Groupon Continues To Build, Innovate With Gnome
By Hannah Ash, contributing writer
Groupon Gnome Merges Channels, Moves To Internet Of Things
Groupon has been stacking up commerce headlines lately. Since September 2013, the flash-deals dealer has rolled out acquisitions and new initiatives that elevate the retailer from deal aggregator to deal marketplace. Adding to its roster of products and services, Groupon has launched Groupon Gnome. Gnome is an all-inclusive POS solution for retailers; the register accepts all forms of payment, from traditional cash to Groupon vouchers. Gnome will be iPad-based and function similarly to the Square register.
At first glance, Groupon Gnome may appear too similar to Square to make a dent in the market, however, Groupon Gnome is packed with some powerful features for Groupon’s merchants. The register is a way to transform the Groupon experience, for the retailer, from attracting one-time customers to capturing valuable information about who these customers are, empowering merchants to create repeat business through marketing custom-tailored deals based on purchase history. Eric Lefkofsky, CEO of Groupon, states that Gnome “will serve as an operating system for merchants to run their entire operation and enable them to create real-time promotions that bring customers into their business when they need them the most.”
Beyond just giving retailers the ability to get in touch with Groupon consumers, Gnome harnesses iBeacon technology to give merchants the opportunity to immediately identify in-store customers via Bluetooth sensors, recognizing both Groupon vouchers and preferred payment methods. It’s a big step toward moving retailers, and consumers, into the realm of the Internet of Things, in which consumers can simply walk into a store, select an item and walkout without ever officially checking out. For customers, Gnome eliminates the hassle of searching for a payment method, printing vouchers and the possible stigma of not paying full-price for a service or product. As Groupon’s chief executive officer, Lefkofsky clearly has a vision, having previously stated he sees Groupon as a way to merge online with offline, “merchants are connected and consumers are connected; and there's this giant network and it's all connected via mobile. And people can find relevant deals around them and go in and redeem them without ever having to pull the phone out of their pocket. And merchants say: I've got two hours that are empty, and I'm going to load up a deal for just these two hours. That kind of connectivity is awesome.”