump, Apple, and Facebook Advertising: Content Marketing News for May, 2016

May 5, 2016

Sally Hogshead and the Art of Fascination

April 28, 2016

Behind the Scenes at the Rainmaker Digital Company Meeting!

April 14, 2016

Social Media News, Social Media Constants

April 7, 2016

Strategies for B2B Podcasting, with Clark Buckner

March 31, 2016

Content Marketing Success Stories: Fitness Powerhouse Examine.com

March 24, 2016

Behind the Scenes: An Inside Look at the Rainmaker FM Redesign

March 17, 2016

Our Latest Advice and Resources for Digital Business Owners

March 10, 2016

Should Content Publishers Adopt Google’s New AMP?

March 3, 2016

7 Ways to Get Smarter with Social Media Listening

February 25, 2016

Content Marketing Shout-Out: Orbit Media and Andy Crestodina

February 18, 2016

The Tactic You Should Steal from Copyblogger

February 11, 2016

Content Marketing News for February, 2016

February 4, 2016

Email Marketing: The Misunderstood Powerhouse

January 28, 2016

The Secret Weapon Behind Great Websites: The Role of the Content Editor

January 21, 2016

Behind the Scenes: The Relaunch and Re-Imagining of Copyblogger.com

January 14, 2016

Trends and Predictions for Digital Commerce: A Conversation with Brian Clark

January 7, 2016

2016 Content Marketing Resolutions

December 28, 2015

The End of The Lede, The Beginning of Copyblogger FM

November 10, 2015

Constraints Can Be Blessings (Plus 2 Other Essential Lessons Jerod Re-Learned This Week)

November 3, 2015

Long or Short? The Content Length Question Answered, Once and For All

October 27, 2015

The Simple Publishing Hack That Gives Old Content New Life (Plus 3 More Tips)

October 20, 2015

The Surprising Truth about Earning a Profit from Your Content

October 13, 2015

How to Move Your Audience From Infatuation to Love

October 6, 2015

3 Things Your Audience Wants You to Know about Useful Content

September 29, 2015

Revisiting Authenticity: What It Is, What It’s Not, and Why It Matters

September 22, 2015

Publishing Lessons from Dave Pell, the Most Fascinating Email Newsletter Writer in the Business

September 15, 2015

Why Content Creators Should Kiss Their Programmers

September 8, 2015

Finally — A Podcast about the Superiority of Written Content

September 1, 2015

Hot Seat: Grilling Jerod on Using Audio Content to Seed a Content Arsenal

August 25, 2015

How to Optimize Your Headlines for Content Discovery with Vinegar (Before You Die of Cholera)

August 18, 2015

5 Stories That Explain Jerod Morris (Plus One Massive Marketing Lesson)

August 11, 2015

Lede Potpourri: A Big Idea, Talking About Demian Behind His Back, and Lessons from #PM15

August 4, 2015

How to Attend an Industry Conference Like a Boss

July 28, 2015

Getting the Most Out of a Conference When You’re There to Promote, Part 1

July 21, 2015

How Much Does the Modern Content Marketer Need to Know About SEO?

July 14, 2015

Are Podcasters Digitally Sharecropping Without Realizing It?

July 7, 2015

Celebrating Our 101st Episode (with a Special Guest Interviewer)

June 30, 2015

Why The Phrase ‘Leaders Are Readers’ Should Die

June 23, 2015

Why You Should Think Outside the Box About Online Courses

June 16, 2015

The Proper (and Safe) Way to Republish Old Articles

June 9, 2015

How to Grow an Audience on LinkedIn by Repurposing Content

June 2, 2015

Key Takeaways from Three-and-a-Half Hours with Henry Rollins

May 27, 2015

Rapid-Fire Takeaways from Authority Rainmaker

May 19, 2015

The Proper Way to Grow an Audience on Medium

May 12, 2015

The Introvert’s Guide to Launching a Successful Podcast

May 5, 2015

The One Quality All Popular Podcasts Share

April 28, 2015

Proof That Grit Is the Only Way to Reach Your Potential

April 21, 2015

Do We Celebrate Failure Too Much?

April 14, 2015

Choose Yourself Part 2: James Altucher Fights Back

April 7, 2015

Should We Fear Content Shock? (Or Could It Actually Be a Good Thing?)

March 31, 2015

Should You Really ‘Walk in the Direction of Your Fear’?

