Holy Cow...My Groupon Letter Worked!!!

by mrcouchpotato

Posted: 13 years ago 28 replies

OFFLINE MARKETING

I've recently been looking at the Groupon deals and choosing ones that would be a good match to my new SMS Text Marketing service. So two days ago I sent out three letters to local businesses that went something like this...

Dear Mr./Mrs. Business Owner Name,

I saw that you are using Groupon to bring new customers into your restaurant...and by looking at your page, "The deal is on".

Well congratulations.

Soon you'll start seeing an increase in sales while customers come in to redeem their coupons. But have you thought about what to do with them after they leave? Do you have a way to get them to return for more?

I know you're spending a lot of money with Groupon by discounting your food and it would be a shame if you were never to see those coupon customers again.

Well, I can help you bring them back. I can help you turn a loss leader into even more sales and more profits.

If you're interested, give me a call and I'll stop by your restaurant and show you how. The only obligation is a few minutes of your time.

I hope to hear from you soon.

Mike Martin

I also printed out their Groupon Ad and included it with the letter.

Well today I get a phone call from the owner of a restaurant who I sent a letter to and he set up an appointment with me on Monday. How cool is that?

Three letters....one appointment (so far). I like those stats. Now I just have to dazzle the guy with how great Text Marketing is and get him to sign up.

Today I sent another letter to a seafood restaurant who advertised with LivingSocial. Hopefully I'll get a call from them (and the other two previous letters too).

So if you're offering any kind of offline service, definitely use Groupon and LivingSocial to hand you leads for free and send them a letter. It may work for you too.

Mike

#cowmy #groupon #holy #letter #worked

Doran Peck 13 years ago

Very cool Mike....heading over to take a closer look at groupon and livingsocial now.
- Thanks
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redlegrich

13 years ago

In this day and age every darn restaurant and bar (and maybe the smarter fast food guys) should try to get their customers email and phone number. It's stunning how few establishments do this, and it is so easy! Good luck, this is a really excellent plan.

Thanks
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Doran Peck

13 years ago

Originally Posted by redlegrich

Not only that but incorporate ways to collect as much data about them as possible.

some people use surveys...but they ask the same generic questions.

If you sat a survey on a table they would get filled out while they wait....instead of asking "how would you rate our sevice"....ask..what is your favorite meal on the menu?"

You want questions that can be turned into hooks to lure them back in again and again.

Aside from the obvious usefullness to email, texting etc....Direct Mail benefits big time here too. Alot of print shops with digital printers can produce highly personalized postcards at incredible speed using variable data technology.
(during the print process, a software will pull text data AND graphical data from a database, or excel sheet and place them in the layout as instructed.

So as a general rule you should be setting your customers up with systems to collect as much as humanly possible about their clients. I don't have to explain the obvious benefits of this.

[ 3 ] Thanks
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thattori 13 years ago

Mike;
First, congraduation on your relentless actions and it's finally paid-off.
Great share on your letter, looking forward to hear more success from you.
all the best
- Thanks
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robitn4

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Doran Peck

Do shortcode-only SMS providers allow you to sign up for multiple keywords on one shortcode? That's a cool feature of longcodes - no (or few) limitations on campaign design. A restaurant owner ought to be able have a keyword for each item on his menu (IMHO.)

Thanks

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scotth 13 years ago

Mike,

Excellent! Thanks for sharing that is great content!

ScottH
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redlegrich 13 years ago

Doran, don't forget to also put QR codes in those mailers ;-) Although I suspect you already do!

Adding QR codes to the mix in bars and restaurants is also a great tool as well. They can scan for a deal and then you can capture their phone number.

It's amazing how much can be done and at such little cost and high ROI.
- [ 1 ] Thanks
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- anistars 13 years ago
  
  Great job! Very creative!
  
  Thanks
  
  Signature
  
  Sample Marketing Plan
  
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Mark Riddle 13 years ago

Mike,

Purchase Certificate sites are great, you already know they are looking for business AND they are comfortable with the concept of online marketing.

Business owners are looking for something that works.

Online and in store promotion to current customers is one of the fastest ways to add real money in the bank profits.

You'll become their go to person with all their marketing / business needs very quickly!

ACTION IS THE KEY!

