Thursday, 02 June 2011 13:58
Groupon & Expedia Team Up
Groupon, a deal-of-the-day web site, has teamed up with Expedia to offer travel deals. The partnership will be known as Groupon Getaways. The offers will be available to customers in the United States and Canada, with plans to expand to other countries. It is expected that prices will be similar to other offers on Groupon's site, with "around 50 percent off retail rates found at other online travel sites," according to a press release. Deals will also only be available for a limited time.
The Verdict
If Groupon and Expedia (who has an inventory of 135,000 hotels worldwide) can offer compelling deals this partnership will be good for all travelers. Adding competition to the discount sales segment of the travel industry will benefit everyone, as existing sites, such as Hotwire, Jetsetter, SniqueAway and Vacationist , will have to work harder to close the deal. It's also a great move for Groupon as they continue to try and dominate the deal-of-the-day sector with new rivals such as Google Offers starting up.
Deal-of-the-Day & Travel Trends
New deal-of-the-day sites seem like they are popping up on a daily basis. There are now too many deal sites, and many will likely close or merge in the next year. Managing all of these subscriptions and checking for the deals before they expire is now a time consuming task. Deal aggregator newsletters and sites are really the only way to effectively monitor all of the deals. Also, the quality of deals continues to degrade as everyone tries to get a piece of the pie.
In order to survive, deal-of-the-day sites need to evolve. Groupon Now is a great example of this. It operates around deals that you can take advantage of right away by pushing deals to your phone based on your current location. This could be an extremely powerful tool when combined with travel deals. When you are traveling you are less familiar with your surroundings and would more likely take advantage of a deal that is sent to you based on where you are standing. It will also likely work for businesses who are not as well known to tourists. Imagine getting a deal for a lesser known museum in the area or a great new local attraction off the beaten path.
The Bottom Line
Groupon isn't the first to start getting in to the travel sector, however the partnership between them and Expedia is very significant and will likely cause competitors to react. This is great news for travelers looking to cut down on their costs as other expenses continue to rise.
