Why use Groupon Clone?

Recently, there has been an up-roar in the area of e-commerce, with portals such as Groupon, 8coupons, Couponcabin, Sgdeals, GreatDeals and Tip-it. We foresee the promising increase of similar portals as it can be catered to many different industries such as F & B, beauty care and many more. We provide a quick and easy method to obtain such a feature to be added to your Joomla! website, thereby allowing you to bring more services to your customers. Furthermore, Groupon Clone provides a better solution to bulk buying. It provides opportunities for additional revenue to be brought in to the associated merchant through advertisement spaces present on its sleek and spacious UI. Its installation is quick and easy, involving very little technical know-how or background. This is complemented by its user-friendly design in both its storefront and administrative backend. Businesses looking for an easy and effective electronic coupon solution need look no further with En Masse’s full range of features and solutions. En Masse comes as a package that works on all Joomla version 1.5.X, 1.6.X and 1.7.X

What is Export of Service?

Defining export of service has been very tricky due to intangible nature of service transaction. Due to this nature of services, there has been constant confusion regarding meaning of export of services. In Microsoft Corporation India Pvt. Ltd. v. CST, New Delhi [2009 (15) STR 680], an attempt was made to define the export transaction in services. This case relates to Stay application and hence the view taken by the Hon’ble Tribunal in this case is prima facie view. This prima facie view has also been approved by Delhi High Court as reported in 2009 (16) STR 545 (Del). The facts in the Microsoft case is that M/s Microsoft India Pvt. Ltd. has an agreement with Microsoft Singapore Operation Limited. On behalf of the Singapore entity, Microsoft India was providing services to customers based in India. M/s Microsoft India was receiving payment from M/s Microsoft Singapore in foreign currency. The question was whether it is export of service? The Hon’ble Tribunal held, “The service provided in India was consumed without reverting back to foreign principals for consumption abroad. Ultimate outcome of service having been exhausted in India, there appears to be no export of such services since efforts in India generated service recipients in India only. The benefit of service terminated in India only without travelling abroad. Whether service is directly provided by a foreign principal in India or foreign principal providing service in India through its agents in India makes no difference under Service tax law when Service tax is a VAT and that too destination based consumption tax.”

In any transaction related to Service, we need to understand as to who is the Service Recipient. Service recipient is the person who is making payment for the service. Any person who is not making payment of services to the service provider is not a service recipient in the eyes of service provider. Further, service provider is not raising any bill to the person who is not paying for the services, and hence he cannot collect service tax from that so called service recipient. In the present case there are two transactions. Microsoft India is providing services to Microsoft Singapore. This is export of service. Various persons in India are receiving services from Microsoft Singapore, and they may be liable to pay Service Tax through reverse charge method under Section 66A of the Finance Act. The distinction between Service Recipient who is paying from the service, and persons actually availing benefit of these service are always different. A corporation, who generally pays for the services cannot avail benefit of most of the services- it cannot stay in hotels, or travel. It cannot use software also. The persons actually availing these services are different from corporation. It appears that in the present case these points were not considered and I am sure at the time of final disposal of the case, these issues will be examined.

Export of Service Rules, 2005 defines export of services in two parts. Rule 3(1) defines export of services in terms of places where services are provided or received. Rule 3(2) defines export of services in terms of payment received in foreign exchange. It is to be noted here that Rule 3(1) and 3(2) are independent of each other, i.e. a provision of service is export of service if it satisfies either the definition of 3(1) and 3(2). Export of anything (goods or services) and receipt of payment in foreign exchange are two entirely different things, governed by different statute. Export is governed by trade & revenue statutes, where as receipt of payment is governed by Foreign Exchange Management Act. Thus there can be export f goods and services, without receipt of payment in foreign exchange. In custom parlance, connected with export of goods, it is well known in terms of waiver of Guaranteed Receipt given by the authorized dealers. Let us take a simple example. Jet airways provides air travel services from London to Newyork. An Resident Indian national book an air ticket. Obviously the Indian national is required to make payment to the Service provider in Indian Rupees. Is it export of Service? Obviously yes. Irrespective of the fact that payment is received in Indian Rupee, it is an export of service. These types of cases are covered in Rule 3(1) of the Export of Services Rule, 2005. Rule 3(2) of the Export of Services Rules defines what we understand as “deemed export”. It reads as, “The provision of any taxable service specified in sub-rule (1) shall be treated as export of service when the following conditions are satisfied, namely……….” The term treated as export of service is very important. What Rule 3(1) defines is export of service, whereas Rule 3(2) defines as something which may not be export of service, but shall be treated as export of service. Let us take another example of Jet Airways. It provides air travel service from Delhi to Mumbai. Say, a person based in London book a ticket for this service. Obviously he will pay in foreign exchange. Is it export of service? In terms of Rule 3(1), it is not export of service but due to deeming definition of Rule 3(2) of Export of Service Rules, it is export of service. The concept of export and deemed export is well known in tax parlance. Rule 3(1) provides the concept of export, whereas Rule 3(2) defines the concept of deemed export, i.e. something which will be treated as export. When those concepts are applied to Rule 3(1) and 3(2) of Export of Services Rules, the matter becomes clear and easy to comply with.

WordPress Groupon

It is well known that WordPress is one of the simplest and widely accepted systems used for blogs but it is also an uncommonly known fact that WordPress can effortlessly be configured to perform in many other ways including the internet. Its vast capacity for customization and development makes WordPress Groupon a very attractive plug-in for developers and users. Furthermore, WordPress Groupon allows switching between themes adding new functionality and looks to the website without changing the informational content or installation. Daily updates of the website along with SEO friendly options make it a great tool for any online business. Finally, WordPress’s loaded Plug-in architecture helps developers go beyond the En Masses’ core functionality and extend its capabilities with a database selection containing 18,000 plug-in options.

EXPORT STRATEGY

Developing a sound business plan for export

An export strategy is an essential component of your business plan. Keep it simple, but make sure everyone in the company involved in achieving export results is aware of the plan and has a sense of engagement with it.

Why have an export strategy?

Developing a sound export strategy helps you define your export aims and match your resources to those aims. Your export strategy will help you manage the market sectors you have identified as core business. Focusing your resources enables you to provide quality responses and service to your new export customers.

A well-developed export strategy will help in dealing with a range of service providers. It singles you out as a company that has well-developed, realistic goals and programs designed to achieve them.

Incorporating exports in your business plan

An export strategy must be integrated with your company’s overall business plan. Align export activities with daily operations and avoid any conflicts between your domestic and international activities.

Understand the areas where you have a strong competitive advantage. These areas may include your technology, your staff or business systems. Determine how best to use them to achieve your export goals. Also identify any weaknesses.

What are the key elements of an export strategy?

Bring your key export goals into sharp focus – so you know exactly where to aim your efforts. Particular aims could include reducing seasonal demand swings, reducing fixed costs, fully realising production capacity, accessing new technology, consolidating your international reputation or matching the performance of your domestic competitors who are already selling offshore. There are excellent export planning tools available online – see the list of websites below.

Use some simple scenarios

Assess the outlook for your business in the Australian market. What are the constraints on your export growth? Apply three simple scenarios from low growth and intense competition to a high growth situation. Prepare yourself for a range of marketing contingencies to help assure yourself of your company’s ability to meet varying levels of resource commitment and market demand.

It’s not complex

The best export strategy is concise and simple. It involves on-going discipline to assess why your company should export and how you will achieve your goals. Make sure your objectives are clear and that all staff involved in export contribute to the strategy.

Useful websites

Business Victoria 

The Victorian Government website will take you through two sample export strategies and provides a good template to construct your own.

Digitalbusiness.gov.au 

This website provides guidance for small businesses, not-for-profits and community organisations to establish and/or enhance their online presence so that they can access the benefits of participating in the digital economy.