March 24, 2015

Is ‘Choose Yourself’ Good Advice … or New-Age Phooey?

March 17, 2015

Is Authority Earned or Bestowed?

March 3, 2015

Dan Pink on How to Succeed in the New Era of Selling

February 24, 2015

Here’s How to Answer the Most Important Question in Life (and Make a Living from It)

February 17, 2015

Sally Hogshead on How You Can Unlock Your Natural Ability to Fascinate

February 10, 2015

How to Learn from Your Successes

January 27, 2015

How to Learn From Your Mistakes

January 13, 2015

Lessons Learned from Conducting Two Monster Audience Surveys

December 16, 2014

Adaptive Content: A Trend to Pay Attention to in 2015

December 2, 2014

The Most Important Lessons You Should Have Learned in 2014

November 18, 2014

How We Built Our Careers Online (And What You Can Learn From It)

November 4, 2014

Interview with Brian Clark: How Customer Experience Maps Help You Develop a Smarter Content Strategy

October 21, 2014

How Empathy Maps Help You Speak Directly to the Hearts of Your Audience

October 7, 2014

How to Ignite a Feeling in Your Audience

September 23, 2014

Are You Overlooking This Cornerstone of a Smart Content Strategy?

June 26, 2014

How to Curate Knowledge, Turn it Into Wisdom, and Build Your Audience

June 19, 2014

How Successful Writers Curate Ideas

June 13, 2014

The 5 W’s of Link Curation

June 6, 2014

Why You Should Curate Content (And How to Do It Right)

May 30, 2014

How Freaks and Misfits Can Succeed in Business: A Conversation with Chris Brogan

May 23, 2014

The 2 Reasons People Don’t Click on Your Buttons … And How to Overcome Them

May 16, 2014

Chase Customers, Not Clicks

May 9, 2014

How to Be Authentic

May 2, 2014

How to Close With Style

April 25, 2014

The Best of Seth Godin on Copyblogger

April 17, 2014

How to Choose Arresting Images for Your Blog Posts (And Why You Should)

April 11, 2014

Removing Blog Comments: The View So Far

April 4, 2014

How to Use Internal Cliffhangers

March 28, 2014

Hangout Hot Seat with Brian Clark

March 21, 2014

How to Tell a Seductive Story

March 14, 2014

How to Create Exquisite Subheads

March 7, 2014

How to Write Killer Bullet Points

February 28, 2014

How to Write Damn Good Sentences

February 21, 2014

How to Use Persuasive Words

February 14, 2014

Michael Stelzner on Capturing Emails and Committing to Quality

February 7, 2014

How to Nail Your Opening

January 24, 2014

How to Write a Magnetic Headline (in Under 15 Minutes)

May 18, 2012

Seth Godin on When You Should Start Marketing Your Product, Service, or Idea

May 11, 2012

How to Attract an Audience by Integrating Content, Social, and Search

March 30, 2012

Why You Should Build an Audience Before You Build a Business

March 16, 2012

How Chris Brogan Built His Content Platform

March 9, 2012

Jay Baer on How to Turn Interested Prospects into Lifelong Customers

March 2, 2012

A 30-Minute Copywriting Course from a Master of the Craft

February 24, 2012

The Path to a Legendary Copywriting Career

February 17, 2012

5 Tips for Affiliate Marketing Beginners

February 10, 2012

Why Not Sell Physical Stuff With Digital Media?

February 3, 2012

Whether You Call it Blogging or Not, Online Content Still Rules

January 27, 2012

Answers to the 3 Biggest Email Marketing Questions We Get

January 20, 2012

How to Newsjack Your Way to Free Media Exposure with David Meerman Scott

January 13, 2012

Steven Pressfield and the War of Work

November 18, 2011

The Strategy Behind the Copyblogger Redesign

November 11, 2011

7 Ways to Create an Email Marketing "Snowball Effect"

November 4, 2011

Warning: If You're Not a Privacy Nut, You're Losing Sales

October 28, 2011

The 3 Kinds of Writing That Builds a Business

October 21, 2011

The Art of Seductive Writing: A Conversation with Robert Greene

October 7, 2011

Why Content Marketing Doesn't Suck

September 30, 2011

Are You Weird Enough to Succeed at Content Marketing?

September 23, 2011

What Works With SEO Right Now and Why No One Does What You Want

September 16, 2011

Are You Flushing Your Marketing Down the Social Media Toilet?

