March 16, 2007 — Savvy visitors and even some residents are finding a way to save a little money at couponstjohn.com.
In business for about two years, St. John residents Keryn Bryan and Gail Siart conjured up a new way to get people interested in their clients' businesses at a cost they can afford.
"Print ads have become so expensive on St. John," Bryan says, noting that businesses can advertise at Coupon St. John for about half the price of a print ad.
And she says that Internet advertising is the most up-to-the-minute way to advertise.
"Everybody's got a computer," she says. "Most people are going to spend five to seven hours online researching their vacation."
Advance planning via the website allows visitors to get their bearings and plan their activities before they arrive. Bryan says she has learned that visitors often peruse the printed advertising booklets they pick up while on St. John, but tend to do the activities they read about on their subsequent visit to the island.
Customers can change their ads when needed, she says. And if someone has a special event, such as a band playing, they can quickly include that information.
"We've made it very creative for the advertisers," Bryan says. The company also has a coupon booklet available for villa managers.
The site is live, and each advertiser gets a link to their statistics broken down into how many people visited the site, how many viewers went to their category, how many visited client's websites from Coupon St. John and how many emailed them or printed a coupon.
The company is growing and now has two people selling advertising, Bryan says. Although they're paying to advertise Coupon St. John on a number of websites, including Google, she has found that links on local websites pay off best.
"They're getting the most hits," she says.
The website comes up often when Internet surfers plug in the keyword "St. John." It has five categories related to tourism: dining, places to stay, services, activities and shopping.
Bryan, a graphic designer by trade and a 20 plus-year resident of St. John, also owns Graphic Isle Design. She has downsized that company to only a few select clients to devote more time to Coupon St. John.
Her graphic-design skills have been put to good use in designing a website that's attractive and easy to use, Bryan says. Siart is the company's computer guru. She lives on a boat anchored off St. John part of the year and in New Mexico the rest of the time.
Coupon St. John does all its business via email and responds promptly to clients, Bryan says.
Visit Coupon St. John online or email them.
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