Exporting online 

Information focusing on export business online and developing your online presence – specifically for export. Here you will find tips on search engine visibility, online security and domain names, plus free access to three e-learning modules.

NSW Small Business

Lists the 10 key elements of a sound export strategy and provides a sample export plan.

The US Department of Commerce

A sample export plan and data on export strategies is available.

WA Department of Industry and Resources

Western Australia has good advice on export marketing plans. Other state and territory governments and industry associations also feature advice on export market planning and strategy.

Store Locator

You need to put up a Google Map that shows many branches and stores or their distribution points to the public? On top of that, you will need the user to be able to search for the location that is most suitable for him/her. Google Map Store Locator is the solution that you are looking for, with the ability for the end-user to search by area, business services , residential addresses and many more types of location. This component is an excellent choice for users who needs to have long and complex list of retail stores or distribution points. E.g Banks, Food Chains, Post Offices, Fashion outlets and etc. Key Features: - Allow you to define the services for the location. - Categorized the location by geographical areas, thus when user searched by the area, it will allow recentralized of the map and zoom in to the area. - Allow you to categorized the location by different types, so you can filter them if need be. - Search by Area, Type, Services and Address. - Backend Administrator Module to update the information easily.

How to Get Started in the Import Industry

Importing is a great way for you to grow your product line. It will also give your company the potential to earn bigger profits by reducing costs. The idea of setting up an import business seems like an expensive and complicated feat. At times, that is the case. Nevertheless, there are some simple tips to follow to help you take the first steps towards becoming an importer.

Step #1. Research the product you want to import:

Most companies already have a product that they want to buy or produce and sell in the market. However, if you are still in the planning phase, include researching the products that you will be importing in your list of priorities. Remember to check out your competition. Importing products that other players are in already selling will affect your pricing limits. If you want to be competitive, you want to make sure that aside from selling quality products, you should be able to realize an ideal amount of profit after all the additional costs of importing and other possible expenses.

Step #2. Can your products be imported?

When you have an idea of what products will sell to your target market, then it is time to find out whether or not the goods can be imported. Most items can be imported. However, there are certain types of food, equipment, and plants that cannot be shipped from one country to another. Determine which countries offer the products you need. Then, communicate with the export bureaus of that country to determine whether you can import the items that you wish to bring to and sell in your country.
Once you have a list of those items, check whether the products require licenses from the Department of Trade and Industry Import Licensing Branch before being legally imported so that you can make the necessary arrangements.

Step #3. Apply for a registration number and other requirements.

Starting an import business brings forth many legal requirements. There are federal, state, or local permits and licenses that you need before your operations can commence. Since the regulations differ depending on the industry, location of your business, and various other factors, accomplishing the mandatory licenses and permits should be your priority.
You can arrange all of these legal prerequisites on your own or you can make life simpler by hiring a full service, certified customs broker. A qualified customs broker can prepare all the documents needed for importing goods. Make sure that you will be hiring a customs broker licensed by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Service.

Step #4. Establish good business relationships with buyers.

Because you will be engaged in the importing business, many of your buyers or customers will be intermediaries or distributors. It is important to establish good trading relations with these people to ensure that they will continue to do business with you in the future. Do not take shortcuts when setting up relationships with potential dealers. There are a lot of importers out there, and a dealer wants to deal with an importer who gives them personal attention and service. Dealers are the lifeblood of most import operations; when you run into a product defect or delayed shipping, a dealer will be far more likely to stick with you if they have been treated as a top priority from day 1.

Step #5. Find a financial institution that provides a good international banking support. 

It was mentioned earlier that starting an import company can be expensive. Its ongoing management can be more so. For this reason, finding a banking institution that can provide you with your financial needs both for your local and international operations is essential. A bank that will offer you a line of credit is useful. You will also need a bank that can create a letter of credit. A letter of credit is a way to secure a factories performance before they receive the funds from the bank. This works in essentially the same way an escrow account works in real estate. The bank holds the money until the factory performs, and which point the factory will receive payment from the bank.

Step #6. Find a customs broker that will handle all of the paperwork and logistics of the import.

You want to be in the business of developing, marketing, and selling a great product. What you want to avoid is spending days figuring out customs paperwork, coordinating the logistics of ocean freight, local drayage, and other import related headaches. Choose a customs brokerage service that agrees to handle all of the above.
These are basic steps to help you start your importing business. The stakes are high and although there are serious risks involved, it is no longer possible for any product based business to ignore international trade. If you do, a competitor will do it it, and your business will likely suffer.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Groupon clones offer glimpse of the future

In this four-part series, we'll look at the group-buying landscape, and the opportunities and risks for small businesses considering offering daily deals There are so many similar entrants in the group-buying market today that some have taken to referring to the competition as "the clone wars." Groupon clone's success has spawned a legion of imitators large and small. Hundreds share the same business model: Partner with local merchants, offer a steep discount every day on a wide array of items, sell as many as possible, and keep a cut of each coupon purchase. So far, the idea has proven lucrative. However, as markets become saturated with Groupon clones, new approaches are emerging. Not every group-buy company will survive the consolidation that usually follows the proliferation we've seen, but these new variations on the theme could point the way to the future: limited quantity. When Bill Heilmann was working as a consumer researcher in Chicago - Groupon's hometown - he found himself asking merchants what they thought of the Groupon experience. One answer he kept hearing, he says, popped out. "They were selling so many certificates, that businesses didn't have the capacity," he says. A former global planning director with advertising giant BBDO, Mr. Heilmann is now the CEO of FabFind, a new Toronto group-buying startup that's taking a different angle on the group-buying craze. Instead of trying to encourage as many people as possible to sign up for a deal by setting a minimum number of purchases and then throwing the gates wide, Mr. Heilmann's firm sets out a finite number of deals on each offer, which ticks down to zero as consumers snap them up. This approach makes sense for merchants that have a limited number of items to sell in the first place: The Canadian Opera Company, for instance, used the service to sell seats to a recent production. And while other group-buy services allow merchants to put caps on how many deals they sell, larger players might be reluctant to offer hundreds of thousands of local subscribers a deal that only a few hundred can buy. "They talk about capacity planning, but what they're really interested in is maximum volume," says Mr. Heilmann. Upscale and members-only: What better way to control one's subscriber list than to make the whole website a members-only proposition? iGet.it, a Montreal-based group-buying that's readying itself for North American launch within the next two months, is aiming to take luxury group buying sharply up-market. "We looked at the market, and it became clear that the up-and-comer affluent spender is not being targeted," says Jason Reid, iGet.it's VP of Corporate Development. Aimed at 28-44 year olds who are making more than $125,000 a year, the firm is planning to offer deals on everything from BMW merchandise to valet service to behind-the-scenes access to live events. Its watchword is exclusivity: Instead of taking a cut of the deals it offers, it plans to make money by charging members a $100 annual fee - and members will only be admitted by invitation. iGet.it will be running up against some established players in the luxury space. The New York Times has launched its own up-market discount site, called TimesLimited. Meanwhile, the name to beat is Gilt Groupe, a luxury-item flash-sale site that actually predates Groupon. Gilt has only seen its profile grow with the rise of group-discount sites; its latest round of funding could value it at $1-billion. It says it only admits select clients, though after we provided the site with an e-mail address, a membership invite rolled in within a day. Niche sites: The explosion of group buying has fragmented the marketplace in more ways than one. Not only are general-purpose sites like Groupon and WagJag competing with hundreds of clones for consumer dollars, the model is being adopted by a growing variety of niche sites offering deals on specific ma. Meanwhile, the indistinctly-named GroupPrice.com targets small businesses as purchasers, offering deals on office-related supplies and services such as marketing plans, web design services, software, hand sanitizer. The list goes on: GroupGolfer.com sells group-discount golfing equipment; BookPerk.com group-sells books; ChronoShark.com bills itself as the "Deal a Day Watch Site," though one might reasonably ask how many days' worth of watches the average consumer needs. Are niche sites worth it? On one hand, they promise better results by reaching a targeted audience that knows what it's looking for, holding out the ideal of more conversions from a smaller e-mail list. On the other, a proliferation of software services has made it easy for most anyone to set up a professional-looking group-buying site. Merchants are best advised to do some homework before signing up. Successful group-discount sites benefit from marketing expertise and hands-on work with merchant partners. If a small group-buying site is understaffed, or worse, out there to make a quick buck while the market is hot, merchants could find themselves selling the wrong deal to the wrong crowd - and that's a bargain nobody wants. The Globe and Mail

