Friday, September 7, 2012

Google Offers (Beta) Hits the Worldwide Web starting in Portland

With the popularity of daily deals and coupons gaining, why wouldn't Google jump on this fast challenging train? Living collective and Groupon have come to be immensely favorite tools in the savvy shopper's tool belt by contribution discounts and deals to services, events and favorite locations in your area, and now Google is trying their hand at it with their Google Offers (beta version). Currently they are testing only in Portland, but have plans to soon advance to New York City, Oakland/East Bay, and San Francisco.

While Google undoubtedly isn't primary in this recent venture, their dedication to it and efforts undoubtedly make up for the lacking originality. So far, they have featured allowance offers for coffee, pool halls, restaurants, tanning, and a brewery tour. They offer a set estimate of deals that can be purchased for their offer, and so far have been pretty thriving with the irregularity of the tanning and pool hall deals. The generously discounted deals offered on needed services prove to do the best with consumers, which is possibly why the tanning salon allowance failed. With the tanning salon allowance a 75% price cut was offered, but it was offered on a fake price. The tanning salon undoubtedly offered good deals in-store!

Google is undoubtedly aggressively marketing its local services in Portland. They have reportedly spent an estimated million dollars in promoting their Google Places service, and road teams have been seen in the area promoting businesses to join Google Places and providing Nfc stickers for store window placement. They have also hosted a estimate of events recently in Portland like some concerts in which they gave out tickets at local businesses and have been giving away large amounts of Google branded gear. Google is surely proving that they aren't scared of a slight face to face and interactive marketing.

When Google Offers comes to your area, though, should you use it and will it offer any benefits over Groupon or Living Social? Let's take a look at some of the differences that Google Offers features:

- Google is doing a slight good about providing data on the business and services by featuring a 360 degree interior view of the business. Groupon and Living collective do not offer this, but they do offer written (and often witty) detail about the business and services. Google recently bought Groupon so this could be integrated into the Google Offers measure of their business.

- Google does not offer very undoubtedly accessible customer service. You have to enter your estimate in and ask a call back. Whereas with Groupon, there is a toll free estimate you can call anytime you require assistance.

- Google pays their merchants quicker, about 80% of the merchant's share within four days of the deal. Groupon, for instance, pays one-third within the first five days, the next third within the first thirty days, and the final third within the first sixty days.

In the end, Google Offers is surely an up and arrival assistance to be watched closely, but they have a ways to go in perfecting their system and truly bringing something important to the buyer and merchant table. Don't count them out yet.

basics Google Offers (Beta) Hits the Worldwide Web starting in Portland basics


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