DealGooder.com is trying to change the way people shop—one deal at a time.
“DealGooder is a website that gives people the opportunity to save money while giving back to their local community,” said Cara Mungo, cofounder and president of Costa Mesa-based DealGooder LLC, which started the daily deal website last year.
It operates like others in the daily deals segment, a field that includes big national names Groupon Inc., based in Chicago, and Washington, D.C.’s Living Social Inc., as well as local entries such as Local.com in Irvine.
They send offers for discounts on various products and services to members who sign up for the service. The websites take a cut of any sales that result from the offers.
Helping Nonprofits
DealGooder gives half of its take to local nonprofits, according to Mungo.
“Local vendors get new customers, added sales and positive PR,” she said. “Nonprofits get needed donations with minimal effort. Customers get a great deal, and the satisfaction of knowing that a portion of their purchase helped a good cause.”
Mungo is a former marketing director for Irvine-based apparel maker St. John Knits International Inc. She founded the company with Todd Meyer, Erica Austin and Ethan Austin.
DealGooder differs from competitors as it tries to reshape how people think about shopping and supporting their community, Mungo said.
DealGooder features one deal a day from local restaurants, hotels, events and other businesses, with discounts ranging from 50% to 90% off, she said.
Each morning a new deal is offered. After a person buys the deal, they’ll often tell friends and feel good for giving back to a nonprofit, Mungo said.
Recently, DealGooder has featured deals with hair salon Drybar at Fashion Island, Ecco Restaurant at The Camp in Costa Mesa, tickets to Anaheim Ducks hockey games and the Irvine Lake Mud Run event, to name a few.
DealGooder keeps a portion of its profits and donates 50% to local charities, Mungo said.
“We have over 52 nonprofits as our partners,” she added. “The list grows daily.”
Among them are the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Goodwill of Orange County and Team Kids.
Each charity is featured for a minimum of one week, Mungo said. There’s also a referral program in which a charity receives more donations every time it sends someone to DealGooder.
“So even when they are not being featured, they can still raise much-needed donations from us,” she said.
The company counts 10 workers and a few interns. Good Magazine named the site one of the top “daily deal sites that are better (for the world) than Groupon.”
Word of mouth and social media help.
“Our fanatical customer service and social good twist has helped create loyalty among our customers, who in return help spread awareness,” Mungo said.
DealGooder is out in the community constantly, she added, making pitches at farmers markets, college campuses and charity events to build awareness for itself and its nonprofits.
“We are much more than a daily deals site,” Mungo said. “You’ll see in 10 years … the vast majority of consumers will expect their brands to do social good.”
Biggest Challenge
The biggest challenge is repeat customers, according to Mungo.
“Right now, our return rate is way over the industry standard,” she said. “As we grow, it is going to be challenging to keep this up.”
Loyal customers to the site, as well as those loyal to specific charities, “will help us establish and maintain our repeat customers,” she added.
The four partners contributed a combined amount of about $55,000 in initial funding that was used to get a beta site up and running, according to Mungo.
“As soon as we became a proven money-maker—immediately generating revenue—we raised a friends-and-family round of funding,” she said. “We are currently in the process of raising angel capital.”
A figure of DealGooder’s revenue wasn’t available.
Additional funds are key to the company’s expansion plans. DealGooder is eyeing other areas, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle and Austin, Texas, Mungo said.
Gomez is a freelance writer based in Long Beach.