Naming Your Import/Export Business

Even the best products and ideas won't sell if the company's name is poorly chosen. It is also important to make sure that the name you choose does not mean anything offensive in any country in which you intend do business. I suggest you check out how your intended company name translates in the official languages of at least your five most likely markets. Obviously, the more translation checks you can do, the more comfortable and confident you will feel about taking your name worldwide.

After you have come up with a trade name that best fits your long-term mission and doesn't mean anything bizarre, off-putting or inappropriate elsewhere in the world, have your attorney conduct a legal search to insure that you are not infringing upon anyone else's company name. Your attorney should also register the name with the appropriate intellectual property authorities.

To begin the naming process, you must decide exactly what your business will do. Be specific about your business intentions without being too narrow. Imagine owning and running this business for a lifetime. Focus on your personal values and how they will drive your business. Spend as much time on this as you would naming a child -- it is almost as important a relationship.

When you are developing your ideas for a company name, it should move from the general to the specific. The process could look like this:

1. I am going to import/export ...

Earrings.
Specifically:
Import/export inexpensive costume earrings.
More specifically:
Import/export costume earrings that never cost me more than $1 a pair.
Most specifically:
Import/export pierced and clip-back costume earrings that never cost me more than $1 a pair and are nicely gift-boxed.

2. Twenty years from now I see myself ... 

Working with numerous quality suppliers to offer hundreds of varieties of earrings and other jewelry items to customers worldwide.

3. Values that are important to me ... 

Honesty, integrity and trust. I am concerned about excellence. I respect people, look out for their welfare, and believe that they are the heart of an enterprise. Employees come first; customers all over the world who love my products come next.

4. How much do I believe in myself and in my company's direction?

I believe in myself one hundred percent. I know I can make this happen. As long as I continue to believe in myself, I will lead the company in the right direction to achieve success.

After a thorough analysis, you will have a clearer picture of your company and where it is headed. You should be able to name your business and create a flexible mission statement to reinforce and encapsulate your corporate goals. It should contain a statement of purpose that is timeless, and distinctive enough to set you apart from competitors. Here's an example of Jewelry Import/Export Company's mission statement:
"To import/export world-class costume jewelry at affordable prices."

This statement is good enough for now and it can easily be altered over time, but the basic premise will remain the same.

When I started my company, I knew I wanted to import, export, and do a little sourcing of products worldwide. I didn't know, however, what my specialty product would be. I sat down with a pad of paper and wrote down words that fit my idea of what my company was going to do:

International

Worldwide

Trade

Export

Import

Delaney

Affordable

Source

Global

Products

Outside the U.S.A.

Marketing

Chicago

Far Away

After writing the words that best described what I thought I would do, I combined them to see if I liked the sound, look, and feel of the various combinations. This is how I decided on "Global TradeSource, Ltd." It fit my vision: trading includes both exporting/importing, combined with sourcing, all on a global scale. The "Ltd." was selected because it has a nice international cachet and helped shorten the total number of letters in the full corporate name.

Global TradeSource, Ltd. was originally formed to export housewares, but after six unsuccessful months, we switched to food. If the company had been named "Export Housewares," it would have been difficult to make the change. That is why it is important to be specific but not too narrow.
It is important to select a name you can live with for a long, long time and one that holds up well as a website name too. Take some time now to draft a few ideas for your own import/export shop.

How to establish an import/export bussiness

So you want to sell to the world? You’ve come to the right place. Thanks to the Internet, setting up an import/export business can be ridiculously simple and very profitable. Here are ways to make it happen. • Select your business name and set up a website and blog. Without a website or blog, you can't have a networked import/export business. Get yourself a platform that allows you to develop a presence online and grow your business beyond your wildest imagination. The goal is to balance the flow of communications, sell products online (or offline) and build your customer base to drive profits for your international business. But first, remember to register your business name with a reputable web host because your domain name is what customers use to find you and your business. And it can’t hurt to consult with an international lawyer, banker and accountant for advice on establishing a virtual import/export business and keeping it in the best legal and financial position possible. A couple of places to get started with a website are Network Solutions, Go Daddy, Intuit and Verio. All offer domain name registrations and affordable website hosting packages with easy-to-use site building capabilities. To create a professional blog, which allows a continuous flow of engaging communications, try Blogger, Typepad or Wordpress. These services allow you to create a blog in minutes with stunning designs, reliable hosting and on-demand tech support. Now you are ready to share your business expertise and capabilities and sell to the world. • Pick a product to import or export. When it comes to importing and exporting, you cannot be all things to all customers. Decide on something and stick with it. You have two viable reasons for choosing a product to import/export: you know it will sell or you like it. Hopefully, you can meet both criteria. That’s an ideal business model. Would you buy it if you saw it in another part of the world? Then you are on to something! • Find the right market. You’ve selected a product, now you must look for someplace to sell it! You will improve your odds of picking a winner if you cultivate a knack for tracking trends, or even spotting potential trends. Getting in on the ground floor and importing or exporting a product before it becomes a super-seller in a country could be the business breakthrough of a lifetime! Do the homework and research the market beforehand to locate the best potential foreign market for your product or service. Two places to check are The World Bank’s "Ease of Doing Business" and globalEDGE’s "Market Potential Index." You might also check with local government officials to best determine sources for conducting market research. For example, in the United States, there are the Department of Commerce International Trade Administration’s Data and Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau Foreign Trade, which governs the reporting of all import/export statistics. These resources are helpful for determining where in the world products and services are moving to and from, and why and how to get in on the action. • Source a supplier. Once you have a likely import or export product in mind, learn everything there is to know about it. If you were its creator, how would you improve it? Go to a manufacturer and suggest product improvements to turn a mediocre product into something slightly ahead of its time. Your suggestions might mean the difference between a Sony Walkman and an Apple iPod. The easiest access to reputable suppliers might be Alibaba, Global Sources, and Thomas Register. There are others, but these three are considered the holy grail to finding high quality suppliers, manufacturers, exporters, importers, buyers, wholesalers and trade leads. In continuation to our first installment which covered how to start and map out an import/export business, here we provide the sales and distribution aspects of establishing an import/export business. • Price the product. The business model for an import/export business is based on two critical elements within the international sales operation. 1. Volume (number of units sold). 2. Commission on that volume. The goal is to price your product in such a way that your commission (markup on the product to customers) does not exceed what your customer is willing to pay and offers you a healthy profit. Typically, importers and exporters take a 10% to 15% markup over cost, which is the price a manufacturer charges you when you buy a product from them. The more you sell, the more you make. Keep your product pricing separate from logistics because, at some point, you combine the two to determine a landed price per unit. A good transportation company can assist here. Don’t let this part intimidate you! • Find customers. Provided you have done a good job with search engine optimization on your blog or website, customers will find you. But don’t rely on it. You should also go hunting for customers! Check with local contacts, such as trade organizations, Chambers of Commerce, embassies and trade consulates. They generally have a good sense of who’s doing what in the international marketplace. They can offer contact lists specific to your industry and also suggest trade shows that are taking place locally and internationally that might help you connect with customers in a faster and more efficient manner. An excellent service on the exporting end is the U.S. Commercial Service (CS) Gold Key Matching Service. The U.S. CS can help you find potential overseas agents, customers, distributors, sales representatives and business partners. At the same time, work your social media and networking platforms (your blog, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter) by posting information about your product or service and asking specific questions about your audience's needs. This gets the conversation going and keeps it going while making sure it's related to your business. The point is to keep your business on the minds of potential customers worldwide. • Transport your products. Your next step is to focus on logistics — transporting the product to where you will be selling it. By now, you have located a customer who loves your product, solidified the terms of the sale with them and established a means for getting paid. Now you must move your product. Hire a global freight forwarder who serves as an all-round transport agent for moving cargo, typically from a factory door to another warehouse. Their service saves you a lot of time, effort and anxiety for a very reasonable fee. Based on information you provide, they take care of all shipping arrangements, which includes but is not limited to handling documentation, arranging insurance, if requested, and determining necessary licenses, permits, quotas, tariffs and restrictions (country regulations), which can be one of the most complicated aspects of importing/exporting for a newbie international trader. You can find freight forwarders online under “transportation,” or check listings in trade magazines or other international handbooks. Pick two or three that seem like a good fit for your product or shipping destination. Two well-known companies that are eager to work with brokers, consultants and small businesses are UPS and Fed Express. Either can also assist with getting paid, a critical part of the international sales process. • Provide great global customer service! The relationship between you and your overseas customer shouldn't end when a sale is made. If anything, it requires more of your attention. Think of your after-sales follow-up on your import/export business as part of your product or service offering. The first step is to say, wholeheartedly — whether in person, via Skype, by email or telephone — "Thank you for your business!" For more on this, take a look at “How to Provide Great Global Customer Service”. Congratulations! You have officially learned the fundamentals on how to establish an import/export business. Now start booming and go make the world your business!

