DUBLIN IS being used as the test bed for a new online deals service that aims to compete with companies like Groupon and Living Social.
GeoDeals is designed to offer customers deals on their smartphones in real-time based on their location, as opposed to time-limited deals for a city. The service will get an international launch later this year following its trial run here.
“The downtown core of Dublin is fairly unique in terms of large urban areas, where it’s not too big that it’s like New York City but there’s still a high density,” said Rahul Sonnad, chief executive of Geodelic, the Los Angeles-based company behind the GeoDeals service.
He said there was a perception in the industry that if you could make a service work in Dublin it could be easily applied to other cities around the world.
“From a lot of people we’ve spoken to, Ireland and Dublin are perceived as very innovative technologically, educated and savvy, so it’s also a good place to try smartphone-type products,” said Mr Sonnad.
While many deal sites already exist GeoDeals aims to differentiate itself from others by giving merchants more control.
This means they can create and end deals in real time rather than having them available for a whole day. They can also offer things beyond straightforward discounts, which Mr Sonnad said companies dislike as it “devalues” their products and services.
The service is also designed to have a high number of deals rather than one or two per day, with users being shown what is on offer based on their exact location as well as their preferences.
At present users can access the deals through their web browser with apps for Android and iPhone likely to launch shortly.
However Mr Sonnad accepted that despite its unique selling point GeoDeals would have to work hard to gain ground in an already saturated market.
“That’s one of the fundamental problems that all deal companies face in general,” he said.
He said the aim was to have hundreds of Dublin merchants online in the next few months and to get their feedback as existing merchants are already doing.
As part of the plan for its international launch GeoDeals will partner with large companies including mobile network operators. Mr Sonnad said the company is also keen to talk to other deals providers as they seek to move to location-based offers.
Founded in 2008 Geodelic has raised more than $10 million in investment from Clearstone, Shasta Ventures, MK Capital and Verizon Ventures. Mr Sonnad said the company will locate 6 staff in Dublin to support the launch of Geodeals.
