Emily Beers examines how wildly popular websites Groupon and Living Social can be used to the advantage—and disadvantage—of CrossFit affiliates.
Websites like Groupon and Living Social—which sell coupons for anything from exotic vacations to painting lessons to spa packages—have exploded in the last couple of years.
It seems like a brilliant idea: the buyer saves money, the seller generates awareness and sells a product, and the website hosting the coupon profits from each sale.
Many CrossFit affiliates across North America have eagerly joined this online coupon frenzy, ultimately offering personal training or on-ramp introductory sessions for a fraction of their normal cost.
From Vancouver and Las Vegas to Atlanta and Milwaukee, a dialogue has been forming throughout the CrossFit community about whether Groupon offers are a good idea for the business of CrossFit. In fact, a better way to describe this dialogue might be to call it a lively and polarized debate.