Benefits Of Starting A Groupon Clone Site

Ecommerce sites such as Groupon can drive traffic to stores during slack times, help reduce inventory, help stores quickly sell perishable inventory, and build customer loyalty. At present, however, the major ecommerce sites are only available in select markets.

Groupon Clone, however, is a program with all of the necessary functions to allow you to start your own local ecommerce site. If you live in a small town, or any place Groupon does not reach, this program is for you.

Group buying sites work in the following way. Merchants put up “deals” for specific merchandise, percent off of merchandise, or other products and services. If enough people select the “deal”, it goes active. The number of “deals” is limited, encouraging customers to select them quickly or lose out.

By putting limitations on the “deal,” such as a certain time of day it must be used, the merchandiser can drive large volumes of traffic to their store at times of the day that are normally slow, sell perishable merchandise before it spoils, or sell inventory to make room for new merchandise.

Customers get a get a good deal on a product or service, get to try merchants they might not have known existed otherwise, and may become loyal customers. Everyone wins with ecommerce sites.

When the “deal” is over, ecommerce sites give the merchant their percentage of the proceeds while retaining some of them for administration and overhead. However, one of the advantages of running your own local Groupon Clone site is that you keep those administration fees for yourself. In addition, if you get other merchants to participate in the site, you get to keep their administration fees for yourself, opening another revenue stream.

Starting a local Groupon Clone site is easy. The professionals at Contus Groupon Clone will discuss what features you need for your site with you in a free live chat at Matamko forum. They will then install the program on your server for free and provide six months of free support for you. Addons include mobile phone aps for merchants and customers, facebook aps, and customization of themes for your site.

Customers love Contus Groupon Clone. Ziad Boutros Tannous, Co-Founder / Managing Director at Dependent Lifestyle FZ LLC had this to say about us:

The Magento based Contus group deals buying clone is a very solid and stable piece of software. I worked with Contus for the last 7 months or so and I strongly recommend them as they have a very competent and professional team standing behind their top of the line script and also they are characterized with a stellar support. I highly recommend them!

Contus Groupon Clone runs on Magneto ecommerce platform and is very stable and reliable. It provides all the functionality you need to be running your own ecommerce site. Contact us today and get started earning money with ecommerce! Simply go to Matamko and speak with a representative. They will walk you through choosing the best options for your business and setting up the site.

Attack of the Groupon Clones!

Copycat businesses help industry evolve -- without them, we'd have one fast food restaurant (White Castle is generally credited as the first). Nobody would have created a national tax preparation service chain after H&R Block opened up shop in 1955. And the only soda conglomerate would be Coca-Cola, which came on the scene in the 1880s (while the first batch of Pepsi wasn't made until 1898). The latest big hit to inspire copycats (and to gain -- and reject -- a rumored $6 billion buyout offer from Google) is Groupon Clone. A number of websites have surfaced over the past couple years that have similar business models -- although, to be fair, some insist they came up with their idea before Groupon. Here's how Groupon works: In cities worldwide, consumers sign up and receive a new coupon every day, to use at a local venue -- a restaurant, spa, amusement park, etc. Assuming enough people buy the coupon, the deal stands. In the unlikely event that not enough consumers take the bait, the deal doesn't go through, since these coupon deals have to be done in volume to make a difference for the business offering the discount. For local businesses that participate, Groupon can be a boon, but if they're not careful, they can wind up selling a whole lot of merchandise for a loss. That's pretty much how most of Groupon's competitors work as well. So just how many of these social sharing coupon website businesses are there? It's dizzying. Here's a closer look: The site: Deals for Deeds What it is: So far, Deals for Deeds is just in Washington, D.C., and has pretty much the same model as Groupon. The site features one deal a day with a significant discount, involving businesses in and around the nation's capital. The twist is that 5 percent of what customers pay will go to a charity, and they can choose, among a handful of charities, where their donation should go. The site: DealRadar.com What it is: Instead of offering one great daily deal, DealRadar showcases "the best offers for more than 80 cities," including Groupon deals, says spokeswoman Lauren Russ, who adds, "You can call us a copycat, or call us efficient." YipIt does the same type of thing, in 18 cities. The site: Scoop St. What it is: This site, launched in October 2009, services New York City. As Dave Ambrose, co-founder, explains, "Scoop St. features local business that community members have always wanted to experience, but at a discounted price -- from restaurants to salons and everything in between. We structure unbeatable deals exclusively for the community by using economies of scale and group buying to both promise our vendors profit and foot traffic, as well as enable our local consumers to 'live up their city.'" The site: Gay List Deals What it is: As the name indicates, this is a site that highlights gay-owned and/or gay-friendly local businesses. Owner Cooper Smith Koch says he has heard his site referred to as "Groupon for the gays." It just launched, so far focusing on Dallas, and doesn't yet offer deals every day. The site: ScoopCoups.com What is is: Like the others, ScoopCoups offers great daily deals, sometimes up to 70 percent off retail, but so far, just in the Hampton Roads, Va., area. The site launched in the spring of 2010. The site: TwoBuckDuck.com What it is: "We're not a copycat," insists founder and CWO (chief waterfowl officer) Mark Gruen. "Rather, we position ourselves as an alternative. We launched 14 months ago, shortly after Groupon had made the transition from being 'ThePoint.' At the time, we had no clue who Groupon -- or ThePoint -- was. Ignorance is bliss." Gruen's business model: Customers pay $2 to get a significant deal on a restaurant, bakery, and other outlet. So you may pay $2 to get a coupon that allows you to pay $15 for a $30 restaurant meal. The site: Savvylikeme.com What it is: Launched this fall, this site plans to aim for smaller-based retail merchants in the Atlanta market. The site: GetGrouby.com What it is: Instead of offering one deal from one business, GetGrouby's executives say they are able to offer a number of discounted services from the same business. Launched in May 2010, it services Houston so far but plans to expand to other cities soon. The site: Certifikid.com What it is: This site also follows the Groupon formula, but is focused on family-friendly deals for the parents of Washington, D.C. The site: TryItLocal.com What it is: Based out of Louisville, Ky., and in the process of expanding to other markets, this daily deal site has been live since July 6. The site: SnagandSave.com What it is: How is this for exhausting? David Sinuk, the founder of Snag and Save, which services the Phoenix market, says he knows of approximately 11 other similar businesses that are starting up or have just started up in Phoenix alone. Similar to Deals for Deeds, Sinuk gives 5 percent of each purchase to charity, having raised more than $6,400 so far for local nonprofits and schools. He says in the seven months he has been operating, he has had some great days (549 deals for an indoor playground facility, for example) and some not so good days (two purchases for a pet photographer service). The site: Wrazz.com What it is: This site services Seattle, with plans on branching out into eight more cities over the next 18 months. The site: Wow.com What it is: Even AOL Small Business' mother ship, AOL, is wading into the Groupon waters. Wow, which launched earlier this month, provides a daily discount of 50 percent or more for local retailers, restaurants and venues. The folks behind Wow say it's aimed at people with families, tight budgets and busy schedules, which would seem to describe just about anyone with a pulse these days. It currently serves Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter. Our list doesn't even mention LivingSocial, which may be the best-known coupon site next to Groupon. The Washington, D.C.-based site was founded in the summer of 2007, shortly before Groupon came onto the scene.While to date, Groupon is located in far more cities (over 230) than LivingSocial (over 60), the original group buying site doesn't seem to be hurting. Like Groupon, LivingSocial recently scored a major investor: This week, e-tailer giant Amazon invested $175 million in LivingSocial. "Groupon doesn't pay attention to competitors, because their primary skill is the ability to copy what we do," says Groupon spokeswoman Julie Mossler. "We pioneered the social commerce space and have learned a lot along the way. Growing to serve more than 300 markets and 31 countries has helped us fine-tune every aspect of our business, from our product to customer service to merchant preparation. We frequently hear that the quality of both the merchant and customer Groupon experience are something no other site provides." Yet, as a result of websites jumping on the Groupon business model, a lot of daily deals are being made between social commerce sites and establishments across the country, generating much-needed revenue for small businesses, creating jobs and helping consumers keep a few more bucks in their wallets. In that way, Groupon CEO Andrew Mason seems to be spreading a lot of economic good around the world. Of course, helping other entrepreneurs line their pockets probably wasn't what Mason was hoping for, but if Coke and Pepsi, White Castle and McDonald's, H&R Block and Jackson Hewitt Tax Service can co-exist in the same world, so can Groupon, Living Social and who knows how many smaller competitors. By GEOFF WILLIAMS

