Which coupon sites?

Image via CrunchBase

The group buying sites seem to have all sprung up in the last couple of years, and their popularity no doubt has increased as many people are watching their budgets like a hawk as many economies are still fighting back (or just barely surviving) from the global financial crises.  Everyone probably enjoys a good deal or two in general. 

I have enjoyed using Groupon quite a lot due to their different products or services (and the relevancy and usefulness), city and now country coverage.  However, some people do complain that they prepay all these services and products upfront but end up not using them, thus wasting a lot of money.  Recently I came across this Scoutmob site which has a completely different model.  You can email the deal to your PC or phone or if you have a smart phone, download the app and then view the deals on your smartphone.  When you are at the location, then you open the email or the app to view the deal, and then show it to the restaurant so that the deal can be applied to your final tab.  It is that simple - no prepayment or waste of money.  The deal lasts for about 3 to 4 months. This I think is a brilliant model that would attract a lot of new converts, especially when they expand their cities and their types of services beyond food and drinks. 

Companies such as Walmart is combining the Facebook "Like" button idea with group buying. 

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• Review: So many coupon sites, so little time (seattletimes.nwsource.com)