Months after launching its Check-In Deals, Facebook is now unveiling the real Facebook Deals -- localized deals that range from whitewater rafting trips to burger joints.
The deals are found on Facebook either by the Deals tab on one's home page, or users can subscribe for updates. But it comes again with Facebook's constant pushing for users to share more information. "If your friends chose to share this information, you may also see the deals friends buy or like in your News Feed," Emily White, director of local, writes on the Facebook Blog.
The emphasis on the these deals is friends -- from checking in with them, asking if they might attend an event or asking them to come with you. This is the social aspect that seems to be most missing from mammoth group sites like Groupon or LivingSocial (possibly because its not a social network.)
Some of the current deals appear to be $40 worth of food for $20 at The Counter (a burger joint in Corte Madera, Walnut Creek and Roseville), a $79 per-person, one-day whitewater rafting trip on the American River and a private party for up to 20 people for $1,000 at Pena Pachamama in San Francisco.
“Everything from discovery, to conversation to planning and going; every aspect of the deal is social,” White told Search Engine Land. “We’re going after social experiences. There won’t be any teeth whitening.”
Facebook also plans to incorporate Facebook credits into the deal mix, so user can buy using virtual currency or with a credit card, according to the New York Times.
Facebook inserted the only thing missing from big discount sites like Groupon -- relationships. This is why I think Groupon and others sites like it will be gone within a year, because unless they can compete with Facebook they can't win.
