Bump in the Road...
March 29, 2011
Noreen YoungCategories: From the Field
I told you all I would be honest and so I am sharing with you what my Groupon is doing now. Still have met the nicest ladies almost all in their 30's. They are little couponistas, fashionistas and savvy. They want to have the service and spend too!
My only kink is three called with cancellations on Saturday. I was so looking forward to this party of three. We called and confirmed the day before they called and left a message on our voice mail that night and said "Yes, they too are looking forward to it." Unfortunatley, the other two did not want to come without the third one....so we LOST income for 1/2 day. It was tough.
Although we have a wait list in case someone cancels,most of the time you really can't get people to come on such short notice. Depending on where they live is a factor too! We tried.
The deal offered has terms that are spelled out on their voucher.
24 hour cancellation notice or Groupon is forfeited
Subject to availability.Not valid with other offers.
When they called to cancel they said they'd like to rebook. Not really giving thought to the voucher. They left a mesage on our voice mail.
So that is where we stand from Saturday. Its a delicate professional situation. We do want new blood and business and understand things do happen BUT...
By the way, the reason I may sound so disappointed is in all my years of business this has only happened a handful of times. Like hardly ever bounced bad checks and charges for us. We are lucky.
YOUR advice and take on this my fellow professionals?
I hope you've had a chance to read my spotlight. I so enjoyed the interview and sharing my beauty filled life with you!
Short Bio
Noreen is a celebrity makeup artist, educator and Wellness reporter for a Morning show on WJXT-TV in Florida. She also owns a Makeup Studio and Skin Suite Spa and has a website dedicated to beauty professionals, Noreen Young Pro.
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Comments
Tommie Burns replied on Permalink
I agree with all the comments and have had the same experience with our Groupon deal. It's a nightmare to try and deal with the clients who don't read the fine print, to be able to get them into the business in a timely manner (everyone wants it now), and to do it in such a way that your existing clients still get great customer service and are able to get in for their appointments as well. There is a higher risk with the Groupon clientele for receiving negative reviews if you aren't able to accommodate them as they would like.
One thing that has helped for last minute cancellations is that for new clients we require a credit card to be put on file at the time we set up the appointment. We inform them that we have a 24 hour cancellation policy and a $50 fee will be charged if they don't give 24 hours notice or they don't show for their appointment. If this does occur, they can make another appointment and if they decide to purchase, the $50 is applied toward their purchase. Since Groupon clients already paid their money to Groupon we will apply the $50 to a future purchase. It does weed out anyone who is not serious about setting up an appointment and it makes people a little more accountable for the time they've booked. Yes we do get clients who give us incorrect card information and then they don't show for their appointment . . . .but it reduces the number of cancellations and no shows by about half.
Renee replied on Permalink
Interesting to hear about your experiences.
We haven't used Groupon or any similar services yet as we are in a remote area (never bothered to check if they are interested in covering remote areas I have to admit).
What do you do if people don't respect your rules? My take would be that as they get a great deal they have to accept the rules as printed on there. And if they don't give enough notice the voucher is "used".
I know that this will upset some clients, but I also see it as a way of educating them. Because if they always get away with not respecting the rules they will never learn it ...
Tonya replied on Permalink
Noreen, sorry to hear you're going through this too! It can't be a coincidence. I ran my first (and likely last) Groupon deal in January. I too get last minute cancellations and no-shows. I have found a handful of great new clients through this deal, but for the most part the clients I am attracting from Groupon only seem interested in getting the deep discount. Two actually told me that they shop around for massage and spa services using Groupon. They admitted that although they loved the services I provided they would most likely not return unless I offered the same deep discount every time! Can you imagine? Also, the average Groupon client that I get does not even bother to read the voucher's fine print and apparently don't respect policies regulating use of the coupons. I put a special page up on my site that deals with FAQs for the Groupon Deal I did. I've pointed clients to the page and they still call me ten times with the same questions that are already answered on the site! They want the deep discount plus they want to be able to upgrade free of charge to anything else on my menu, book their appointments without heeding the few blackout dates I have, AND have their service performed side by side in the same room as their spouse/friend etc lol. This was certainly a costly lesson for me to learn.
Jane replied on Permalink
Indeed agreed, we tried with the same result, Group on were very aggressive at demanding the required discount, we had a huge response rate with over 300 new customers of which about 50% cancelled and changed their appointments up until the last day of the deal, showed up at peak times not telling us in advance and effectively cashing in on a great deal, out of the 300 we would be lucky to retain 5% given the client profile.
Good lesson to learn, however the pros - I would recommend it to the spa that has really low seasons, make sure the deal still covers you costs, adjust it as needed could even advertise certain treatments where you have extra professional supplies and need to move these - group on deals only, let these clients fill the down time, be realistic do not expect them back until the next deal. Be smart and realistic and it could fill a well needed gap between season shifts.
L replied on Permalink
I am happy to do even a FREE service to give a new client the chance to try us out, but the GROUPON client is a coupon client overall. Most that bought our Mani/Pedi deal admitted that the rarely or never have their nails done! So, as an inexperienced nail client they are super picky about every little thing and then don't tip. (It is only a special occassion for them and they don't really plan to come back or get any other service/products.) Some buy 2-4 and want to bring their friends all at the same time (bridal party, etc) which is fine, but we spend 4+ hours on their group and NO TIP!!! My workers are taking a pay cut on these services and I am basically paying to have the client come in. The least they could do is respect the worker and tip her. geez.
Tommie Burns replied on Permalink
I agree with all the comments and have had the same experience with our Groupon deal. It's a nightmare to try and deal with the clients who don't read the fine print, to be able to get them into the business in a timely manner (everyone wants it now), and to do it in such a way that your existing clients still get great customer service and are able to get in for their appointments as well. There is a higher risk with the Groupon clientele for receiving negative reviews if you aren't able to accommodate them as they would like.
One thing that has helped for last minute cancellations is that for new clients we require a credit card to be put on file at the time we set up the appointment. We inform them that we have a 24 hour cancellation policy and a $50 fee will be charged if they don't give 24 hours notice or they don't show for their appointment. If this does occur, they can make another appointment and if they decide to purchase, the $50 is applied toward their purchase. Since Groupon clients already paid their money to Groupon we will apply the $50 to a future purchase. It does weed out anyone who is not serious about setting up an appointment and it makes people a little more accountable for the time they've booked. Yes we do get clients who give us incorrect card information and then they don't show for their appointment . . . .but it reduces the number of cancellations and no shows by about half.
Marie replied on Permalink
How about we all just STOP doing Groupons. There are so many other ways to get new clients! Charity events, cross-promote within client database, facebook, twitter, referrals an on and on. How many of us have to be burned by the bad deal Groupon offers before we wise up?