Why use WordPress Groupon?

It is well known that WordPress Groupon is one of the simplest and widely accepted systems used for blogs but it is also an uncommonly known fact that WordPress can effortlessly be configured to perform in many other ways including the internet. Its vast capacity for customization and development makes En Masse for WordPress a very attractive plug-in for developers and users. Furthermore, En Masse WordPress allows switching between themes adding new functionality and looks to the website without changing the informational content or installation. Daily updates of the website along with SEO friendly options make it a great tool for any online business. Finally, WordPress’s loaded Plug-in architecture helps developers go beyond the En Masses’ core functionality and extend its capabilities with a database selection containing 18,000 plug-in options.

Import definition

"Imports" consist of transactions in goods and services (sales, barter, gifts or grants) from non-residents residents to residents.The exact definition of imports in national accounts includes and excludes specific "borderline" cases. A general delimitation of imports in national accounts is given below:

• An import of a good occurs when there is a change of ownership from a non-resident to a resident; this does not necessarily imply that the good in question physically crosses the frontier. However, in specific cases national accounts impute changes of ownership even though in legal terms no change of ownership takes place (e.g. cross border financial leasing, cross border deliveries between affiliates of the same enterprise, goods crossing the border for significant processing to order or repair). Also smuggled goods must be included in the import measurement.
• Imports of services consist of all services rendered by non-residents to residents. In national accounts any direct purchases by residents outside the economic territory of a country are recorded as imports of services; therefore all expenditure by tourists in the economic territory of another country are considered as part of the imports of services. Also international flows of illegal services must be included.

Basic trade statistics often differ in terms of definition and coverage from the requirements in the national accounts:

• Data on international trade in goods are mostly obtained through declarations to custom services. If a country applies the general trade system, all goods entering the country are recorded as imports. If the special trade system (e.g. extra-EU trade statistics) is applied goods which are received into customs warehouses are not recorded in external trade statistics unless they subsequently go into free circulation of the importing country.
• A special case is the intra-EU trade statistics. Since goods move freely between the member states of the EU without customs controls, statistics on trade in goods between the member states must be obtained through surveys. To reduce the statistical burden on the respondents small scale traders are excluded from the reporting obligation.
• Statistical recording of trade in services is based on declarations by banks to their central banks or by surveys of the main operators. In a globalized economy where services can be rendered via electronic means (e.g. internet) the related international flows of services are difficult to identify.
• Basic statistics on international trade normally do not record smuggled goods or international flows of illegal services. A small fraction of the smuggled goods and illegal services may nevertheless be included in official trade statistics through dummy shipments or dummy declarations that serve to conceal the illegal nature of the activities.

What is EMS? Different service, definition of EMS as defined by EMS cooperative

• Express Mail Service - EMS is an express delivery service which connects more than 190 countries and territories worldwide. Marami pong ountries around the world ang counterpart namin dito sa Pilipinas.
• A priority mail service - EMS is provided by the Post as their postal express service for documents and merchandise. EMS takes priority over other postal services. -Opo, ito po ay serbisyong ibinibigay ng postoffice(Philpost)
• Convenient - EMS can be sent from Post Office counters in over 190 countries or it can be collected from customer's premises. The EMS network has the most customer access points in the world based on Post Office counters.
• Largest delivery network worldwide - EMS postal operators have the largest last mile coverage worldwide supported by the postal delivery network.
• EMS offers the following main characteristics*:
  • acceptance at any Post Office
  • priority handling from acceptance to delivery in the destination country or territory,
  • end-to-end tracking,
  • signature on delivery,
  • delivery of items at addressee's premises. * Depending on the features of the service offered by the postal operator

GroupDeals Plugin for WordPress to Free Groupon Clone

Groupon is offering a successful daily business website that offers to consumers. Matamko.com has a new script called EnMasse Wordpress is concerned that in beta version now posted. The script is working under WordPress environment. Users must install the WP e-Commerce plugin for this script to work. WordPress Groupon features :

• Tight integration to WP 3.0 (and 3.1) and WPEC 3.8
• New user roles and capabilities for Daily Deal Subscribers
• Custom Post Types used for Vendors, Group Deal Purchases and of course the deal itself.
• AJAX User Registration
• Packaged with a 2010 child theme that is a great starting place for any site (Currently, the basic “Groupon” design)
• Automatically emails site owner, business and consumer when a deal “tips”.

This beta version will come with a theme, the child seems more Groupon websites. With this plugin your own website and start Groupon share and promote their daily specials.

