7
2011
Overcoming the Sins of Grouponers Past
An article by 
(Photo credit: www.rentvine.com )
Guest post from Ryan Adams
We Grouponers are a different breed. Savvy, eclectic, and eyes wide open for a good deal. And we have power. The power to reduce a restaurant bill to mere pennies.
So how do we act as good citizens of this power? Alas, a small minority of Grouponers are acting irresponsibly; they’re defacing our brand around town. Sometimes you can see the damage in small ways.
Last week GrouponGirl and I were dining over Groupon-powered date night at a local wine bistro. When we presented our paper print-out that night I sensed a hint of emotion from the server. I’ll take care of that. She attempted a smile, shoulders slouching slightly. Was our server disappointed?
I enjoyed my cabernet sauvignon and German sausage without giving it another thought. GrouponGirl sipped her water (no alcohol with the new baby on the way) and took a few bites into her artisan pizza as we discussed politics, the kids, and our next Groupon exploit. Dinner was wonderful, excellent service.
Are you ready for the check? We were. The server pulled it from her pouch, and gingerly placed it on the table. I reached for my AmEx and peaked at the total. Hmm…was the wine charged twice? I passed the bill to GrouponGirl. It wasn’t the wine, an 18% gratuity had been added. A strange policy to enact on a party of two. Having spent our college years on the other side of the table, we understood the meaning: restaurant staff had been previously burned by Grouponers tipping on discount, not the total.
I was annoyed. Not at the restaurant, but the unnamed Grouponers who forced their hand into mandatory gratuity. We added extra to the tip that night to compensate. It was probably not enough to change their policy, but perhaps our server would be less disappointed the next time she serves up a Groupon discount.
It was a good reminder, we are all responsible for our collective brand. We can be welcomed as early adopters, generous and enjoyed by our local establishments. Or, we can be endured as self-entitled cheapskates, a necessary evil of a modern promotional campaign. The way we Groupon affects how we’re perceived. It’s up to us. Let’s not let the misguided minority steal our reputation.
I’m curious, has your Groupon experience ever been tainted by the sins of Grouponers past?
EDIT 1: Interesting, Groupon has published Four Rules of Groupon Etiquette. Number 1 deals with restaurant tips.
Ryan’s Bio: My wife, GrouponGirl, scores the deals that improve our lifestyle and gives us interesting things to do together. Her work has shaped our family into valuing shared experiences over consumer products. We’d rather have a heart full of lasting memories then a garage packed with junk. She’s the daily deal pro, I’m just along for the ride.
Yes-we’ve had the same experience…only in our case the food was great and the service was more than lacking…delays and mixed up orders made for a rushed dinner so we could get to the theatre on time. ..the place wasn’t even busy. Upon presenation of the bill they added an automatic 18%. ..not even a sorry for the mix upos. We paid the tip-but vowed not to return. Service should always be rewarded whether it’s full price or not…it the service is bad-then sorry-no one should “have to” pay.
Hello!
Thank you SOO much for your post! It is much needed. I too am an avid grouponer, coupon collecter and thrify aficionado! But I too, have also forged the rivers of being a server in a promotion-driven economy. It’s hard when you have lovely customers who don’t understand that your income and livelihood is based, not on your wages, but on their generosity.
So here is another little “tip” to all of us grouponers: Let’s keep our good name and remember to tip on the total BEFORE THE DISCOUNT. And a good tip these days is 20% :)
My husband and I always tip on the pre-Groupon total, usually 20% if the service is reasonably adequate. I don’t appreciate being treated like a child who doesn’t know the rules, so if a restaurant adds an 18% tip, that’s all we leave, and we probably won’t be back. I do understand that the wait staff live by tips, but if the wait staff and restaurant are happy with their enforced 18%, that’s fine with me.
