[schiang]

I really hate using LivingSocial/Groupon because it seems like the business owners always HATED taking these deals. I always feel like I'm being treated differently because I'm not paying the actual price. One time when I used one of these deals, I even heard the employee say to another employee "... another #$#@$#@ groupon deal....". If they didn't like people using the deals, why bother signing up for it?

I can't wait for these daily deal business to go away because I don't think it benefits anyone.

[steveklabnik]

> If they didn't like people using the deals, why bother signing up for it?

Employees aren't the ones signing up, their bosses are.

Also, it's pretty common for people to not tip when they get something for free: I never get stiffer drinks than when I tip the bartender at an open bar. First drink is like water, second is always pure alcohol.

[MichaelApproved]

"I can't wait for these daily deal business to go away because I don't think it benefits anyone."

If you don't like these deals, then don't use them but don't say that they don't benefit anyone. Customers benefit from these deals all the time. 50% off a meal is a great offer!

I think the biggest problem with these deals (for the wait staff at a restaurant) is that people think they should tip based off the discounted meal, instead of the full price.

It's a deal on the meal, not a deal on the tip.

[flyinRyan]

>If you don't like these deals, then don't use

When all your competitors are? Go make a business and try that strategy.

>50% off a meal is a great offer!

So great the company who set it up went right out of business despite an insane amount of funding.

>I think the biggest problem with these deals (for the wait staff at a restaurant) is that people think they should tip based off the discounted meal, instead of the full price.

I don't think people should tip at all. Tipping is just a sneaky way of having the customers pay the labor costs directly. It's ridiculous to say a steak costs $7 when I'm paying the the server as well.

[MichaelApproved]

My points about not using the deals and them being great offers was from the point of view of a customer.

"I don't think people should tip at all. Tipping is just a sneaky way of having the customers pay the labor costs directly. It's ridiculous to say a steak costs $7 when I'm paying the the server as well."

Not wanting to tip and actually not tipping are two different things.

I agree with you that the whole tipping concept can get ridiculous but like it or not, that's the system we have.

To not tip in all cases, in a system that has tipping as a critical part of the labor costs, is flat out wrong. You know the system is based on tipping and you're punishing the wrong person for your distaste for it.

If you don't want to tip, don't participate in the entire system. Don't go to any restaurants or other place of business that advocates tipping and makes it a critical part of the staffs salary.

Again, it's absolutely wrong to not participate in only one aspect of the system you dislike when the people who get hurt are the ones with little power to change things.

[ios84dev]

Good luck changing that in the US. If you got waiters subject to the normal minimum wage then there might be potential. Hopefully you don't take your dislike of a system out on someone forced to work within it.

[flyinRyan]

NOTE: I don't live in the US anymore so I'm not affected by tipping. When I am there I do tend to tip but it pisses me off. Not because of the cost but rather the exploitation of me and the worker.

[jarek]

> It's a deal on the meal, not a deal on the tip.

The tip is obviously dependent on the price of the meal: most people will tip more for a more expensive meal, usually following a ratio. (20% or what have you.) People ordering the more expensive meal on the menu by and large tip more than those ordering the least expensive meal. Why should this change for the groupon meal?

[MichaelApproved]

Because when you get the bill, it's reduced from the retail price. People tend to tip on the price in the final bill. That final bill is discounted and they base their tip calculations on the discounted price, not the retail price. Even if they mean to tip %20, that %20 is based off a reduced number so the waiter is not getting tipped on the full meal price.

When I tip on a discounted meal, I calculate based on the retail price. My original comment suggested that many people might be tipping on the discounted price and that could be why waiters don't like daily deal customers.

[jrs235]

Unfortunately this is true. Most people [in the US] don't tip on the amount of a coupon and sometimes even gift cards.

I'm sure when waiter's see my wife and I with three little ones come in their heart sinks a little thinking they're going to get a bad tip. Especially when we split a plate for ourselves and/or our children. However, when the bill comes I tip around 25% of the bill and then add approx. $5 per split dish [when the restaurant doesn't already have a charge for doing such] when means they come out with a very nice tip percentage wise. ($5 is often less than a dish so I still save money, and a $5 tip would be 20% of $20 so the waiter is still tipped for putting up with my family and bringing out an extra plate.)

[jarek]

So, a disclaimer: I don't do groupons, restaurant or otherwise. But...

> Because when you get the bill, it's reduced from the retail price.

So? When you get the cheapest meal, it's 'reduced' from the average meal price too.

If hypothetically a restaurant's management was going to permanently drop its meal prices by half, would you still tip on the old price?

> that could be why waiters don't like daily deal customers.

If the restaurant is running a groupon, waiters have much more reason to dislike the management than to dislike the customers.

--

The tipping mechanism for paying restaurant staff semi-decent wages creates some really weird cases like this one. The dislike of discount shoppers would never be an issue in locations where meal prices pay for semi-decent staff wages - the financial risk would be taken up solely by the owners/management making the decision.