Foursquare Gets More Interactive

Recent moves by the location-based social network Foursquare have made it an interactive destination and hub of activity. Launched as a service allowing users to see their friends’ whereabouts and check-in at locations they visit, with the most frequent visitors earning ‘mayor’ status, Foursquare has gained lots of data about its users. Everything from gender to visitation frequency and time of day has been documented simply by users interacting with Foursquare, and this makes perfect targeting data for its new developments.

First up is Foursquare’s “local updates”, a free service launched within the last few weeks http://bit.ly/OgiPKq. This tool allows businesses to place updates, specials and events directly into the activity streams of a pool of users chosen by Foursquare’s algorithm, which is based on frequency and recency of check-ins and businesses those users have ”liked” (the last made possible by Foursquare’s recent remodel). Basically it targets those who visit and spend money at your store the most, a type of targeting every business wants to have. Users only see updates when in the same city or general area as the business, and the closest location (of a brand with multiple locations) will be the message originator. Keeping users engaged and boosting local business are the main priorities here. Keeping business owners engaged on top of that is a bonus.

Foursquare’s newest, and most exciting initiative, is it’s “promoted updates”, which uses its “Explore” app, a recommendation service for users http://bit.ly/N7Z2cn. When the app is launched promoted updates from nearby businesses in the area appear, but only similar businesses to ones they’ve visited, liked, interacted with or that their friends have interacted with at some point. Good for business and business owners, as they can select the locations they want to promote and schedule updates. However, they must trust Foursquare do the targeting. Promoted ads also feature a way to attach a message, a space for special deals and promotions, and last for several months http://dthin.gs/QslnIg. A big plus. Why else is this a win-win for Foursquare? It builds upon their current model, in that users already turn to Foursquare for nearby places and activities happening, and it gives business owners more options and control while paying on a cost-per-action model.

Although Foursquare is anything but traditional, it also strengthens traditional advertising and boasts tie-in opportunities http://bit.ly/NFeIZA. For instance, “The Great Baltimore Check-in”, a contest-based geo-social game launched by Foursquare in partnership with Urbanite magazine and WTMD radio. Drawing 1,500 participants last year, the game involves Foursquare users who’ve registered online to play racing to meet the challenge to check-in at 89 different commercial and public landmark locations. A three-month long contest, July – September, the one with the most check-ins at the end wins a 2012 Vespa scooter while 2nd place wins a new Fender guitar. Yet again, something that works out in everyone’s best interests and then some. Participants utilize Foursquare and populate local businesses as part of the game, increasing business. Businesses gain exposure and a boost to business, as well as plugs in print, radio and online (which themselves gain from the marriage of traditional and non-traditional media). Why is this contest not something every city is doing? This should be a nationwide event.

All of these new ventures show that Foursquare is raising the bar on what it means to be interactive. They’re more interactive with users via the “local updates” service, they’re more interactive with businesses via “promoted updates” and they bolster traditional media through their ability to join forces for package promotions. Foursquare is proving its status as an innovator, and serving up a challenge at the same time. In making the leap and expanding their basic services like this, they show themselves to be versatile and ahead of the game. For others looking to contend? I wish you luck.

Battle of the Tech Giants?

Foursquare, Google+ Local and Yelp, three services being pitted against each other lately. All of them have different origins. Yelp started out as a reviews site where people could search for businesses, view and post reviews, and socialize within those reviews and forums. Google started out as a search engine for the web and has now morphed into a social networking site as well with Google+. Google+ Local, their newest venture, is focused on reviews. Foursquare started out as a location-based social networking site, and is now touting itself as a recommendation service. Despite different origins, their current status seems to put them in competition with each other. But who’s coming out on top? Is it really that much of a competition? Let’s review.