September 11, 2011

Seth Godin on Blogging, Business Books, and Creating Content that Matters

September 2, 2011

The Return of Copyblogger Radio …

June 10, 2011

Answered: Your Most Burning Content Marketing Questions

June 3, 2011

How to Get All the Clients and Customers You Can Handle

May 20, 2011

Is Content Marketing Worth the Work?

May 13, 2011

How to Write Nearly Undeletable Emails

May 6, 2011

Is the Online Gold Rush Over?

April 22, 2011

The Art of Enchanting Online Marketing with Guy Kawasaki

April 15, 2011

The Market for Something to Believe in is Infinite: An Interview with Hugh MacLeod

April 8, 2011

How to Constantly Create Compelling Content

March 25, 2011

The Content Marketing Question You Need to Answer … Now

March 18, 2011

Good SEO is Simple. Really.

March 4, 2011

Did Social Media Kill the Marketing Star?

February 25, 2011

How to Write (and Execute) a Simple but Powerful Business Plan

February 17, 2011

How to Kick Groupon to the Curb and Become a Local Hero

February 3, 2011

Convert … Or Die

January 27, 2011

Attention: Is Your Headline Getting Any?

January 20, 2011

How to Craft Landing Pages that Work

January 13, 2011

Why Every Smart Business is in the Media Business

January 5, 2011

2011 Content Marketing Predictions

December 15, 2010

Tim Ferriss on How to Reinvent Yourself with Blog Marketing

December 8, 2010

The 6 Elements of an Influential Web Experience

December 1, 2010

Your Staggeringly Unfair Marketing Advantage

November 17, 2010

How to Get Some Action

November 10, 2010

The Foundation of All Marketing that Works

November 3, 2010

Introducing Copyblogger Radio

February 17, 2011

How to Kick Groupon to the Curb and Become a Local Hero

Everyone’s talking about Groupon these days.

From daily deals to tasteless Super Bowl commercials, this company is getting a lot of attention. And the attention they want most is from the local small businesses that power their revenue model.

Does your local business need Groupon? No, not at all. In fact, there are much better alternatives if you’re up for it.

If you faithfully serve your local community with valuable content, unbeatable offers, and amazing service, you won’t need Groupon.

Here are a few fine ideas on how to do it …

In this episode Brian and I discuss:

  • What Groupon really is, and how that knowledge can revolutionize your business
  • The simple concept that drives buyers (always has/always will)
  • Why you shouldn’t rely on Groupon, Facebook, or Twitter to dominate your market
  • How to create an unstoppable, hyper-local marketing campaign — that you own
  • Why the old ways need to be at the heart of everything you do

Hit the flash player below to listen now:

How to Kick Groupon to the Curb and Become a Local HeroRobert Bruce
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  • Click here to download the mp3 | 29.9 MB | 24:52
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Want to discover the smartest ways to mix social media, content marketing, and SEO? We’ve got you covered with Internet Marketing for Smart People. It’s a FREE 20-part course and email newsletter that delivers the techniques and strategies you need to know as an online marketer.

Links from the Show:

  • Groupon “Save the Money” Super Bowl Ad
  • The Surprising Old-School Secret to Blogging Success
  • Why Every Smart Small Business is in the Media Business
  • Content Marketing 101
  • Landing Pages Turn Traffic Into Money
  • What’s the Premise?

About the Author: Robert Bruce is Copyblogger Media’s Chief Copywriter and Resident Recluse.

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Comments

  1. Randy Kemp says

    February 17, 2011 at 10:01 AM

    Robert:

    Your show started out about Groupon. If you Google Groupon, there is a Wiki article that comes up. One thing Wiki says is, “In April 2010, the company was valued at $1.35 billion.”

    Then I’m happy you went on to apply ideas they use to small business – like scarcity and value added. Then you covered traffic sources.

    I wondered about the Dallas ad example you made about massage therapists. This seems to be a growing profession. I’ve seen ads for this profession in the Chicago Reader and Craigslist.

    Over the next few months, I’ll see how well I paid attention to stuff I learned in Copyblogger, the former Clayton Makepeace blog, the 30 Day Challenge, etc. Do I get the stuff you guys teach and can I apply it? There’s a new direction I’m taking.

    Keep up the good work- it’s great stuff. May all the readers become as successful as Groupon.

    Randy

    Reply
    • Andrew B. says

      February 17, 2011 at 1:31 PM

      And may all of us copywriters earn more than what Groupon pays its copywriters. (Sorry. Harsh, I know. But $20 a writeup is shameful.)