I completely agree that this is a sad and unnecessary lesson in etiquette that some people must be taught so as not to taint the perception of the rest of us bargain-hunters that DO have class. Groupon is no different than using a gift certificate or other voucher, such as an Entertainment Card, both of which clearly state to tip on the original amount. The other problem for merchants I see with Groupon is that they know many of these customers will not be repeat customers, and are only there because of the one time discount. They are less inclined to give them the usual first-time customer treatment.
We had same experience at an Indian restaurant in Lincoln, NE! More like 20% gratuity on the bill w/out the discount. There were 3 of us.
I should add that I always give a large tip anyway on the full amount, so this “mandatory” tip was definitely a slap in the face. Just to be clear though, I won’t be adding adding additional cash to any mandatory tip, just to overcompensate for the bad apples out there.
Great comments. I love Groupon and other websites offering group discounts. The concept is awesome…..BUT…..if merchants are not careful they loose a lot of money. Selling $1 for 0.25 cents is a bad business proposition. There must be away to separate “bad” from “good” customers to help merchant’s decision making. I recently came across grouponers.com, a site offering reviews on customers buying group coupons (at least this is what their newsletter claims). It’s under development.
I have not yet hit the mandatory gratuity. I always tip generously for good service, and with a small bill (groupon or no) I tip over 20% if I have lingered. That said, bad service doesn’t get a generous tip. My groupon is out on the table for the server to see before I even order. If the service is lousy, I tip 10 to 15% on the pre discount amount. The server isn’t taxed on an assumed 20% so they are not paying taxes on what they aren’t getting, but tips are supposed to be To Insure Prompt Service.
I don’t think that the vendor should make a mandatory tip without it beingstated on the groupon itself . Sometimes the service is absolutely appalling, and there’s no way I would leave an 18% tip for appalling service. I routinely leave 20% tip for decent service.
I actually work at an establishment where the majority of our business these days is Groupon. It is my family’s place so working there I do not receive a wage, I work solely for tips (I waited tables for 5 years and was always tipped 20% or more from customers). I am very good at my job, always have a smile on my face, and love talking to customers. I pride myself in prompt service. Maybe it’s the type of crowd our promotion is attracting, but our Groupon clientel rarely, if ever, tip. Last time I checked, pouring 15 different wines, explaining them, and answer any questions posed by patrons is still in the food and beverage service industry (like going to a bar, but more intimate and more knowledge of the products served). I always tip generously, but these Grouponers don’t tip at all. I have used Groupon myself, but now I dread going to work because I know I will be bending to their every whim for free. I honestly think we should impose a mandatory gratuity; good service doesn’t always equal good tips.
I am a licensed massage therapist and esthetician currently working for a high end spa in Boston MA whom recently ran a groupon promotion. I am a very hard working, friendly and professional individual who is extremly dedicated to my practice and providing the best theraputic experience for my clients. That being said, lately I am finding it very difficult to put my best foot forwad every day at work, when after a full hour of deep tissue body massage 70-80 percent of clients (groupon) tip 5 dollars, ten dollars, or amazingly -nothing at all. The cost of a 1 hour body massage at our spa is normally 85 dollars, I would generally expect to be making a 16-20 dollar tip on this service….lately not so much. I go home at the end of a long day and my back hurts, my hands hurt and now even my feelings hurt, after providing hours of caring and attentive service to individuals who don’t seem to appreciate the work people such as my self do, have no intention of ever returning as “regular” customers, and rarely, if ever tip appropriatley. I would truly beg to differ that it is the majority of grouponers who tip on the original cost of services.
I try to understand but I just don’t get what these people are thinking, its embarrasing how oblivious and rude they can be. As a massage therapist and esthetician working in a spa enviroment I factor tips in heavily to my overall weekly earnings, these tips represent 40 percent of the money that pays my rent, utilities, car payments and student loans. I guess many figure that since they never plan on ever seeing you again it dosen’t matter how terrible their etiquette. Groupon ruins service providers financial lives…. and breaks their spirits.