It seems that Yelp is getting ready to implement a “daily deal” feature across the popular website; they’re beginning to test this feature in certain markets, notably Sacramento.
After a few Yelp users noticed Groupon-like deals popping up on Yelp.com, the company’s community manager confirmed, “We are testing it out for fun to see what kind of response it generates… Also, there will be another Deal coming out on Wednesday so look for it!”
Deals have been showing up for select users on the right side of the home page. They’re limited-time offers, and users who have tried them say, “It acts just like a Groupon.”
Basically, you’re allowed to pay a significantly discounted amount for goods or services at a local retailer.
Groupon offers something quite similar, as does LivingSocial, so this move pits Yelp against those two relatively new companies. And while Groupon is particularly competitive (the startup was recently valued at $1 billion), Yelp has a distinct advantage: its larger and longer-standing base of users.
Yelp company was founded six years ago by two former PayPal employees. Late last year, the company was rumored to be on the receiving end of a $500 million acquisition offer from Google.
Yelp has also managed to score a few wins recently with integrations, new features and partnerships. For example, just last month, Yelp started allowing its users to make restaurant reservations on-site via a clever OpenTable integration. And Yelp — a popular resource for local businesses — has recently added social checkin metrics to its business reports.
Are Yelp’s daily deals something you’d take advantage of as a consumer? If you own a business, would you partner with Yelp to create a daily deal for Yelp users in your area?
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