[unclebucknasty]

fijal is correct that I meant something much more fundamental than the bargain hunter problem.

Groupon's core selling proposition to businesses is that it will bring them people who can be cultivated into loyal, long-term customers. However, it's something of a fallacy because those customers are loyal primarily to Groupon. In fact, Groupon is actually a hyper-competitor to its business customers.

It's not just semantics or an issue of bargain-hunting. The model itself actively works against the core promise it offers to businesses.

BTW, while I'm not much of a Groupon fan, as a fellow-CEO whose tried something new and taken a lot of flack for it, I'll offer a little unsolicited advice: Don't let 'em get you down.