      Reply
  2. Hashim Warren says

    February 17, 2011 at 11:01 AM

    Marc Cuban describes the strategy that Brian guesses Groupon used in their ads as an apologevent:

    An Apologevent is where we plan an event that we know we will have to apologize for. The Apologevent will be designed to entice all the “I’m shocked by anything” viewers to call their local stations, their newspapers and of course Inside Edition, The Insider, etc to remind them of how inappropriate the Apologevent was and how shocked they are.

    Reply
    • Brian Clark says

      February 17, 2011 at 11:06 AM

      Yep. And Cuban would know. 😉

      Reply
  3. Sonia Simone says

    February 17, 2011 at 11:34 AM

    Ha ha, “that pink-haired female.” Nice.

    Reply
    • Brian Clark says

      February 17, 2011 at 1:36 PM

      Said with obvious love, naturally. 🙂

      Reply
  4. Ivin says

    February 17, 2011 at 11:38 AM

    Groupon.. isn’t it a more US localized company/method anyway. Twitter is good for me but FB is a total waste of time.

    Reply
  5. andy white says

    February 17, 2011 at 11:58 AM

    Surely that’s ‘kerb’?

    Reply
    • Sonia Simone says

      February 17, 2011 at 12:35 PM

      Curb is the correct U.S. spelling.

      Reply
  6. Anna says

    February 17, 2011 at 12:00 PM

    Personally, I can’t wait to listen to this podcast! I’ve used Groupon once and it has driven A LOT of traffic to my website (during the day of my deal) and helped my just starting out small business get noticed. BUT now they just want to know when the next Groupon deal is and I’m considering using some other sites like Get Social and Urban Dealight to generate interest and bring traffic to my shop. I suppose it depends on who your target audience is and what you sell. I’ll be interested to see if this particular podcast convinces me to stick it out and not do another Groupon. Although, so far, the only people I’ve had in my classes are from Groupon. Go figure.

    Reply
  7. Howie says

    February 17, 2011 at 12:12 PM

    Without listening to the podcast/MP3 (yet….maybe I’ll regret commenting before…lol), I do think it’s borderline impossible to evade exerting at least some kind of reliance on external websites/tools/services, especially if one hopes to gain a leg up on competition (in whatever niche they are attempting to establish themselves in). To deny the inherent functionality that Facebook affords a business would, IMHO, be very unreasonable…and could actually be very limiting to a person’s endeavor, whether online or offline. I do think some degree of reliance is necessary and unavoidable.

    (off to listen now…hopefully, I didn’t just sound like a fool…lol)

    Reply
    • Sonia Simone says

      February 17, 2011 at 12:15 PM

      I wouldn’t say a fool. 🙂 But no, we don’t say don’t ever use an outside tool — we say don’t rely on that tool to the exclusion of developing your own assets. To use your example, use Facebook, but make sure you’ve also got a site on your own domain and an email list you control, so if Facebook does something hinky you don’t lose your entire marketing plan.

      Reply
  8. Adam says

    February 17, 2011 at 12:21 PM

    Sorry, I must be missed something, where is that show that is talking about owning your own neighborhood?

    Reply
    • Janet says

      February 17, 2011 at 9:40 PM

      Adam, “owning your own neighborhood” means simply do it yourself – then you don’t have to give Groupon 50% of what you take in!

      Try http://www.wildfireapp.com – this is a do-it-yourself Groupon that any business can place right onto their Facebook Page and have their own daily deals or weekly deals!

      Reply
      • Adam says

        February 17, 2011 at 10:19 PM

        Thanks. I will check this one out.

        Reply
  9. Hector Cuevas says

    February 17, 2011 at 12:23 PM

    Question.. I understand that discounting devalues your product, so when you say, “give your first customers the best deal” does that mean a cheaper price, fast action bonuses? .. The reason I ask is because I’m planning to launch and then increase the price after a week, I just don’t want to devalue my product in the process..

    Great episode by the way..

    Reply
    • Sonia Simone says

      February 17, 2011 at 12:34 PM

      Hector, I don’t think that devalues … *if* you don’t go back and offer the lower price again every time you want some sales. It can definitely mean cheaper price (and/or the fast action bonuses) for the launch, just don’t trot them out 6 times a year or you’re going to train your customers to just wait for a sale.

