Coupons go electronic

Looking for a local coupon? John Evons wants to help. \nThe senior entrepreneurship major recently created a Web site, www.iucoupons.com, that lets students and faculty access coupons from local businesses. \n"It's a kind of whole new industry," Evons said. "It's really an on-demand coupon system."\nOn the site, which makes its official debut today, users can print coupons or have them sent electronically to a cell phone in the form of a text message. Nineteen merchants, from local sandwich shops to hair salons, are offering deals on the site. \nUnlike their paper counterparts, online coupons give greater control to businesses, Evons said, allowing merchants to update coupons daily or change them throughout the day. \nIf a restaurant has a slow breakfast business, for example, it can instantly compensate by adding a coupon that customers can use during lunch or dinner. Businesses can monitor Web traffic to see which coupons generate the most interest.\n"It's really about exploiting the inefficiencies within the coupon industry," Evons said, "making the experience easier for the merchants, easier for the students."\nThe project has been in the works for six months, after Evons came up with the idea while driving home from classes last summer. He was talking to his girlfriend and knew there had to be a way to market the city's businesses with discounts that would attract students.\nSo, he started hiring programmers -- in places as far away as Romania and Argentina -- and committed to getting the project off the ground. But it wasn't without hardships.\nInitially, many local businesses were reluctant to sign up for the plan, questioning whether the coupons would compensate for the monthly fee required to join the site. \nSome simply said the monthly price was too high given their tight budgets. \n"If they've gotten burned by these type of Web sites before, how do you really come across as a new and innovative company when you're another student with another Web site?" Evons asked. "It's really hard to do that." \nSo he changed his plan, dropping the monthly fee to $40 a month and offering the first month free. It was a no-risk way to join, and more merchants hopped on board. \nAt the Bloomington Sandwich Co., 107 N. College Ave., manager Mike Moy said he hopes the site will result in more student business in his shop, which is known for its homemade corned beef and Reuben sandwiches. \n"Students are a big part of my business here," he said. "They're online all the time; that's the type of people they are. That's why I think the marketing towards the students is going to be very good."\nNot all students use coupons, however.\nBrittney Wing, a senior accounting major, said she never uses paper coupons because "they don't save you enough money" but wouldn't be opposed to using them online -- depending on the deal. \n"It would have to be a big enough savings," she said.\nMoy admitted he is unsure if the site will work for his business -- or if he will be able to afford to pay the monthly fee once his free trial ends.\n"We're so small here, we don't pay for advertising," he said.\nThe online coupon industry itself, while growing at 50 percent a year, still only represents 1 percent of the overall coupon market, according to the Promotional Marketing Association, a trade group. \nBut Joe Denekamp, the director of the Young Entrepreneurs Association at the Kelley School of Business and a lecturer in the business school, said he has no doubt the site will be successful. \n"I think it's a very elegant solution for businesses that want to target students and faculty," Denekamp said. "I really wouldn't be surprised if this is something that can be scaled to other universities."\nLooking ahead, he said Evons' biggest challenge will be deciding how to centralize his operations and apply it to other cities, if he chooses to do so. \nWhile Evons said he has no immediate plans to expand, he hasn't ruled it out for the future. Startup costs were $2,500, and he said he expects the site to be profitable once 25 businesses commit.\nHe also wants to cement the company to the community by focusing on local businesses -- rather than corporate chains -- and committing to donate 10 percent of his profits to local charities each month.\nIt's good policy -- and good business, he said. \n"These people that are really trying to do good within their industry are really becoming the most successful," he said. "By giving back, (customers will) choose you over other companies"