Guidelines for Creating a Profitable Discount Coupon Website

online business idea
How to start a discount coupon website like Groupon?
Nowadays, sites which offer special coupon and discount codes are becoming increasingly common, with the leading ones including Groupon.com and livingsocial.com. Making money through a discount coupon site is not difficult. The best way of succeeding in this business is to start a site which is centered on coupons offered by businesses or companies in your country or city. Focusing exclusively on local businesses will enable you to reach a large share of the market.

The following are some guidelines that will come in handy for anyone who wants to make money through a discount coupon site.

1. Finance

Starting a discount coupon site will require a financial investment initially. Such a site needs to be advertised to consumers and businesses. Therefore, a significant amount should be spent on both offline and online advertising. In addition, it might take some time before the site becomes profitable. This means that you will have to continue paying for web hosting and maintenance, even if you are getting little or no income.

2. Plan

It is very important to plan before venturing into any business. When it comes to a discount coupon site, you need to have both long and short term goals. Are you going to cover particular cities or the whole country? You should also decide what kinds of businesses you are going to focus on. The decisions you make will be dependent on the level of resources you have, as well as the size of the market. Finally, you need to choose if you are going to feature online stores or brick and mortar stores.

3. Website

Once you have gathered your resources, you need to put up a website. A discount coupon site should be colorful, attractive and engaging. However, it should not appear too crowded. If the site is covering several cities or localities, you need to ensure that there are clear categories and good navigation. Alongside the deals, it is advisable to post some articles which will inform consumers and businesses how they can benefit from coupons and discounts. Writing educative articles is a tactic that has generated significant traffic for my blog which promotes london pass coupons and world soccer discounts.

4. Marketing

Marketing is very important for creating awareness about your offers. You can use different online and offline methods to reach consumers and businesses. Approach businesses in your local area and convince them to offer special discounts. It is advisable to meet the business owners in person, rather than just communicating through email. Initially, you could allow businesses to advertise their deals on your site for free. As you site grows and sales increase, many other businesses will also want to have their offers advertised in your site.

About the Author: Charles Mburugu often writes on technology and social media. He is currently writing posts for a discount blog that offers london pass coupon codes and world soccer shop voucher codes. He also blogs about  unique coupon and discount offers including world soccer discounts and london pass coupons.