Greetings from the Product team here at Groupon! Today we’ve announced Groupon Scheduler, a new online appointment calendar that provides an easy way for Groupon merchants to manage their schedules and accept bookings directly from consumers.
Groupon Scheduler grew out of technology from our September 2011 acquisition of OpenCal, an innovative company founded in 2009 by product designers Arash Shiva and Simon Vallee in Vancouver, Canada. We recognized that there were thousands of appointment-based Groupon merchants looking for a simple way to implement online scheduling. Groupon Scheduler can accommodate schedules for different employees, services, and business locations, allowing consumers to book appointments without having to call or email.
Groupon consumers can book appointments with participating merchants through their account on Groupon.com and will receive a reminder email 24 hours before the scheduled appointment. In addition to booking Groupon clientele, merchants can place a “Book Now” button on their website to schedule non-Groupon appointments and manage their entire calendar.
We’ve kicked off a pilot program in Sacramento and Miami and plan to implement Groupon Scheduler in markets across the U.S. and internationally soon. If you’re a business owner, learn more and register to be notified when Groupon Scheduler launches in your local market on our merchant page http://www.groupon.com/scheduler.
David Katz
VP/GM Retail Solutions
Hello 
