Food & Drink Coupons: The Most Regretted Deal Site Purchases

Everyone knows that daily deals websites have sprung up like coupon-touting kudzu over the past few years. And many know that some of the coupons they tout don't really offer good values. As Bloomberg's Ryan Sutton, perhaps the most vociferous critic of online deals, told the Huffington Post in July, "Lower prices and 'good deals' won't solve the problems of a bad restaurant."

But now, it seems customers are starting to catch on to the fact that they aren't getting their money's worth. Tracy Duryee of All Things D writes that 41% of the deals on Lifesta, a website that lets customers offload unwanted online coupons, are for food and drink. This is significantly more than any other category, including health and beauty, which Groupon has said is their biggest. This indicates that customers are likely to be taken in by the delicious-sounding copy on discounts at restaurants and bars -- only to regret their purchase later, maybe after their hunger subsides.

The pervasiveness of restaurant deal remorse is a good argument for a shift away from buying meals in advance and toward on-the-go discounting. Increasingly, as HuffPost Food wrote in late July, deals sites are offering super-limited-time offers that are advertised in a specific geographic area. Such deals, which are often redeemed on cell phones, let customers shorten the limbo between shelling out money and getting food, decreasing the chances that they'll have second thoughts on their purchase.

Comments

[charko11n]

02:44 PM on 09/30/2011

I live in the NYC metro area. Is it just my area,summer blahs, or do you think extreme coupons have destroyed getting good coupons?

[DanInAustin]

04:08 PM on 08/31/2011

The only Groupon deal I've ever used was $15 of eBay credit for $10. I was just bummed that they'd only sell me one!

[Robyn Twango]

07:54 PM on 08/30/2011

I don't use any of those sites, but I am the gm of a place in houston. One of my regulars called me about 2 weeks ago to ask if we had a deal on one of those type of sites. We didn't. Thank goodness he called us before purchasing as he was going to spend $75 for a $150 gift card that we would not have honored. Before spending your money, please call the restaurant and verify.

[shantiquax]

03:09 PM on 08/30/2011

I wish they would offer take-out. I learned my lesson after letting half a dozen groupons expire because I couldn't coordinate dinner for two. I like going to restaurants on my own, but it's really not easy ordering $40.00 worth of food without feeling like a wee piggie, and explaining that the extra entree will be doggie-bagged. There, I worked 2 cutsie animal references into one sentence! See what you've done, Groupon! BTW, Groupon never gives you flack about getting credit for an expired coupon. Living Social makes you feel like a pariah - I actually got a response that started out: "we'll do it for you this time, as a favor...." Batardes!

[whateverrr]

02:27 PM on 08/30/2011

I got a Groupon for a local butcher shop. $25 for $50 for prime meat. How can I go wrong? Well, my $50 got me two ribeye steaks about 3/4 inch thick. Not a good deal.

Living Social had a coupon for $20 for $60 worth of food (drinks included). It was amazing. Got to read the fine print and you can decide if it is a good deal or not.

[cedy]

03:48 PM on 08/30/2011

so you paid the 50 bucks and not the 25?

[DanInAustin]

04:19 PM on 08/31/2011

Were the steaks good?

[Redhohoho]

12:37 PM on 08/30/2011

I use several of these sites all the time and have never been unhappy. I usually only buy them for restaurants I know of or if I don't them I make sure to check out the restaurant website and Yelp. I then read the reviews on Yelp and make an educated decision. Not that hard to figure out.

As for restaurant.com they place all the restictions right up front for you to see before you buy. If you don't look at the restrictions then that is only one person's fault... your own.

[rosey7]

12:27 PM on 08/30/2011

I bought a meal coupon from Travel Zoo for a Thai restaurant I'd never been to but had good reviews. One is instructed to give the coupon to the person at the front. My glass of wine became a 1/3rd glass of wine, the appetizers were fine but the entree was small and tasteless. The restaurant then put a Travel Zoo tax on the bill of 10% and an 18% tip . I complained to Travel Zoo and was told I'd hear back from a manager but never did. Ended up paying the original 45.00 plus a "user" Travel ZOO tax and the tip was figured on the original price of the dinner- they valued at 110.00 and the sales tax was figured on regular price, not the discounted dinner. My thought is that most restaurant coupons are being given as gifts and mostly remain un used. The sour look on the person seating us and then on our server's face said it all.We were actually using something I bought.

[markscoular]

12:46 PM on 08/30/2011

you should complain to the better business bureau. you got ripped off and in the case of the tax, defrauded. I hope you yelped the restaurant

[jeb50]

01:15 PM on 08/30/2011

Better still is your state's AG.

[DanInAustin]

04:18 PM on 08/31/2011

The BBB is not a regulatory agency. They aren't even a consumer-rights organization. They're simply a logo that businesses get to put on their wall if they pay a fee and agree to a "self-regulation" policy.

[brickoven35]

02:37 PM on 08/30/2011

Call the owner of the restaurant---

[marianproletarian]

11:51 AM on 08/30/2011

Why would anyone buy a coupon for a restaurant they have never been to or at least read reviews on? Silly.

[grod805]

05:50 PM on 08/30/2011

Its really easy now with yelp to know if the restaurant is right for them. The only problem I have is that I don't spend them until the week before it expires but that's my fault not anyone else's.

[Pod-gers]

11:49 AM on 08/30/2011

Best stay with Dealfind.