How to Build a Site Like Groupon With WordPress

If you want a Groupon website with more functionality, choose Matamko.com  Group discounts are the best way to save money and Groupon has captured that niche.  It has become the hottest startup website.  If you want to build your own group discounts site like Goupon, you can easily build one with Wordpres.   Start your own group buying website showing a deal a day.  With Wordpress Groupon there is no need to buy expensive Groupon clone scripts. Wordpress software and platform is free. Features of the Wordpress Groupon Template:

• Show live deals, expired deals and all deals
• Buyer/Seller Dashboard to submit, deactivate, activate, delete or modify their own deals
• Admin can accept, reject or feature a deal on the homepage
• User dashboard to view deals, ma
• reCAPTCHA enhanced security.
• Complete moderation of deals.
• Full featured notification emails to buyers, sellers and admins.
• Transactional reports.
• Featured deals on homepage + Category-wise deal widget.
• 7 different payment gateway options
• One Click – Auto install of the theme.
• Five detailed color schemes
• Localization support.
• PSD File included with developer license
• Multi level drop down menu
• Custom page templates
• Custom built, dynamic widgets that you can use multiple times.
• Standard WordPress Blog & Pages
• Gravatar Support & Threaded Comments
• Built-in Ad Monetization
• Widget Ready with custom widgets
• Valid, Cross browser compatible

Enhanced Messaging Service (EMS)

Enhanced Messaging Service (EMS) is an adaptation of the Short Message Service (SMS) that allows users to send and receive ring tones and operator logos, as well as combinations of simple media to and from EMS-compliant handsets. Because EMS is based on SMS, it can use SMS Centers (SMSCs) the same way that SMS does. EMS works on all Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) networks (widely used in Europe and increasingly available elsewhere). If a message is sent to a phone that is not EMS-capable, the recipient will still receive the text portion of the message. EMS users can integrate text, melodies, pictures, sounds, and animations to enhance the expressive power of messages that are limited by the display constraints of mobile devices. Message senders can use images, sounds, and animation they download from an online library or create images and sounds directly on the phone. EMS is an open standard developed by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), a mobile telecommunications standards collaborative. The standard is considered an intermediate technology between SMS and Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS), with more capabilities than the former, but fewer than the latter technology. EMS is being actively promoted by Alcatel, Ericsson, Motorola, and Siemens. Nokia is promoting a similar proprietary standard called "Smart Messaging."

Pet Import Singapore

Pet import to Singapore is relatively easy but costly and may require a quarantine of 4 weeks. Dogs and cats in category A as from Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom and Ireland and further countries in category B are exempt from quarantine. All imported dogs and cats must be identified with an ISO-compatible microchip. Dogs/cats without or with unreadable microchips may be deported or detained for any necessary action. For Documents and vaccinations required see below. What you need to know before importing your pet The hot climate and the law requiring dogs be leashed in public places restrict freedom of action considerably. Category A & B dogs must also be muzzled while in public. While one dog of approved breeds is permitted in HDB flats, cats cannot be kept there. You may keep not more than three dogs at your home other than an HDB flat or one dog belonging to the Scheduled dog class. Prior before your pet import to Singapore you need written permission of your landlord to keep a pet at your home in Singapore. Calculate the time for importing your pet. Each dog needs a license that is renewed yearly. The license will be revoked if the dog causes a nuisance (excessive barking, defecating in public, biting etc.) All dogs above 3 months of age must be licensed for rabies control. Licensing requirements Applicants must comply with AVA's Conditions of Licensing. All dogs must be properly confined within the owner's premises. If the dogs are in a public place, they must be on leash and properly supervised and controlled. In respect of the dog licence, the dog owner must ensure the following:

• The licence is renewed annually.
• AVA is informed of the change of ownership of the dog.
• AVA is informed of change of address where the dog is kept.
• AVA is informed should the dog be lost or if it has died.
• The conditions of licence are met.

Owners found breaching the Rules or licence conditions may be compounded for the offence. Dogs belonging to breeds listed in the Second Schedule in the Rules are subject to additional conditions.

How to Power Your Daily Deals Webpage Using WordPress Groupon?

With a host of rich features offered, you now have an uncomplicated way to build and manage your group deals website in this era of economic slowdown. Groupon is one of the hottest trends in businesses online and innumerable clones have featured in the recent past. WordPress Groupon has come up with a premium theme and rich plugins in its EnMasse Wordpress version. What Does WordPress Groupon Offer? Easy operation: With its ease of setup and time saving system, you can get your business rolling in no time with this gorgeous Groupon. Freedom to Manage Profiles: Customers can freely manage their own accounts. Professional Feel: Matamko gives a striking feel to your website so that the users love operating it. Sell Digitally: It enables you to manage sales for downloadable items. Several Payment Modes: It supports a multitude of options for monetary transactions. Internationalization: For non-English speaking people, translation of theme and plugin is feasible. Live Timer: There is a constant countdown timer showing the time left for the sale to close and the number of sales cracked for the deal. Easy Email Subscriptions: Getting the visitors subscribe to your offers or newsletters, has been made very convenient with Matamko. Adding Locations: It is possible to add as many numbers of cities as you want for viewing deals on the same page. Integrating Blog: You can build and strengthen customer relationships via blogging from the same website as the one from which run your daily deals business. WordPress Groupon is a truly power-packed tool for optimum performance of your dynamic business. Get it working for you today! Watch a live demo at Matamko

Top 5 Tips to be Export Ready

It’s not simply enough to want to sell your products internationally; you should also be prepared for this new business venture. Here are some tips to help determine if you're export ready.

Plan, plan, plan.

While most people don't relish the idea of writing a 25-30 page business plan, if you are venturing into new markets, a well researched business plan will guide you through the process and save you a lot of headaches. If done right, your business plan should be able to tell you if there is a market for your product, how to best get into the market, how much it is going to cost you, and how much you should profit.

Be prepared for border crossing costs.

How much is it going to cost to get your product across borders? In addition to the regular cost of doing business, international trade can also include international freight costs, customs brokerage fees, export insurance, and agent's fees or commissions. Some additional indirect costs include translations of labels, travel costs and currency conversion costs.

Remember, the government is on your side.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade has nearly 150 Trade Commissioners posted in foreign cities (as well as 17 in Canada) to promote the export of Canadian goods. The Trade Commissioners can help with directories and manufacturer lists, assessing market potential, meetings with foreign buyers, and preparing products for entry into international markets. The Trade Commission’s Virtual Trade Commissioner website guides you through the process of researching your target country and sector, providing business leads, reports, business culture tips, contacts, and resources.

Make sure you get paid.

The most common form of payment when doing international trade is Letters of Credit (LC's). With an LC, you minimize your risk because the banks assure that the goods are delivered before the money is exchanged. If you are looking at ways of making sure that you get paid, talk to your bank about LC's.

Get good shippers.

Because transportation is such a big component of international trade, you need to be able to rely on your shippers so that you can meet the demands of your clients to get your product to them when they need it.

Useful WordPress Coupon Plugin

We all love coupons and discount codes as saving money is always nice. Actually it has become a business model to find and share coupon codes attached to affiliate links. If you are running a web site business relying on sharing coupon codes and affiliate marketing you need a good WordPress Groupon Plugin to speed up the process and make sure your readers click on your links and not just copy the code. This WordPress Coupon Plugin enables you to embed and share as many coupons as you like with your readers and visitors. With this nice WordPress Coupon Plugin you will easily drop any coupon into your Posts or Pages using handy short codes. Disclosure: Please note that some of the links below are affiliate links and I will earn a commission if you purchase through those links (at no extra cost to you). I recommend that you do your own independent research before purchasing any product or service. This article is not a guideline, a recommendation or endorsement of specific products.

Import and Export Goods in and out of Singapore

If you want to imports goods from overseas to retail in Singapore, you are required to apply for both import permits and licenses for ‘controlled goods’.

To begin, you will need to make sure your business is already registered with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority of Singapore (ACRA). Your business, may be retail, must register as a sole proprietorship, partnership or a private limited company.

