Do you really want a Groupon Training Experience?

[SpencerJackson]

Funny thing about Open Water classes, the price really hasn't changed much since I got certified in 1989. It is still hovering around $400(ish). When I put this in a CPI Inflation calculator, it says that same $400 spent in 1989 should now be worth $850(ish). Yet, it seems that our industry is racing to the bottom with regard to course pricing!?! To complicate matters, Groupon has entered the market and we now see dive certifications as low as $150. When I was teaching solo, I looked into Groupon and at the time I would only get 50% of the total paid. This meant that the instructor/shop for that $150 class was really only getting paid $75. If an open water course is 35-40 hours of contact time, as it should be, this means that the instructor would need a bunch of students just to break minimum wage.

So, here are my questions, 1)Do you really want a Groupon Training Experience? 2)How much should you pay to Learn to Dive? (aka, what is your training worth?)

 

[freewillie]

The short answer is that it depends on the dive shop and it depends on the instructor.

The notion that just because you purchased dive instruction using a coupon for a discount does not discount the course material or experience, just the price. If you purchased through a reputable dive shop and that LDS wishes to maintain it's reputation then you will likely get quality instruction. Especially if the instructor involved treats you as any other student regardless of the price you paid. But, if the shop and instructor cut corners because you cut cost, that is entirely different situation.

My nephew certified last year through a Groupon discount. That particular LDS certification was SSI. Having my own PADI certification I can tell you he did and learned the same knowledge and skills I did, just slightly different nuances through the course. Except for the usual newbie challenges his scuba skills are fundamentally sound and has become a good dive buddy. But, as a college kid he does not have the bankroll his uncle does and would not have been able to afford the lessons in the first place. By using Groupon he essentially received regular standard SSI training at a more affordable price but did not have a decrease in time or attention by the shop or the instructor. He was however "strongly" encouraged to buy his gear at the shop. The LDS has to make up the money somewhere.

As what diving should cost? I'm not really in a position to answer that question. With the overall economy still in a recovery mode business is still trying to make ends meet the best way they can. If adding a few extra students to a group that already was booked then it can potentially help their bottom line. It becomes the notion in business models as a loss leader. You lose a little bit here, but hope to make it up elsewhere. Costco chickens are a great example. It actually cost Costco more for the chicken than they are charging and they are losing small amounts on their rotisserie chickens. But, since the average shopper never comes in for just the chicken and may spend $400-$500 or more per visit they easily make up the difference. And that chicken becomes the "hook" to get the shopper in their doors. It's a long winded way of saying the cost is essentially what the market will bear.

 

[ScubaDive4Me]

I see Groupon being used as a short time promotion or advertising for a business and once the deal is over then word of mouth advertising should work in that business/instructors favor. As a long term bottom dollar course I can't see it being sustainable.

 

[kelemvor]

Group classes are the answer to how you can make more per hour and still stay price competitive. $400 for your 40 hour class may only be 10 bucks an hour with one student. If you've got a group of six students then you've got $60/hr.

I think the fact that people are buying the groupon classes mean the answer to #1 is yes for some. Most of the shops in my area charge $350 for group classes. More for private. Several of those shops offer coupons via groupon every now and again for around $175.

I'd expect to pay considerably more for a private one on one class.

I saw an ad somewhere not that long ago for a $150 all in a weekend class. Don't believe it was affiliated with a dive shop.

 

[scubamarketing]

This meant that the instructor/shop for that $150 class was really only getting paid $75. If an open water course is 35-40 hours of contact time, as it should be, this means that the instructor would need a bunch of students just to break minimum wage.

I was only making $75/student 10+ years ago, so this is nothing new. Also not new: I didn’t care because I was teaching in volume. Just like what Groupon facilitates since they require minimum purchase numbers. Despite “only” making $75/student (and this was over an 8 week, 4 hours of both lecture and pool per week), I had no complaints since the volume made it a living wage.

So, here are my questions, 1)Do you really want a Groupon Training Experience?

To the best of my knowledge, there’s no such thing as a “Groupon Training Experience”. There are Groupon prices, but Groupon doesn’t dictate anything about the course. So if it’s a good deal and I trust I’m going to get a good value, I’d gladly take a “Groupon Training Experience”.

2)How much should you pay to Learn to Dive? (aka, what is your training worth?)[/B]

Whatever it’s worth to you. At my old LDS, group shop classes were $250, private courses were $350, group courses through the college were $375-$475. Those figures are all for open water. I had exchange students from Japan who were ecstatic to pay ~$450 through the university since they said the LDS back home was more like $850.

I see Groupon being used as a short time promotion or advertising for a business and once the deal is over then word of mouth advertising should work in that business/instructors favor. As a long term bottom dollar course I can't see it being sustainable.

Exactly this. My old LDS occasionally uses Groupon, but just for DSD’s. The people who buy them have a great time and sign up for the full Open Water course.

 

[koozemani]

After I learned how groupon actually worked I stopped using them. We would occasionally find deals for restaurants we enjoyed, but knowing now how little the business gets, I'd rather pay full price to support a local entrepreneur.

 

[danvolker]

We see Groupon in action with Dive Instruction at the Blue Heron Bridge Marine Park every weekend....often a dozen big classes, typically with bumbling unskilled divers dragging consoles and guages along the bottom, and kicking and stomping on the benthic marine life as quite normal...for instructor and student alike....it seems to me that the more a shop is likely to go with groupon, the less concerned they are with buoyancy and the marine life they will kill....
Case in point...this groupon class:
[video=youtube_share;dgdabfvr2B0]http://youtu.be/dgdabfvr2B0?t=42s[/video]

Click in to 42 seconds into play...and watch in HD

The instructor--the old guy with his back to you in the beginning...is walking on top of the area the best Macro photographers have shot some of their best Nudibranch and Frog fish shots..in the Hydroids that you can see all over the bottom there. This is an environment, just like a coral reef is an environment.

Groupon is often an incentive to cut corners on skills like buoyancy and to ignore delicate marine life because the COST to worry about it is not compatible with any use of Groupon we see.

 

[koozemani]

Great choice of music

 

[TracyN]

LoL! That video looked more like a circus act than a scuba class!

 

[drilldaddy_99]

To be fair though, I don't think that it is a groupon issue. I think it's more of an instructor issue. I'm willing to bet he teaches his non-groupon classes the same way. Regardless of the price a customer pays for a class, they are entitled to quality instruction.