      Reply
      • Hector Cuevas says

        February 17, 2011 at 12:43 PM

        Got it.. thanks Sonia. You’re the best!

        Reply
      • Theresa Delgado says

        March 23, 2011 at 6:16 PM

        “…you’re going to train your customers to just wait for a sale”, I’ve heard you all talk about that before Sonia and I just got it!

        I found myself waiting for a merchant to run their “super discount sale” and now I won’t buy anything – because I know the ‘sale’ will eventually come around. I’m officially trained.

        Thank for another great show – Theresa

        Reply
  10. Johnny says

    February 17, 2011 at 1:35 PM

    I am reminded of the saying in the movie, The Incredibles, where one guy turns to another and says, “There’s no school, like the old school.” It does seem like hyper-local IS the wild west and we’re just now seeing the possibilities with texting.

    Reply
  11. Janet says

    February 17, 2011 at 9:37 PM

    I am sorry to say this but the podcast missed the biggest reason to NOT use Groupon and here it is:

    Groupon requires merchants to give at least 50% off and then takes 50% of what is sold!

    That leaves the merchant with about 25% of the original value of the deal!

    How many businesses can afford to do that without losing money?

    That’s why many of the businesses who do Groupon are service oriented: dance classes, yoga classes, cooking classes, massage therapists, dentists, chiropractors … but also restaurants but they will give $10 off $20 worth of food KNOWING the consumer has to spend more than $20 to eat there!!!

    Reply
    • Brian Clark says

      February 17, 2011 at 10:39 PM

      Janet, you’re right. We talked about how unprofitable it is, but didn’t give the numbers.

      Reply
      • Janet says

        February 17, 2011 at 11:28 PM

        By the way Brian, here’s a great opportunity for me to tell you how much I love Copyblogger and how much information and inspiration I derive from it. My favorite post (and I’ll bet it is the favorite of many of your readers): The Cowardly Lion’s Guide to Conquering Your Entrepreneurial Fears. (Archives Jan. 2011). Thanks so much for all the great writing.

        Reply
    • Rupert Williams says

      February 21, 2011 at 3:50 PM

      First of all I am not advocating a daily deal site for all merchants. But the purpose of these sites is to drive one time foot traffic. This is a new customer aquisition strategy and should be filed under a marketing expense.

      I hear this all the time about Gpon and the truth is there are a lot of sites out there that offer the same service and the split is not always 50 percent. But even businesses getting only 25% back as you put it. Is a valuable service that allows merchants to advertise their biz with no upfront costs. I’m not sure why no one ever talks about this.

      Try advertising on TV, Radio, or Print and get the same ROI for your business. I don’t disagree that daily deals aren’t for everyone. But one day one off deals are acutally more powerful than you might think.

      Reply
      • Brian Clark says

        February 21, 2011 at 3:55 PM

        If people actually come back, yes, this type of deal promotion can be effective. I even pointed out several ways to do that in the show.

        But is it more powerful to have the relationship directly with people you offer deals to than by farming it out to an intermediary like Groupon?

        Yes, it is. And that was the point of the entire discussion.

        Reply
        • Janet says

          February 21, 2011 at 4:51 PM

          Groupon and the others are a fabulous opportunity for people to get more facebook friends, more hits to their websites, more twitter followers, more emails, more money in their cash registers, more people to even know they exist … but the one thing that is lacking is a LANDING PAGE!!!

          All these advertisers need to have a landing page with an opt in form so that everyone who lands there from a Groupon deal is invited to opt in for more specials and deals directly from the restaurant or whichever business it is!

          Now THAT would ensure that many of the Groupon groupies come back!

          Reply
          • Annette says

            February 23, 2011 at 8:59 AM

            I have been in direct mail print advertising for 15 years. Basically I sell advertising for a coupon magazine. And things are progressively going downhill on a daily basis. Discounts, no matter how much they are should be given out carefully. If too much is given away it can devastate a business. Groupon is only thinking about their bottom line and have no concern for the advertiser. Yes this will build traffic but how is it going to impact the business. Can their staff handle the extra traffic? Do they have enough product to give away? Are they receiving enough profit form groupon to cover their costs? Of course groupon never talks about these things and some business’ have gone out of business because of it. Bottom line is the discount should work for the business and not the consumer. It has to be attractive to the consumer but it should not in any way hurt the business. It’s just not worth it.

            I would be interested if anyone out there knows exactly how groupon deals are sold. Is it all telemarketing or do they have salespeople out on the streets?