Two more things have to happen before you can start importing goods into Singapore. First, after you have the business registered with ACRA, you will then activate your Custom Accounts using ACRA assigned Unique Entity Number (UEN) and Singpass. Second, you will have to be registered as a trader with Singapore Customs. As a trader you will be able to apply for permits using TradeNet® for each shipment of goods.

Generally most goods are considered ‘non-controlled goods’ such as clothes and shoes. You do not need license to import ‘non-controlled goods’. However, if you are going import “controlled goods” such as food and animal products, drugs or telecommunication items, you will need to apply for appropriate license for each category from the ‘competent authority’. An example would be importing animals and birds products, you have to apply for a license from the Agri-food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore.

Be forewarn that there is a significant amount of paperwork to submit for application of import permit for each shipment with the addition of customs documentation and clearance; insurance papers; and paperwork for ‘controlled goods’. There are also taxes, duties and fees to pay. You can do all the paperwork as you are also a registered trader with access to TradeNet®, however, most businesses choose to relegate the task to freight forwarders and cargo agents since the import procedure is quite complex.

WordPress Groupon Plugin

Today i'm going to tell you how to power your very own group deals just like Groupon using WordPress. Today Groupon is all the rage among smart & social shoppers but does groupon have the only stake in the business? Surely Not! After careful consideration we decided it was time to give people the ability to power their very own Groupon Site. We built a Groupon WordPress Clone and did it twice. First through the convenience of a plugin, so you don't have to change your theme. Second we built a dedicated Wordpress Groupon Theme.

WPoupon Features

WordPress Groupon Plugin Features

1. Plugin is embeddable on any WordPress website.
2. Plugin uses simple short codes to display the group deals
3. Plugin uses simple short codes to display forms to create deals
4. Plugin can power unlimited deals simultaneously
5. Plugin gives site admin the ability to charge for deals
6. Plugin has built in PayPal integration
7. Plugin has the ability for users to create their own deals and make money
8. Plugin has custom designing options with easy to modify CSS
9. Plugin as built in category management & new category creator
10. Plugin can embed on any post or page within a WordPress website.

WPoupon Benefits

Benefits of having your own groupon

The benefits are almost endless. We looked at what would provide the most value to bloggers and WordPress owners. The firts thing that came to mind has convenience. Everyone has spent time and money developing there websites or blogs and many have expressed a desire to have something like a WordPress Groupon Theme but do not want to change their theme. So we created a WordPress Groupon Plugin instead. This way you can easily upload and activate the plugin and start generating deals for your readers.

Went one step further than that. Now site owners can enable the readers to create their own deals to power on your website. Even better the readers don't even have to login or be a member or access the back end of your website, it's all front end ajax powered. FANTASTIC

If you're an internet marketer or someone who provides services or goods onsite this WordPress Groupon Plugin Is perfect for you. Maybe you operate a community website with lots of readers and want to offer up killer deals this is the plugin to do it.

Start a Groupon Like Site Using WordPress

Sites such as WordPress Groupon ! Do not need any introduction. Those of you who love following deals and bargains online have probably taken advantage of some of the deals these sites have to offer. Do you have your own deals that you want to share with the world? Thanks to Matamko, you can start your very own daily deal site using the WordPress platform. Matamko is designed strategically to get your top deals the most attention. Once you enter your deals into your database, they will be displayed at a prominent place on your home page. Your visitors will know how many of each item you have in stock and when your deal ends. The deal board is quite dynamic and attractive. This theme does use a good amount of text, which makes it more search friendly. Your visitors will have the option to submit their own deals to your website. They are provided with a form that they can use to share their deals’ details with your audience. This theme is quite powerful when it comes to deal management. Webmasters are always in control of what gets published to their site. Daily Deal comes integrated with various payment system so your visitors can buy through your website easily. Matamko has a versatile back-end that lets you change your navigation settings, SEO options, and theme style. You get 5 color themes to choose from. Matamko can be localized easily too. If you are a small business owner hoping to offer your visitors daily deals, Matamko theme is a good theme to consider picking up.

3 Ways to Clone Groupon Using WordPress

People who are into local deals and coupons are most likely familiar with sites such as Groupon. Sites such as Groupon can bring businesses a lot of new customers and help their owners get the word out about their service. Groupon is not flawless by any means and not for everyone. You can always create your own local deal business if you are not too happy with what Groupon offers. Here are 3 ways you can go about creating a  WordPress Groupon. Wpoupon for WordPress: a Groupon clone theme for WordPress. Lets you feature your top deals on its home page. It offers Paypal or Authorize.net integration. Daily Deal: lets you create and manage your own deal portal in WordPress. It has 5 color schemes and a deal moderation system. reCAPTCHA is integrated into it. It can be localized. Group Deals plugin: not interested in installing a brand new theme to turn your site into a Groupon-clone? This plugin can handle Group Deals on WordPress. It is not perfect but has a lot of potential. The above themes and plugin are useful for anyone who wants to start a Groupon style site using WordPress. Which one do you like the most?

Where Should You Start Your Groupon Clone?

New York, Chicago, LA, SF, and Boston are heading the Groupon Clone charge for good reason — there’s variety in cuisine, services, and attractions in order to sustain a different, premium daily deal. I wanted to see which cities are the hottest based on sales and predict where we’ll see the biggest growth. Until recently, it would have been impossible to have an apples to apples comparison of deals in each city — some pizzerias are just better than others, e.g. Grimaldi’s versus Famous Rays, so we can’t compare intra-city, and who wouldn’t agree that NYC pizza is better than Chicago’s, so inter-city pizza deal comparisons are also out the window. However, The Gap recently ran a national Groupon deal, allowing me to compare city vs. city. I emailed Groupon for the statistics of their Gap campaign, but they didn’t answer me fully back yet (only that there were 440,000 in total). So I went to their website and checked the Gap deal for every city, replacing each city name, one by one. The result is a list of cities by Gap deals sold (by “GAP rank”). Traction Gap Rank shows the most accurate traction statistic for group buying: Groupon sells thousands of deals more than its competitors combined, this was a national campaign, and the same product was sold in every market on the same day. Moreover, it’s something my mom would buy, or Oprah would recommend — so it passes the mom test! We have to adjust for relative size — NYC is 8 times the size of Salt Lake, so it should sell 8x the deals. So I ranked by GAP deals per capita (“Gap / Population Rank”). Affluence The other factor to consider is relative affluence (after all, these are deals for spa treatments, not doctor visits). I measured the growth potential for each city by affluence based on ranking GDP per capita (by population). I realized that some cities were penalized for a lower population, even though they had great traction (for example, Washington DC which has a 25th ranked population but was the 1st ranked city for GDP/Capita — and 5th overall for deals sold!). Ranking by GDP per Capita fixes that problem. The Score The score (column G) is a measure of the likelihood that the people of a city will buy group deals based on traction (GAP / Capita) and how wealthy they are (GDP / Capita), but this score omits the significance that Groupon is a viral beast — network effects further fuel the fire. The absolute number of total deals sold is significant – it represents the number of people in the city who will go off and tell their friends about their awesome deal at the Gap. So, taking a weighted average of each variable including the total number of GAP deals sold is the most accurate score for growth of top cities: Weighted Score= (1/3 rank GDP/CAP) + (1/3 rank Total Deals) + (1/3 rank GAP/CAP) Therefore, the Top US cities for deal growth are (in order): Washington, Boston, Minneapolis, Atlanta, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, Denver, Chicago, Dallas (Fort Worth), Salt Lake City, Cincinnati, Portland, Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Orlando, Raleigh (Durham/Chapel Hill), Hartford, Providence, Tampa, Cleveland, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York, San Jose Conclusion A deal aggregator should target cities based not where the most number of deal service providers are, but where they’re going to be — cities with traction and people who are going to buy them (so stay away from Phoenix, Houston, and San Antonio in the next 6 months to 1 year, despite population size). So go after the cities with the highest weighted average score (mentioned above). In terms of choosing cities based on deal services, there are currently estimates of 150 Groupon Clones — with such low barriers to entry, it’s really difficult to know of (be aware of) each Deal provider in every city. They’re popping up left and right, and with Group Buying really getting hot in the summer, I expect a bunch of deals in other verticals to start popping up in the fall, specifically on college campuses (CampusDibs.com). These are places where populations can change dramatically (think Game Day at Penn State when 100,000+ people come to see a football game) and could take flash-mob deals to a whole new level. Look out for daily deals on campus at schools with large student bodies and a vibrant college town: OSU, Arizona State, Florida, Minnesota, UT Austin, Michigan State, Penn State, but remember, size isn’t everything, right Washington, D.C.? Groupon clones should hit the streets in the cities with the lowest weighted score. The cities are familiar with Groupon deals, but Groupon doesn’t have a strong hold since 2/3 of the weighted score is based on deal flow. These cities are:  Albuquerque, Memphis, San Antonio, Louisville, New Orleans, Las Vegas, Ok. City, Omaha, Madison, Milwaukee, and Phoenix.

