"...expectations of repeat business are seldom met."

Before web-based coupons I was a firm believer in the idea that you got what you paid for. There was comfort in the notion that I could make a conscious decision to select a product or service at a lower cost but still perceive value based on its affordability. 

Now however, when you buy a web-based coupon you get what you pay for and a whole lot more. Or do you? In the short term perhaps but in the long run businesses will find a way to cover their costs and as a result, quality may suffer.

My father believed in creating value and sales opportunities through innovation and controlling costs. That works well in manufacturing where you can control the cost of goods but in the beauty industry, a minute still equals a minute and the last I checked even the most seasoned hairdressers cannot manipulate time, they can only modify the activities in it to control their margin of profit.

In the current scenario, the website encourages the over inflation of the service ensuring them a guaranteed, immediate profit; the hairdresser works hard and long to accomodate the deal for a percent of the remaining insufficient funds; the purchaser receives gratification from the dollars saved not the services received; and the salon owner's expectations of repeat business are seldom met.  

As a result, web-based coupons have devalued our services and created a new breed of shopper that measures value mainly on the deal rather than quality of service and overall experience. Look, times are tough and we cannot keep doing the same thing over and over again and expect different results, however I'm afraid that marketing through these discounted sites encourages the practice of over-promising and under-delivering. 

If you need to adjust prices for services to reflect current economic conditions, do so on your own terms without sacrificing quality and your professional integrity.  If you feel you must use these sites make sure you're creating opportunity and not just activity because they have VERY different affects on your bottom line.