Foursquare is launching a redesign next week, rebranding itself as a recommendation service http://tcrn.ch/OdKytg. Its co-founder, Dennis Crowley, admits that although its seen 2 billion check-ins and over 20 million users since its 2009 launch, users are turning away from check-ins. In fact, he states that most people use Foursquare to see where their friends are, to find things, and as a recommendation service. Thus, Foursquare will reemerge as a self-contained social network with passive location detection, bios added to profile pages, a searchable timeline in a new history page and restaurant recommendations. Users can still check in, it just won’t be the main focus. The main focus will be the “Explore” function of its new app, offering users enhanced map functions. Its maps will show what’s hot and its partnerships with sports venues, concert halls and movie theaters make Google Maps more social. I expect that hovering over a sports venue, concert hall or movie theater will bring up events happening soon, making it a go-to event calendar with reviews of those in addition to restaurants.

Google+ Local is a replacement for Google Pages, as it ties in the company’s September purchase of Zagat http://bit.ly/Lh1BI3. Google’s Vice President Marissa Mayer reveals that 20 percent of all Google searches are for local information and that shoots up to 40 percent on mobile devices. Playing on that, Google+ Local is using Zagat reviews to bolster itself as the reviews destination over Yelp. Yet, Google+ traffic has been in a slowing pattern, it has a ways to go before it can truly compete with Yelp in quantity and it alienates users by not giving them a choice (as it does elsewhere) of who sees their reviews. At the same time, Google+ is focused on its own problems with Google Maps being removed from the iPhone and iPad in favor of an internally developed map feature that’s soon to launch http://bit.ly/LSkB0E. Being that all that is going on in the background, you have to ask yourself: is this really a competition or more about survival? The same can be said of Yelp.

Yelp is a reviews service that now faces competition from Google+ Local and Foursquare. However, it’s also been facing lawsuits and complaints from restaurant owners over unfair promotion of negative reviews after refusing to advertise on Yelp http://fxn.ws/Km5CQR. What Yelp has going for them is simply the fact that they’ve been around longer. The span of Yelp’s reviews is more extensive and since they came first, people think of them first and reviews appear quicker there than they do on other review sites. Yet again though, you have to ask yourself what plagues them more right now, competition with similar services or threats from those who can make or break their service (as restaurants and their reviews are main content)? I would go with the latter.

Basically, although these authors pit Foursquare, Google+ Local and Yelp against each other, I’d say their personal problems weigh heavier than competition. Personal problems like they’re facing threaten their survival, and that’s more crucial than competition any day. Perhaps Google+ Local and Yelp should take a page from Foursquare though. As Madonna shows, reinvention is the key to survival and it seems to be working for Foursquare. Once they survive, then they can battle it out.

The Rise of Hyperlocal

With the growing popularity of geolocation services like Gowalla and Foursquare, increasingly, a parallel can be drawn. There’s an increasing fascination with the concept of hyperlocal. Hyperlocal is on the rise and it’s pushed connectivity to a whole new level. But is there a saturation point? If so, are we about to or have we reached that saturation point? Have things become more relevant? Or too personal? To the first, my response is most likely, to the second not yet, to the third I’d say in some ways, and to the 4th at times yes. Here’s where hyperlocal gets it right, and where hyperlocal gets it wrong. First, how it gets it wrong.

1) When companies or brands get too personal. In July, WhitePages introduced its “Neighbors” feature, which allows users to see who their neighbors are and set up block parties with those neighbors http://bit.ly/qUw9WB. WhitePages needs to be careful with this feature. I would find it weird if one of my neighbors showed up with smartphone in hand, introducing themselves and stating they found me on WhitePages “Neighbors” feature. They really should allow people to opt out of being included in this. 

2) When companies or brands  go hypercasual. You’ve seen it, all the “lol” lexicon that came from instant messaging. Well, that and other too casual approaches are what make up hypercasual. Bobbie Johnson notes that there are strategic ways to be friendly and playful, like Flickr, and then there are others http://bit.ly/nJtwwS. If it’s unique, strategic, and appropriate to the company and to the brand, then its a smart move. When you relax your voice for social media and just say whatever comes to mind, share videos, etc. and customers leave? That is an example of being too friendly, and not being tapped into what your customers want from their relationship with you. Basically, think about what you say before you say it. 

