Cebu-based company sets up website to offer online deals

By Katlene O. Cacho

Sunday, September 4, 2011

CLARISA Bernal has turned her love for shopping online into a business.

With the growing popularity of online deal sites particularly in the United States, Bernal and her sister Angel thought of putting up an online deal site that offers “deep discounts” on products and services to the value-conscious Cebuano market.

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“Online deals sites in the country, particularly in Cebu, are not maximized. We thought of establishing a site for online Cebuano consumers to help them find the great deals among local establishments,” Bernal said in an interview during the site’s launching on Saturday.

Bernal said the site, at www.pinoygreatdeals.com, is privately owned by Cebu-based Philippine Cyber Ventures, which soft-opened last May. The firm invested P500,000 to start the business.

Bernal said the site currently has 20 clients. It has tapped restaurants, spas, hotels and other Cebu establishments. She said the firm will also expand operations to Manila.

In order for customers to avail themselves of the deals, they will have to create an account, which is for free, and subscribe to email alerts, which the site distributes to subscribers twice a month.

Payments are done online. Bernal said people can pay through credit card, PayPal, bank deposit or online banking. Buyers will then receive an online voucher that they will print and present, along with their IDs, to the establishment.

Daily deals sites are growing in popularity worlwide and research firm comScore said Asia “is starting to see plenty of action.”

Bernal added online deals sites are win-win solutions for both consumers and establishments. She said that while consumers can purchase items at huge discounts, establishments, on the other hand, also get promotions of their brand and services.

Bernal said they have made their site interactive. Aside from featuring the great deals and establishments, the firm set up a blog where customers would know the latest on Cebu.

Bernal said the online deals site is just one of their family’s businesses. They also ventured into the transcription business.

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on September 05, 2011.