What are your Favorite Deal Sites? Here are a few of mine...

I was asked by a local tv station for an interview about the most popular deal sites on Facebook and Twitter, here is a list of a few of my favorites, please share your favs on the comments below :)

Facebook.com/Groupon

Facebook.com/LivingSocial

Facebook.com/CouponDivasUSA

Facebook.com/DellDeals

Facebook.com/CouponsCom

Facebook.com/SlickDeals

Facebook Deals (in test markets Atlanta, Austin, Dallas, San Diego and San Francisco)

WPTV Deal of the Day

Twitter Deal Sites:

@Woot

@JetBlueCheeps

@DellOutlet

@AmazonDeals

@CheapTweet

@DealsPlus

@MomsWhoSave

@DealsSouthFL

@SoFlMommyDeals

@flatraveldeals

Please list your favorite deal sites in the comments below!

Next On The IPO Craze- Groupon

It’s happened and I’m sticking on topic, Groupon has filed for its IPO to raise $750 million. With 83 million email subscribers, the company sold 30 million coupons last year and already 28 million in 2011. Does anyone else see another Dot Com boom coming? Investment banks are going to be looking to the Internet community again the next big idea to take public and make money. Every is just waiting for Facebook to see what they are doing, but in the meantime, we are going to watch many companies starting to trade on the different stock markets. Early investors will make money I’m sure, but buyer beware, it could be only a matter of time that things come crashing like they did.

Facebook vs. Groupon vs. LivingSocial

Today, in five test markets, Facebook will be launching, Facebook Deals, the same concept as Groupon with up to 50% off eateries, products, services and more. Atlanta, Austin, Dallas, San Diego and San Francisco will be the first to try this. The company kills in comparison with over 500 million people, to Groupon’s 70 million people and 28 million for LivingSocial.

"We're building a product that is social from the ground up," says Emily White, director of local for Facebook. "All of these deals are things you want to do with friends, so no teeth whitening, but yes to river rafting."

When a user signs on, clicking on the offers will bring up a list of the available offers. On Facebook, users will be able to do more with it though. They can purchase the deal, “like” the offer or recommend it to other friends all through a private message. It also has a great chance to become viral as when the person purchases a deal it will show up in their news feed.

Jump on the Social Coupon Band Wagon

First, we had Groupon, then came Living Social and now Facebook is jumping into the one-day deal social coupon business. According to an article on Bloomberg.com, Facebook is planning to test the coupon idea in order to increase ad revenues & engage local businesses. The test will launch in five select cities including Austin, Atlanta, San Francisco, San Diego & Dallas.

Facebook will employ it's own staff to sell the deals to local businesses and offer coupons via partners like ReachLocal, GiltCity, homerun.com and PopSugar City. The service will expand the Facebook Deals functionality that is already built into Places. It's still not clear if Facebook will employ a minimum number of purchasers before offering the deal yet. The current strategy according to Emily White, Facebook's Director of Local Operations, will be to focus on those offers that users are inclined to do with friends - dining, concerts and outdoor activities.

Maybe that part in the movie where Zuckerberg stole someone else's business idea isn't so far-fetched after all? Or maybe it's like everything else on the world wide web, find a business model that works and make it better. Who wouldn't want to find a way to get on the action in an industry that is expected to reach $3.73 billion by 2015?

To Groupon or Not to Groupon, That Is the Question

Many merchants are contemplating whether to take the dive and offer a "deal of the day" on Groupon. There has been talk lately on whether Groupon is valuable (price and service wise) for merchants to post deep discounts on their services and not know how many penny-pinching Americans will buy that deal.

The lure of Groupon is two-fold: it helps businesses gain new customers and it is the 'guilty pleasure' email that consumers like to open daily. I know I get surprised every morning when a different restaurant offers an enticing meal at a very low price--40 or 50 percent off the original mark-up. It is the largest daily deal site and, according to Forbes, is the fastest growing company ever. People enjoy the social media aspect of Groupon by sharing the deals with their friends and colleagues on Twitter, Facebook, and by email. The question lies--is it feasible and profit-worthy for a business to offer their "deal of the day" on Groupon?

Let's take a look at the numbers. First off, Groupon has a lot of power. With more than 23 million total US subscribers in over 150 US cities and 22 countries, Groupon reaches a lot of deal hungry people. Groupon not only offers steep discounts on spa services, hotel stays, and outdoor adventures; but also keeps part of the revenue raised by these coupons. In 2011, Groupon's sales may reach more than $500 million. If that's not enough, their witty copy and call to action to buy now entices users to click the purchase button.

Groupon Founder Andrew Mason has struck gold with this easy-to-use platform.

There has been some flack from companies using the Groupon platform. Most, though, are user error when the merchant did not staff enough employees to handle the influx of coupon purchases. Want to know the good, bad, and the ugly of Groupon? Go to the source at grouponworks.com.

What's next for Groupon? Groupon Stores and the Deal Feed! See more here.

How has your experience been with Groupon? Share it in the comments here!