Comment by glenngillen | Hacker News Reader

Comment by glenngillen | Hacker News Reader

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I took the same Groupon deal with a similar outcome (although we stated from the outset we had a voucher so no awkwardness about stuff we'd have to pay extra for). That said:

* This is in London, which doesn't have the same "tipping culture" as the US. Sure hospitality jobs don't pay great, but both my wife and I have worked them in the UK and you can definitely get by without tips. Getting snippy about a drop in tips is nowhere near as justified here.

* We each bought a cocktail before ordering (£8 each x 6)

* As is becoming the norm in London, "optional 12.5% service charge" (good luck ever opting out of it though) was a separate line item on our receipt and it was calculated off of the face value.

* I specifically checked the terms of the offer and the menu options prior to buying the voucher. Despite choose from "the tapas menu" you actually get to choose from "the Groupon version of the tapas menu". The latter being about half the size.

* I left an extra tip at the end mainly because I know the economics for the merchant on running Groupon deals. In hindsight neither the service not the "special" treatment you get as a Groupon customer warranted it.

Because of their attitude I won't be back, that's the cost for making an assumption about me as a customer. I'm still undecided whether I'll use Groupon again though. Maybe seeing this insight into this restaurant was a good thing?

Because of their attitude I won't be back, that's the cost for making an assumption about me as a customer.

That's the rub, really. I find it hard to blame Groupon themselves for stuff like this (though certainly Groupon has other aspects that are complaint-worthy). If you're going to treat customers poorly because they've taken advantage of a deal, I don't really want to be your customer. And if it's such a bad deal for you, as the restaurant, why are you participating anyway? If you really feel that the extra customer acquisition is worth the lower revenue for the sale, then you should be happy when Groupon customers come in. If you don't believe it's worth it, why do a Groupon deal at all?

The people who determine whether to do a Groupon most of the time are not the waiters and service ppl who have to put up with horrible tips.

True, but the waiters and staff are the public face of your restaurant. The owner/manager doesn't get involved in every meal they serve. If you suspect your staff will get cranky with Groupon customers, you need to fix that. I don't care if that means firing the worst offenders and making it clear that you won't tolerate such behavior, or if it means ahead of time declaring that you're going to "fix up" bad tippers behind the scenes by supplementing with the restaurant's cash. It really doesn't matter to me how they resolve the situation, but the owner of the restaurant is responsible for giving his/her customers the best experience possible.

Here's the thing that rubs consumers the wrong way: "the Groupon version of the tapas menu."

IMO, if a business is doing this and trying to cut costs then don't be surprised if that person does NOT convert into a regular customer. It's penny wise pound foolish.

It's obvious that people are smart enough to spot that their servings are smaller and their choices are limited compared to normal people. That angers customers! It's as bad as microwaving your food and thinking people are clueless and can't tell microwaved food from fresh food.

Sure, maybe you're saving a little here and there but you're almost guaranteeing that that person won't come back.

My experience as a several-time Groupon user: I've found that restaurant Groupons tend to get you lousy service from cranky staff. Other businesses tend to be better.

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