            They say they have over 3,000 salespeople. I would like to know how that works, how they are paid, managed, employees or independant contractors etc… any info would be appreciated.

  12. Elise says

    February 19, 2011 at 3:49 PM

    I have a question a little left of field but it’s really got me stumped. I’ve just started at a home loan company and I’m revamping their website, content and marketing but I’m really having trouble with where to start.

    They have virtually zero traffic right now and now new clients are coming in. My thoughts are similar to the real estate examples in the podcast – providing guides for each buyer type e.g first home buyer etc. My main problem is that my boss keeps telling me “we’re just selling money like everyone else”. I’m really trying to find where they add value with service etc but I’m really struggling ….

    I was also thinking creating a learning center (yes I’m a teaching sells student) which would be available only to our clients with topics about becoming a property investor etc (so we can get the first home buyers in and keep them). The problem is, as lenders they can’t ‘advise’ on anything but lending!

    This is really doing my head in – how do I get around this and how to I get the information out of them?

    They are also thinking of putting an offer on a groupon style site with a low interest rate but I don’t see how this would work as I really don’t think people make big decisions like that with a time restriction … or am I wrong?

    Reply
  13. Martyn Chamberlin says

    February 19, 2011 at 7:33 PM

    “I’m not sure how we ended up having a Valentine’s week at Copyblogger. I think it’s because of that pink-haired female that seems to run the blog nowadays.”

    Haha I love it. It’s been a good week.

    It’s taken me a long time to figure out why I like this podcast so much. I’ve finally figured it out. When you’re writing your copy, you spend tons of time getting it immaculate – which is a great idea, of course. But when you record the podcast, it’s much harder to polish it. I know, you guys sometimes stop and resume to cut the fat, but it’s still quite spontaneous even though you prepare beforehand.

    In other words, lots of cool nuggets “leak out” that make it super awesome to listen to. Kind of like being invited to lunch with Steve Jobs.

    So about Groupon…

    Brian, if I offered you $6 billion for Copyblogger, would you accept?

    Reply
  14. Martin H. Normark says

    February 24, 2011 at 3:44 AM

    I’m glad to hear that more and more people agree on discount being the worst marketing effort!

    In order for local businesses to beat Groupon, I think they need some local guidance. Every city should have their own “Go online” initiative, that suits their needs. But that’s easier said than done.

    There should be great possibilities for doing marketing consulting in your local area. I’m sure any local business wants to extend their reach online, but they simply can’t figure out how to do it…

    Reply
  15. Jeff Simpson says

    February 24, 2011 at 9:40 PM

    I thought the commercials were hilarious.

    Reply
  16. Dorian says

    March 1, 2011 at 10:42 PM

    Terrific episode! I happened upon this post while searching for something else – got distracted – love Copyblogger…

    So, I live in a smallish Texas town, and I’ve just launched a website (built on Genesis, of course) that incorporates an online business directory, in which businesses can list discounts if they’d like, or just list themselves. The website is intended to be a one-stop-shop for information about local family events, but I’m also trying a discount card program – people can come check out the current discounts on the website, and show their card when at the business to get the current discount. My thought is that this is a place where small – SMALL businesses, like a guy with a lawnmower and a dream – can get the word out about themselves for not a lot of money.

    I realize from listening to the podcast (well, I realized this already) that I didn’t just invent this radical new idea by myself, but I am hoping to implement this in a way that truly does benefit businesses.

    I’m using OIO Publisher to handle the links in the directory, and I think that should allow me OR the business owner to modify the text of the directory listing. I may be wrong about that, as far as letting the business owner modify the listing after the fact – still learning. But to me, that would give the business owner the flexibility if a particular offer isn’t working – or is working TOO well – to modify it before it really gets out of hand, like the example of a horde of Grouponites descending upon a restaurant all on the same day.

    I believe that for a program to be helpful for small, local businesses, it has to be tied to a local publisher who is invested in both the success of the businesses and the needs of the customer base.

    Anyway, if anyone out there in Copyblogger combox land wants to take a look at my site and give me feedback, you can reach the site via clicking on my name.

    Reply
  17. collage a dating says

    October 20, 2011 at 4:44 PM

    Hey there – I must say, I am impressed with your website. I had no trouble navigating through all the tabs and the info was very simple to access. I found what I needed in no time at all. Pretty awesome.

    Reply

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