Now where hyperlocal gets it right.

1) When companies or brands get competitive. WhitePages, in addition to its creepy “Neighbors” feature, also released a free mobile app called ”Localicious” http://bit.ly/qUw9WB. “Localicious” integrates tips, trends and reviews of places in over 80,000 neighborhoods across the country and offers a pre-checkin check-in setup. Basically, WhitePages is adding a social dimension to its one-dimensional outlook and purpose as a print directory. In that regard, I applaud them. This makes them multi-purpose and puts them on a competitive level with geolocation apps, a smart move.

2) When companies or brands expand upon their bottom line, becoming more multi-dimensional. Yes, they already have a revamped Google Places, a daily deals component, and have added a more social dimension to search. Now Google is going local with their recent purchase of Zagat, a high-end restaurant and shopping reviews publisher http://bit.ly/qFRpWk. This addition, combined with search, offers more access to local resources and more ad space. For Google, hyperlocal is the logical next piece of the puzzle in transforming themselves into a multi-dimensional company. Also, unlike WhitePages’ “Neighbors” feature, they are playing it smart.

To sum it up, hyperlocal can be good when it adds another dimension to your offerings and makes you more competitive. Where it goes wrong is when it gets too personal or hypercasual. There’s a fine line, some know how to walk it and some go too far. The ones that walk the line will have an edge, and the ones that go too far are potentially flirting with disaster. These examples serve as case studies for how to use hyperlocal to your advantage and avoid its pitfalls. Case studies can only do so much though, it’s what you do with them that matters and how you use them that directs your future.

Foursquare: Another Social Network?

It seems that search engine giants, like Google, are not the only ones jumping into the social network arena. Foursquare, a location-based service, seems to be joining in the competition. First lets briefly define what categorizes something as a social networking website. Danah Boyd and Nicole Ellison define social networking sites as “web-based services that allow individuals to 1) construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system 2) articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and 3) view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others in the system” http://bit.ly/e5MlA. While this is by no means a complete definition it is a start. There are other features that commonly exist among social networking sites, thereby shaping the identity and definition of the term as well. Enough technical crap though, here are my thoughts and the signs I have seen that Foursquare is moving in this direction.

1) Perhaps the biggest indicator that Foursquare is becoming a social networking site is that it has given its iPhone app a newsfeed http://on.mash.to/njBgV3. The new ‘notification tray’ tracks more than your check-ins. It tracks comments on your check-ins, new comments on items you commented on, completion of your tips by friends and mayor status updates. Sound familiar? Facebook tracks comments on your status updates, sends you emails when others comment on statuses and photos you commented on, and displays game and status updates.

2)Foursquare is also now offering daily deals from sites like Groupon, Living Social, Gilt Groupe and others http://on.mash.to/qfneWM. Very similar to deals like those that are offered on Facebook and shared through Facebook and Twitter.

3)Foursquare is advancing into the realm of TV like Facebook and Twitter hashtags have before it. Take the recent Pepsi campaign for ‘Summer Time is Pepsi Time” http://bit.ly/rkaLgm. This commercial campaign that takes a jab at Coca-Cola also invites viewers to connect and interact by following Pepsi on Foursquare (a message displayed at the bottom of the screen during the commercial). This gets viewers involved in a game of check-ins at all of their summer fun destinations, earning them badges and, when they earn all three, entering them into a sweepstakes.

Based on these new additions, Foursquare is now a competitor. The question is, do Facebook, Twitter and Google+ have reason to fear? Well, take Google for example. At first its transformation into a social network was just a series of rumors. Critics had seen failed attempts from Google before and shrugged off any possibility of it ever becoming successful, much less competing with other social networks. As of July 11th, Google+ had 4.7 million users http://bit.ly/n6q4cC. Considering it launched on June 28th that’s a quick growth spurt that has undoubtedly increased a lot by now. I would not be so quick to shrug off Foursquare like people shrugged off Google. