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Health & Fitness

Technology Guide: Get Your Coupon On

Groupon isn't a fish;LivingSocial isn't about roommate issues.The Internet has allowed coupon companies to offer instant deals in your neighborhood.Here's how to take advantage--and not be fooled.

“Crowdsourcing” for digital geeks means collaborative efforts like writing code for software. But one of the things rapidly growing social media has meant is that the term is also often synonymous with people having a common goal of getting the same discounted deal.

And those are even easier to take advantage of than Facebook.

Here's my own guide to using online deals.

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Any day of the week, companies like Groupon and LivingSocial -- and a  growing list of other coupon companies -- are using the concept to get you to buy their discount vouchers for food, travel destinations, services, products and even reduced ticket prices for theater, festivals and other events. Twenty-five dollars for $50 worth of restaurant fare; $30 for an hour-long massage valued at $90: There are offers to appeal to all ages and all budgets; for singles and for families.

You might be asking like I did, “What’s the catch?” The terms are always spelled out very clearly, with relatively few restrictions and most of the deals are very generous with 3-9 month windows to use them.  I recommend that you  go to the website of each deal offer to investigate. They usually have photos posted and reviews (and you can reread the deal offered two times).

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All these companies take a percentage of the money you paid for the deal and the balance  goes to the business. Groupon is estimated to be worth $25 billion, LivingSocial right behind them; both have been courted by giants like Microsoft, Facebook and Google, but at this point it appears those other players will set up shop themselves offering deals. What this phenomena has also brought on is companies not wanting to go the Groupon route coming up with their own quieter offers to their patrons.

The businesses motivation for  companies participating is free promotion with expectations to expand their customer base. However, in the early days with no caps on the volume sold. well, it was crazy. Some businesses suffered from their coupon selling "success." For example The Russian Tea Room in DC sold 4,000+ coupons jointly by Groupon and LivingSocial where a $40 value coupon was offered for only $20. I myself purchased two coupons and used one. The food was ok, but the housekeeping looked like it had one too many “busloads” come through.

One of the reasons I got hooked immediately more than two years ago (beside my nature to avoid retail pricing) was the ability to invite friends and family out for a meal to reciprocate hospitality. Another lure was the many fitness classes/gym deals offered. For one boot camp deal, I paid $75 for $150 worth of sessions. (Buying it was a  little too hasty for the classes were held out of doors from January to March. Yes Cherie, read the fine print!)  I did not use it in time (it was that winter two years ago), but I can and will get to use it. We'll get to that  later.

What’s the downside? In most cases you are not buying into deluxe or even  2+ star experiences, although some of the travel destinations have excellent ratings.Personally, I feel am still way ahead with the massages and decent food experiences. I only go for lunches, which I feel is safer and, you usually get a better value at that meal time.

Another caution: if you wait until the final days leading to the expiration date to use your coupon, you might find are there no reservations available for your meal, facial, round of golf, etc.

Other tidbits:

Things can get interesting if you use your coupon on the day of its expiration.  I went to the National Press Club with a very proper friend for her first visit. She dressed in attire that she assumed suited the club's reputation, as she heard seeing dignitaries was possible. However, our fellow diners for that packed Saturday brunch reflected a dress code more attuned of riders in a second class train car in South East Asia (trust me I have been on one). The staff did not extend cheerful customer rapport to them (they were very nice to us two aging ladies) and I can only  assume they thought the tips would be slim. All the coupon companies recommend is  they want you to tip the pre-discounted value which, is only fair.

Another expiration day I should have filmed was at a upscale plant nursery in Alexandria. They had a closing time of 6 p.m. At 5:45 p.m., there were at least 30 women madly sprinting down plant aisles trying to reach the $50 plant value (coupon cost $25). I made it under the wire and I took home some great plants that are already blooming again this year.

That brings up another fact about buying  coupons. I will confess to not using coupons that require forking over $250 cash out-of-pocket, with a face value of deal at least 50% more,  because I simply didn’t mark my calendar or couldn’t find someone to join me last minute for a meal. The good news is in Virginia, Maryland and DC, the  law demands that consumers  get the value of what was actually paid. So at the burger house in Arlington, just one of the many expired coupons I have, my $10 worth of food awaits. So does the aforementioned bootcamp.

Even if you are a holiday weekend traveler, there are current deals near or in where you are traveling  most likely available. Some you can use  immediately or within 24 hours. And did I mention you could give them as gift certificates? Distant friends and relatives can enjoy your generosity and your sense of value. I have given quite a few in  many different cities located in Ohio, Texas, Pennsylvania and California.

I have  promised myself I will try and avoid expiration date frenzy in the future when I buy them. Now , I just have to make sure in the next two weeks to take advantage of those belly dancing lessons soon to expire, oh yeah!

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