AnnArbor.com's first group deal today invites readers to take $25 off $50 worth of food at Metzger's German Restaurant. It’s just one of the great daily discounts we'll now be offering in The Real Deal, a program that launched on our site this morning.

A wide variety of Washtenaw County businesses have already signed on to offer a daily deal, from salons and grocery stores to restaurants and retail shops. If you like shoes — and who doesn't? — stay tuned: we'll have a great deal for shoes and handbags later this week, as well as deals from a popular downtown salon and a longtime local fitness apparel shop.

The Real Deal is a group-coupon style system. Participating local businesses offer an unusually steep deal, and a certain number of people have to buy the deal to make it active.

Every day at 6 a.m., the new Real Deal will be unveiled in AnnArbor.com's Daily Headlines e-mail newsletter. The Real Deal will also be promoted throughout the AnnArbor.com website, on Facebook and Twitter, on other websites such as Comcast.net and on digital billboards on US-23 and I-94 — making it easy for our readers to find and buy the daily deal and providing wide exposure for advertisers.

"The Real Deal provides Ann Arbor area consumers true value by offering significant discounts to local area businesses," said Matt Kraner, president and CEO of AnnArbor.com. "It offers local businesses a new opportunity to connect with consumers while guaranteeing sales results as opposed to a more traditional online advertising model which delivers brand impressions and website visits. The Real Deal actually guarantees revenue or the advertiser pays nothing."

To offer a Real Deal, advertisers work with AnnArbor.com to come up with an enticing, deeply discounted offer for customers. Most businesses are offering deals of 50 percent or more off regular prices. Once AnnArbor.com and the advertiser agree on a deal, and the minimum purchase number is set, the deal is scheduled.

If the minimum number of deals are sold — starting at 6 a.m. each weekday — the deal is activated. The advertiser then gets a check with a share of the revenue generated from the deal, and customers bring their gift receipts into the business for redemption.

If the deal is one you're interested in, the best thing to do is buy it as quickly as you can and encourage your friends and family to do the same. You purchase the deal online using a credit card or PayPal account. Once the deal is "tipped" — when the minimum number of people have purchased it — then your credit card is charged, and the deal is active. You'll get a gift receipt by e-mail to print and take with you to the store.

Each deal will only be available for a limited amount of time — another reason why it's good to purchase early.

For more information, check out the frequently asked questions page about The Real Deal. If you have questions or want to share what you think about The Real Deal, leave a comment below, e-mail therealdealsupport@annarbor.com or call 734-623-4652. Businesses interested in The Real Deal can e-mail advertisinginfo@annarbor.com or call 734-623-4620.