September 21, 2009
How to respond to critics
Last Friday, I posted a response to an oft-asked question I get about Groupon. What transpired was an inspiration for what to do when one gets a bad review.
Within an hour or two of the post going up, the CEO of Groupon called me to sort out my response. He explained his position, that Groupon is great and Grouponistas aren't your average discount seekers.
It kinda reminded me of the chef who gets a bad review and can prove the reviewer was wrong with a litany of facts. The chef can ALWAYS prove the reviewer was wrong. There are ALWAYS supporting facts.
But of course, I (and the reviewer) generally do have a point. And the point, while Groupon (or the chef) may not at first be agreeable, it always behooves someone to wonder, "Could their opinion also have merit?"
Andrew Mason, CEO/Founder of Groupon, of course, was savvy enough to pay attention to the opportunity. Because in every adversity, we all know, there is opportunity. By mid-day he had written me with a great idea of how to make Groupon relevant to the kind of restaurants I work with -- and making Groupon even better for Grouponistas to boot!
So, chefs, when Groupon calls, take a listen to their new plan. And if Andrew is on the line, maybe see if you can trade him dinner for a great lesson in how to deal with critics.
"By mid-day he had written me with a great idea of how to make Groupon relevant to the kind of restaurants I work with -- and making Groupon even better for Grouponistas to boot!"
Well what did he say...?
Oh, sorry! Thanks for asking.
He basically listened to my idea about crafting great experiences at restaurants to sell for groups.
My example was selling a private dining experience at Blackbird where Chef Paul cooks/serves food from his garden that is only available if a certain number of people sign up and that it be sold at affordable price instead of the super high price normally charged for something like this.
That way, the restaurant gets the customer count boost and the Grouponistas get an experience at a value, not a discount.
But then they didn't do anything about it.
It isn't really a scalable solution for their business. They are interested in delivering crazy ass discounts for people and they have a business model that supports it well. I am sure a few more fine dining restaurants will give it a try before they realize they are just reaching a discount-driven group.
interesting. thanks for the follow-up!
No problem. Come back, comment often, doors always open!