The Trigger SXSW: Hank Leber, GonnaBe
It Was Never About Me, Was It? The Real Value Of Living Social.
Living Social is in trouble. Whether they know it or not. Or would care to admit it.
Privco.com reported on Wednesday; “LivingSocial (PrivCo Private Company Ticker: LIVSOCP) has just received $110 million in emergency financing from some of its existing investors today, in a last ditch attempt to save the privately-held daily deals company from imminent financial ruin, PrivCo has confirmed exclusively, until the company can be sold by year’s end to recoup whatever is still possible.”
Yikes. Sounds like no one’s hankering after those 8 gym classes or helicopter tours around your city after all. Or maybe it’s because we’ve all come to realize that Living Social doesn’t really know us at all.
I could kick myself for opening the 3-Hydrocolonics for $15 deal about 9 months back as a joke for a friends upcoming birthday. Why? Because now Living Social is under the impression that’s my thing. And it’s so not-my-thing that it’s enough for my to delete every Living Social email I get (without reading it) and eventually just unsubscribe all together.
Let’s be honest - I suppose I was never really honest with Living Social about my wants & needs - but then again, they never asked or gave me a chance. They just made assumptions! And it seems like everyone’s jumping off this band wagon with about as much fever as they jumped on. Guess they don’t like daily reminders of 10-botox injections.
Now - the fate of Living Social is by, all means, still up for discussion. They still hold strong that there is no peril in our relationship regardless of what the rumors flying around the internet state. We’d be willing to hear them out if they’d stop reminding me I need to try out 18 different gym memberships.
However, this is exactly the fuel behind GonnaBe. The data that GonnaBe generates ensures quality. Users are telling us A) What they’re gonna be doing, which turns into B) what they’re doing, and then C) what they’ve done. So we know more about a user than LivingSocial ever did – and we’re able to send deals, offers, and pairings in advance of your activity – in the very window that matters most. The defined space of opportunity that every marketer dreams of. It’s the byproduct of our app. Finally - someone will understand my appreciation of a good wine with a good meal relatively close to public transportation!
So three cheers for the (potential) demise of LivingSocial – it’s validates the point: quality, not quantity. The smart targeting that comes from machine learning and the rare platforms like ours who have future/intent data is how this space will be won. And the payout will be bigger than the original valuations of Groupon and LivingSocial.
It’s like someone will finally ‘get’ me.