[socalcde]

11:23 AM on 08/30/2011

Groupon is dead. Businesses have already figured out that only Groupon profits from their coupons. A better way for restaurants to bring in customers is to offer deals via tweeting directly to customers themselves.

[brickoven35]

12:31 PM on 08/30/2011

Groupon IS more expensive than many other social media coupons.. But I would not say they are dead. My restaurant is currently enrolled in the GrouponNow program and we have definitely benefited from it. This is a new program that just launched in Austin in June. I have seen what the regular goupons can do to a business and would not consider putting my restaurant through that chaos.
The GrouponNow lets the owner set the number sold, the deal, when the groupon is valid, and some restrictions- If the customer comes in and for any reason does not like the deal- he/she can leave and receive a full refund from groupon. Groupon takes 25% of the total amt of the deal-- So if we offer $10 for $20 - the customer gets $10 off - Groupon receives $5- and the merchant receives $5. Currently Groupon has the largest distribution list and is the biggest.
That being said I just signed up for Living Social which is launching the same type of coupons in October but only charging $2 for a $20 coupon-- I may drop Groupon at that time-- depending on the response..

[socalcde]

12:47 PM on 08/30/2011

Thanks for your input. I spent (and paid for) hours with a web master and I'm just reiterating info from her. If you get your customers to sign up for tweets from you, you can send offers directly to them and according to her, this gets much better results with no cost to you, and you can send out last minute offers such as early AM for lunch time.

[giuseppi]

01:51 PM on 08/30/2011

Hopefully you will learn that at some point, that coupons are the crack cocaine of the restaurant industry. Sure they may bring in new people, you might have to hire extra help to service the extra people, but then there you are selling $20 worth of food for five bucks. And where does the revenue come from to pay the extra help, and what about the hit in the food cost department?
Fact: coupons only attract cheapskates.

I am a restaurant owner.

[grod805]

05:52 PM on 08/30/2011

Agreed, I feel bad knowing that the restaurants already lost $ with using groupon plus my discount. I don't know why exactly they don't just put a link to a deal on their website and make people print out a coupon, they would be able to cut out the middle man by doing that.

[fatuglynerd]

11:35 AM on 08/30/2011

Flagged for spam. One Comment user directing people to a website = SCAM

[Twilight Kingdom]

11:47 AM on 08/30/2011

Spam

[HuffGeist]

02:08 AM on 08/30/2011

I don't really personally trust a site that continuously spams me and I never signed up directly to them, but also cannot get rid of them either. I'm happy if others find it workable though (no for me though).

[Serpentbaby]

04:13 PM on 08/29/2011

I really don't get all this anti-Groupon (or other deal sites) stuff. Of course people who are impulse shoppers could get into trouble, but no one is forcing them to buy the daily deal.

I use both Groupon and Living Social, but before I commit to buy anything I not only check out restaurant reviews, I also look at the restaurant's website, including the menu. And if I happen to eat at a crappy place (which hasn't happened yet, btw), I'm certainly not going to blame Groupon for that.

[pneuma8828]

05:03 PM on 08/29/2011

The problem is the fine print. "50% off! $25 for $50 worth of food and fun!*"

*Offer only good on Tuesdays in March. Limit one per visit. Parties of four or more only. Can only be applied to appetizers."

[Serpentbaby]

05:31 PM on 08/29/2011

Uh... while 'limit one per visit' is pretty standard, none of the offers I've seen have mentioned any of the other things. Which site were you using?

[MiBFTo]

01:59 PM on 08/30/2011

Groupon's fine print isn't very fine. It's stated in relatively large font on the front page of every deal.

I'm no huge proponent or detractor from Groupon, but if you're going to criticize, make it something legit.

[marianproletarian]

11:50 AM on 08/30/2011

Yeah, I only buy for restaurants I already know and like.

[101112]

02:27 PM on 08/29/2011

What is wrong with saving $?? I would try a new restaurant at half price, do the math, way better than paying 100%

[fatuglynerd]

11:39 AM on 08/30/2011

If the food you purchased at 50% makes your stomach ache, or tastes disgusting ... the 50% discount isn't worth it.

[brickoven35]

12:00 PM on 08/30/2011

Then do not purchase a coupon for
1) A restaurant that you know nothing about
2) Do not like their cuisine
3) Have seen bad reviews
As for becoming ill at a restaurant, we do have health regulations in all 50 states and the likelihood is lower of getting a food born illness at a restaurant than eating at your aunts house..

[101112]

03:32 PM on 08/30/2011

Unfortunately that can happen paying full price.

[klbrz]

02:05 PM on 08/29/2011

Huffpo, you have got to stop with the lying and misleading headlines!! This article is referring to a survey that examined categories of unused coupons. That's all. No one said anything about regretted purchases. Likely the unused coupons are bought by impulsive shoppers who aren't realistic about whether or not they will use the things. And, since the food and drink is the largest category, it follows that it would be the category with the most unused coupons. That has nothing to do with the quality of the coupon or the company offering it.

And the guy from Bloomberg doesn't seem to understand what the coupons are for. They are replacing advertising dollars that previously had been used with traditional media like newspapers and radio. Now, instead, restaurants are paying these coupon sites and passing along savings to customers in order to get them to come in. If you don't like the restaurant, obviously you don't go back, but since the place wants new customers to become repeat customers, they are going to do their best for the coupon customers, as well as any other customer.