From half-priced Botox to deep discounts on laser hair removal, Groupon is one of the web crazes that can jump start traffic to your business. Among practices that have used it successfully is the Miami Center for Dermatology. They offered 15 units of Botox for $100, less than half the usual price, but “people who came in for the 15 units fell in love with the office and took more, as well as other procedures,” says David Botton, marketing director for the center. Nonetheless, says Botton, Groupon can be a dangerous thing. “If you are not ready for Groupon, it can kill your business instead of helping.” One case in point is a cosmetic surgeon who was selling 22 units of Botox on Groupon for $79. The doctor also pledged that he would personally administer the units. The result was a flood of patients coming in for the super-inexpensive Botox shots, costing the doctor a small fortune. “It almost put him out of business,” says Botton. “A doctor gets into trouble if he can’t up-sell.”
