How coupon, deal sites make shopping simpler for buyers, sellers

There is a new flash site on the web that may help small etailers and businesses get a bigger presence on the Web. Called LuxeYard, the flash sale site focuses not just on big-name brands but on interesting, new or high-quality products. They're working with local businesses to put products online and are working with designers like Bobby Berk on product recommendations.

In addition to the flash sale portion of the company they're launching LuxePop which is similar to an online pop-up retail store. The site also integrates with social media so that shoppers can push the prices down by group buying. Other offerings include:

• Concierge Buying - giving the consumer the ability to 'recommend' items to put on the site
• Shipping from manufacturer to consumer to lower shipping/handling costs
• Expert advice on trends, products and information

Meanwhile CouponCodes.com has revamped some of their offerings with female shoppers in mind. The site has created pages to help shoppers more easily find deals, coupons and offers from brands. Through the new pages format shoppers can shop for deals and codes according to what they want - DIY Interior Designer, Fashionista, Small Business Owner, etc.

Just how big is the coupon/deal space becoming? Over the Thanksgiving Weekend (US, 2011) CouponCodes estimated shoppers using their site could save $17.50 (average) on each purchase made during the Black Friday/Cyber Monday extravaganza.

The issue? Only about 11% of shoppers (Ipsos Public Affairs survey) look online for coupons or deal codes before heading out to shop - or even to shop online. With the new system in place CouponCodes hopes shoppers will come back because they've made finding deals simpler. The new offering should also hold out hope to online retailers because getting shoppers in the cyber doors is also made easier when they have a coupon to use to off-set shipping or get an even better deal.

Tags: coupon codes, CouponCodes, deal sites, ecommerce, group deal trends, LuxeYard, online coupons