Groublogpon – The Serious Blog of Groupon

In addition to weekly campaigns, our G-Team recently set up an Earthquake Relief Fund, spoke at SXSW and the Chicago Forward panel. G-Team representative Dillon shares the brief but mighty history of our social action team.

From teen pop star/heartthrob to cute and cuddly animals, take a quick cruise with us from our humble beginnings to a bountiful spring harvest.

Fresh from launching G-Team campaigns in six new markets on March 8th—now ten in total with more on the way—we are unearthing some of our most cherished treasures before the British Museum snags them up for the world to oohh and ahhh at. Groupon was birthed from a group of mystics and hobnobbers who called themselves The Point. The Point had this clever, unique, and compelling idea for a platform, which sought to bring people together for effective group action, thus making positive social impact in the communities we call home. And after crossing this core idea with the modern Groupon reality we’ve adapted and evolved to what the world now knows to be the G-Team.

Back in the not-so-distant yesteryear of September 2010, G-Team pioneer No. 1, Patty Huber, first successfully implemented this unique community call to action with the Bear Necessities campaign. Utilizing Groupon’s massive reach coupled with a specific, tangible, and compelling community need, Patty simply presented our subscribers an opportunity to connect with and do something about a story she felt they would care about.

Obviously picking up on what the G-Team was putting down, the campaign quickly tipped with some on top ($640 total). The end result was that 16-year-old Tessa, a pediatric cancer patient, got front-row seats for her and her BFF to go to the B96 bash via limo and see the illustrious Justin Bieber get his groove on. After being a recipient of this small miracle, here’s what Tessa had to say about her experience:

Best of all, Justin Bieber pointed and sang to me, plus I got to keep one of the band crew’s guitar picks! I had such a fun night and it’s all thanks to you. I’m never going to forget it. It’s people like you who make the world a better place, I couldn’t thank you enough. It was a night I’ll always remember, and it will stay in my heart forever.

Flash forward to March 2011 and the Save-A-Pet campaign. Raising a mouthwatering $10,724 for this stellar Chi-town animal shelter, we are proud to report this is our most successful non-national G-Team endeavor to date. We also want to acknowledge that this tremendous achievement would not have been possible without a large number of our generous subscribers heeding our call and donating their hard-earned coin to improve the lives of others (both animal and animal-loving alike).

No small feat to scoff at, the success of this campaign specifically translates into a week’s worth of food for 1,532 cats or dogs, which frees up funds for other rehabilitation services. This campaign blew all of our preconceived notions of how much we could raise in 72 hours or less, as well as personifying and exemplifying the core values G-Team shares with our community.

So, the next time life presents itself with a spiritual challenge feel free to cling to these success stories and especially the amount of growth the G-Team has achieved in six months. Better yet, consider that if no one ever lent a helping hand to our Point forefathers then there would be no Groupon, and no you reading this.There’s a strand of G-Team DNA in each and every one in the Grouponation, so we hope to help you find yours. One step backward, three steps forward.

You can read more about other campaigns and suggest a charity you’d like to see featured on their site.

Tags: Community Service, g-team