Congratulations Dana and Greg!

On Groupon, a Proposal Sealed With a Click
By VINCENT M. MALLOZZI
New York Times
January 5, 2011

Dana Burck says she found the deal of a lifetime on Groupon: a wedding proposal.

Ms. Burck, 24 and an avid user of the Chicago-based social buying site, was directed to one of its deal pages early Wednesday morning (about 1 a.m.) by her 25-year-old boyfriend, Greg Hill, with whom she often shops online.

“He kept me up all night, making me drink iced tea with dinner and giving me shoulder rubs to keep me awake,” Ms. Burck said, “and then we went on Groupon, which is something we always do.”

This time, however, Ms. Burck, a cheerleader for the Cincinnati Bengals, was instructed to pay special attention to the fine print of a featured deal that was labeled “A Surprise for a Dana from a Greg,” and read in part: “Expires Jan. 5, 2011. Nontransferable. Groupon entitled to no less than 15% of your marital bliss.” [Click here to see the groupon]

At first, Ms. Burck was a bit confused. She turned to ask Mr. Hill to explain it all and found him on one knee, engagement ring in one hand and an iPod in the other that played “Lucky” by Jason Mraz and Colbie Caillat, her favorite song.

“I said yes and started crying, and we just hugged and started to kiss,” Ms. Burck said.

Eventually, Ms. Burck turned back to her computer screen to read the actual proposal that Mr. Hill had posted, which read:

“Dana, I have told you many times that I was the luckiest man ever. Somehow fate brought us, a perfect match, together. Over the past four-and-a-half years, we have traveled around the world, watched more movies than we could possibly count, and spent as little time apart as humanly possible. Through good times and bad, distances between us, and the odds against us, we always made it because of each other. I want the amazing times to continue by spending the rest of my life with you – the sweetest, most beautiful, and smartest woman in the entire world. Will you marry me? — Greg.”

According to Julie Mossler, a spokeswoman for Groupon, Mr. Hill’s proposal was the first of its kind on the site, though other prospective bridegrooms had creatively used the site before, one going as far as buying a trip aboard a hot air balloon for the purpose of popping the question.

“He initially wanted to put a banner ad on the site,” Ms. Mossler said of Mr. Hill. “But we decided to have fun with it and take it to the next level by turning it into a regular deal.”

All of Groupon’s 219,000 subscribers in Cincinnati, where the couple lives, received an e-mail alert with a link to the page. As of Wednesday afternoon, 91 subscribers, including a handful of Groupon employees, sent Ms. Burck and Mr. Hill their well-wishes on the site’s discussion board.

“I just wanted to surprise her the best way I could,” said Mr. Hill, a computer engineer who plans on marrying Ms. Burck next year.

After reading Mr. Hill’s proposal, Ms. Burck clicked on the “buy” button, and the following words popped up on her screen: “Congratulations Dana or Stranger, you are now unofficially obliged to marry Greg!”

Would Ms. Burck have considered a competitive offer?

“I couldn’t get a better deal anywhere, never, never ever,” she said.