Mark Riddle
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jasonthewebmaster Banned 13 years ago

nice dude! Thanks for sharing this.
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- Luke Bishop 13 years ago
  
  Well done there!
  
  Thanks
  
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whyu76 13 years ago

Hi Mike,

Thanks for sharing this technique.
- Thanks
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Jagged 13 years ago

Nice job Mike....congrat's,

Don't stop at just sms text campaigns.....your letter can be used for other local marketing features with little / no modifications, like email marketing, lead capture, social network marketing, etc...

~Ken
- Thanks
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Warrior AllStars 13 years ago

Great Post Mike after reading your letter , its crafted masterfully in such a way that its not surprising that it generated a response... thats not just send out a direct mail peioce, thats "Marketing".
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redcell1 13 years ago

I like this alot, I will surely be using this and will be posting my results as well
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Just here to see the shenanigans.
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- clubrrr 13 years ago
  
  thank you!! I am very glad to see this, I wonder if you work for cold calling?
  How do u price your sms services?
  Again, thanks!
  
  Thanks
  
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winjo2280 13 years ago

Mike,

Thank you so much for sharing your letter. I was in the process of creating one myself but just didn't know how to word it. Your letter helped me fill in the blanks.

Do you know where I can get sample contract? I just need a base format that I can make changes to.

I'm very excited about mobile marketing and can't wait to get it going.

Winnie
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- MarthaD. 13 years ago
  
  Great job Mike!! Congratulations and thanks for sharing your approach!
  Nice job!!!
  
  Thanks
  
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  MarthaD.
  
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Jake Gray 13 years ago

It's a great way for leads actually.

After reading this, I'd recommend taking action so
you can start seeing how powerful this truly is.
- Thanks
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Adrian John 13 years ago

Great share this is.The letter it's very good and should get you some appointments.
Soon even Groupon clients will be overwhelmed with these offers.
What i suggest is to make the letter unique, your own, just to stand out form the crowd.
That's the only way to get noticed.
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tdorland 13 years ago

Mike, that's a hell of an idea. I've been taking action in only one way; cold calling. It's gotten me appts, but I love this approach. Anyone who calls you 1st, has to be a hotter lead than someone you cold call.

2 questions:
1. did you put the letter you sent on letterhead?
2. did you send it out in a hand written envelope?

also, I'd love to hear how you're getting the business owner's name. I would just call the business and ask, but that doesn't always work...

Thanks in advance
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Bryan Douglas 13 years ago

Very good letter. I was actually just tossing around a marketing plan for locals in the area and was planning on doing some good old cold-calling.

After reading your letter, I think a letter like this with a follow up maybe a more productive approach than what I was initially planning on doing.

Very nice and creative! Thanks for sharing!

I'll let you know my results.
- Thanks
- 1 reply
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- scarab 13 years ago
  
  Very cool Mike, I am always glad to hear a success story.
  
  Thanks
  
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affirmwealth 13 years ago

Please excuse my ignorance, but how do you get the business owner's name and contact info from Groupon and Living Social?
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- 1 reply
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- Adrian John 13 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by affirmwealth
  
  Please excuse my ignorance, but how do you get the business owner's name and contact info from Groupon and Living Social?
  
  Find out the business name and then go to this site and do a simple search for it:
  
  Code:
  
  http://www.manta.com/
  
  It's very useful.
  Enjoy
  
  [ 1 ] Thanks
  
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  ARE YOU A CONSULTANT? Do you have clients who could use MORE LEADS?
  Get them a MOBILE WEBSITE PLATFORM built to stay up with their clients habits.
  More than 50% of their customers buys from their mobile devices now!
  
  CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO
  
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TriWin 13 years ago

Very nice work Mike, congrats, and I'm going to have pass manta off to our sales people. Thanks for the tip.
- Thanks
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Chris Rivers 13 years ago

Hey Guys,

I just came across this book from one of the consultants that I follow.

The information in it is absolutely GREAT when it comes to understanding how Groupon works and why it doesn't work for many business owners and even many customers.

Title: " Groupon: You Can't Afford It--Why Deep Discounts...
With the information within this book, you could build a pretty compelling and persuasive case for business owners who are using Groupon to switch over to more profitable strategies.

Chris
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FuturePrinceofPrint 13 years ago

A groupon letter really worked? Wow, that's amazing
- Thanks
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Holy Cow...My Groupon Letter Worked!!!

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