VerticalResponse Coupons, Clipper Help SMBs Get More Social

The VerticalResponse Coupons feature is easy to use enables a small business to create a custom online coupon in five minutes. Once the coupon is created, it can be published as a Facebook tab or a standalone Web page. Or it can be shared on Twitter. The application also gives users the option to activate a pop-up window that asks viewers to like the company's Facebook page or follow on Twitter.

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VerticalResponse recently launched its social platform with two new features: Coupons and Clipper.

Coupons lets businesses generate custom coupons that can be published as a Facebook tab on their Facebook page or as a standalone Web page. Clipper is a browser button that lets users save interesting Web pages to their VerticalResponse Social account; the "clipped" URLswill appear in their content library.
The two features are different, but the drivers behind them are the same, social platform VP Alex Chang told CRM Buyer.
"We are trying to do everything we can to help the small and medium-sized business be as effective and time efficient with social media as possible," he said. "These companies do not have a lot of time to spend on marketing, and both of these features fall under that rubric of saving time."

How They Work

The Coupons feature is easy to use, Chang said, with a small business able to create a custom online coupon in five minutes. Once the coupon is created, it can be published as a Facebook tab or a standalone Web page. Or it can be shared on Twitter.
The application also gives users the option to activate a pop-up window that asks viewers to like the company's Facebook page or follow on Twitter -- before viewing the coupon.
Such a tactic might irk consumers, but from the marketer's perspective it makes perfect sense. Coupons and discounts are one of the few tried-and-true reasons -- beyond service issues -- people bother to interact with a brand on social media.
Another use of Coupons would be as a quasi rival to the deal aggregator sites. Because Coupons integrates with VerticalResponse's email marketing capabilities, a merchant can send out a discount or coupon to its customers as it pleases.
"We have a lot of retailers, restaurants and e-commerce  sites as users," Chang said, "and this would be a good fit for them. Their own customers are passionate about finding a deal or discount online."
Other features in Coupons include the ability to create a custom URLfor the coupon Web page that can be shared anywhere, and the ability to create an email marketing campaign about the promotion and include the coupon URL, without having to leave the VerticalResponse dashboard.
There is also coupon-reporting functionality such as shares and views.

Clip It for Later

Clipper is also a straightforward feature. Users drag and drop the Clipper "Clip It" button to their browser toolbar. Then, when they see something they want to share on social media, they click the "Clip It" button; the "clipped" URLs are automatically added to the user's social content library in VerticalResponse.
When it's time to create a new social media post or campaign, the clipped links will appear as a special source feed within the user's VerticalResponse social account.