Clone king Marc Samwer out as Groupon’s international head following record high ad violations

Groupon’s business stateside has been embroiled in an accounting scandal that cut the stock price in half. But its international operations are responsible for two-thirds of the company’s revenue. Yesterday the company announced that Marc Samwer, who along with his brothers notoriously creates clones of successful American startups, was stepping down as head of their international operations, to be replaced by the Austrian Veit Dengler. Samwer took over at Groupon’s international operations in 2010, after it bought Citydeal, the Groupon clone he and his brothers created. During his tenure the U.K. arm of Groupon was censured by regulators after it posted a record high 50 violations of that country’s advertising codes, including deals on breast implants that didn’t work and products that simply didn’t exist. In Germany, where Citydeal was based, Groupon has been accused of harsh labor practices and breach of contract, complaints that echoed those around a class action lawsuit here in America. And while Groupon vowed to improve in the wake of these customer and employee complaints, our own Rocky Argawal found the Groupon Promise isn’t as ironcald as it seems at first. New international head Veit Dengler most recently ran computer maker Dell’s Eastern European and Russian operations. He will have his work cut out for him as Groupon tries reverse its losses and claw its way to profitability in this next quarter. Filed under: deals

VENTURE CAPITAL-Groupon's success inspires copycats

Dec 1 - If Google buys the popular daily deal Website, it could fuel the creation of even more clones. Tom Stein of Venture Capital Journal reports: ********************************************************** * Report: Google in talks to buy Groupon for up to $6 bln * Yipit.com aggregates 130-plus Groupon competitor deals * Bloomspot applying Groupon model to luxury purchases WALTHAM, Mass. - When Todd Rideman first heard about Groupon, he figured he could do it, too. After all, what's so hard about putting up a Website, offering a few deals each day from local merchants -- like $20 worth of cupcakes for $10 -- and then watching the cash roll in? So Rideman poured $100,000 of his hard-earned money into his own daily deal site and, at the beginning of the year, launched WowWhatSavings, targeting the Boston area. He quickly learned, however, that building a profitable Groupon clone isn't as easy it looks. "I was able to get the local merchants, but getting people to come to the site was costing a fortune," said Rideman. After six months, he had just a few thousand people on his distribution list. He has since morphed his business into a deal site for restaurants only, and has seen sales perk up. WowWhatSavings is one of more than 130 Websites that offer daily deals like Groupon, according to Yipit, which aggregates the deals. Now, with the New York Times reporting that Google is negotiating to buy Groupon for up to $6 billion, the space is likely to grow even more crowded. Groupon competitors include well-funded, VC-backed companies like LivingSocial and BuyWithMe, as well as boot-strapped start-ups like CoupMe and ScoopCoups. AOL has launched a Groupon clone, as has Wal-Mart and Cox Media. Facebook has started offering local deals, and there's talk of Yahoo and Twitter wanting in. There has already been one acquisition in the space. Woot, which offers a single deal per day, was purchased by Amazon for $110 million in June. "The Internet giants are starting to pay attention to this space because it's an important new driver of revenue," said Jeremy Liew, a partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners, an investor in LivingSocial. "There will be lots of jockeying in the next 18 months, but any acquisition will have to be a major strategic thrust because it will not come cheap." The jockeying is understandable. This is a market estimated to be in the tens of billions of dollars per year. That's the amount small businesses spend on advertising with local media like newspapers, television and the yellow pages. Sites like Groupon are disrupting this market, siphoning off an ever-expanding chunk of that revenue. HOW IT WORKS In the Groupon model, local businesses agree to discount their product or service by 50 percent, and then split the revenue 50/50 with Groupon. Deals become valid once a specific number of consumers agree to a purchase. This encourages users to spread the deal via social media, thus the group buying aspect. "I'm not at all surprised by the number of Groupon clones out there," said Kevin Efrusy of Accel Partners, which took part in a $135 million round for Groupon in June. "I think anytime you have a company on the Web that grows as quickly and makes as much money as Groupon does, you attract a lot of entrants." Groupon's closest competitor is LivingSocial, which has raised a total of $49 million from Grotech Ventures, Lightspeed, Steve Case's Revolution fund, and U.S. Venture Partners. "You need tens of millions of dollars to be a player in this space," said Liew, who spearheaded a $14 million Series C round for LivingSocial last April. "We told LivingSocial that they needed a sufficient war chest to run fast and catch up with Groupon." Groupon, for its part, has raised a total of $169.8 million since 2008 from Accel, Battery Ventures, Digital Sky Technologies and New Enterprise Associates. The money is primarily used to enter new cities across the globe. Liew contends that Groupon and LivingSocial control the vast majority of the market. But that hasn't stopped new competitors from springing and attracting venture capital. In the last few months alone, several new companies have landed venture funding. One-year-old Bloomspot, which is applying the Groupon model to luxury purchases like spa getaways, raised a $9 million Series A in September from Menlo Ventures (which led the round), Harrison Metal Capital and True Ventures. Meanwhile Google Ventures invested an undisclosed amount in October in newcomer Signpost, a community-powered deals site that raised $1 million from Spark Capital just seven months earlier. There are even aggregators like 2-year-old Yipit, which raised $1.3 million in Series A funding in June from DFJ Gotham Ventures, IA Ventures, RRE Ventures, Ron Conway's SV Angel and a host of other angel investors. Perhaps the biggest threat to Groupon is not the influx of competitors, but the sustainability of its business model. The company has come under fire from some small businesses who complain that they have been overwhelmed by coupon-wielding customers. One cafe owner in Portland said her Groupon offering cost her business $8,000, after swarms of people descended on her shop with half-off coupons. In fact, a new study from the Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business at Rice University found that one-third of businesses don't make money from promotions on Groupon and that 40 percent of businesses said they wouldn't do a social promotion again. "An industry in which 2 in 5 customers are hesitant after a first purchase ... may need to modify its overall strategy," wrote Utpal Dholakia, author of the study. Sucharita Mulpuru, an analyst with Forrester Research, isn't convinced that Groupon will remain the dominant player. "Just because one company gets 50 million people on its list one year, that doesn't mean that next year someone else could not grow as rapidly," Mulpuru said. "Has Groupon fundamentally attracted customers that nobody else can attract? No, because they ask so little of their consumers -- simply subscribe to a list. But by the nature of asking so little, someone else can come in and do the same thing." (Venture Capital Journal is a Thomson Reuters publication. Contact editor in chief Lawrence Aragon at lawrence.aragon@thomsonreuters.com.)

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