Thinking you know who your customer is and knowing who your customer is are two different things. Knowing your customer comes not through casual observation, but through an ongoing effort to collect data from a variety of sources. Services like Groupon provide some measure of insight, though it may be limited to providing information on your customers tuned into online coupons.
Looking at data for a Groupon offered for the Dallas Vintage Clothing and Jewelry Show, Groupon purchasers turned out to be mostly female (no surprise). The age, however is what could make many in the industry envious. More than sixty percent of purchasers were under 35 years of age. In the marketing and business world this can be golden. It represents years of potential customer loyalty. For promoters focused more on furnishings, it’s also a demographic segment poised to take advantage of record low interest rate and low housing prices.
Groupon also provides the zip codes of purchasers so you can compare where you think your customers live with where they actually are.
If you have a show, collect data. Most importantly, what is your zip code and where did you hear about it? Gathering an email address is icing.
Urban Art & Antiques 