3 Daily Deal Trends We Saw in 2011

2011 was the year of the daily deal phenomenon! Though many deal-of-the-day websites launched in years prior, 2011 was the year that saw consumers excitedly participating in daily deal shopping on a regular basis. And while shoppers were scoring unbelievable bargains, the media was all too happy to report about it. From FOX news to The New York Times to USA Today, daily deal headlines were suddenly everywhere.

There have been a few other trends we’ve noticed in the daily deals market in the last year, too. Come along as we explore three daily deal trends that peaked in 2011.

Businesses underestimated the popularity of daily deals

Brick and mortar stores have benefited and been burned by the daily deal craze. Those businesses that sold vouchers and were able to get repeat customers out of the deal saw their business grow and prosper in the last year. Meanwhile, Sears announced this week that they’ll be closing 120 retail stores, due in part to low sales and Internet competition, and at least one business actually had to close their doors for good after selling more daily deal vouchers than their tight business budget could afford.

Shoppers suffer daily deal fatigue

2011 was the year for email overload when it came to daily deals. Dubbed as daily deal fatigue, media outlets reported non-stop that flash sales buyers were sick and tired of seeing daily deals in their email. In fact, many reported that shoppers stopped reading their daily deal emails altogether.

Daily deals went mobile

Perhaps in response to daily deal fatigue or maybe the end result of embracing new technology, daily deal websites began offering mobile apps that would spare buyers’ email inboxes and allow shoppers to access daily deals while they were on-the-go from their mobile phones and handheld devices.  Apps to popular daily deal websites, including My Deal Board, are now readily available from the Apple App Store and Android Market.

Was it a good year for daily deals? It was. Despite a mix of trends that brought both good and bad to the marketplace, in the end the consumer won out. And that’s always good news!