Tuesday, March 22, 2011

The Groupon Effect

The 'Groupon effect' has already begun to change how people buy things. It will soon change how we vote - and everything else.

For those not familiar with "Groupon" it is a business that provides consumers with an enticing offer to buy coupons worth 50%-80% off at local businesses. Every day is a different offer and you only get 24 hours to buy or let the deal pass. If you need more info google it.

The important things here are:

- groups of people have power
- businesses and organizations increasingly want to identify groups so they can cater to them.
- this is really, really popular right now

I believe that many areas of life are heading in this direction. In politics there have long been lobby interests for industries (milk producers) or causes (drunk driving). Now, a group like MADD can form in an evening online through twitter, facebook, and whatever comes next. It won't have a president or constitution but it will have leadership and be real. We're entering a world more friendly to group-forming thanks to social media.

Yeah... people are going to want to group themselves for community. Then they'll find that they have influence, too.

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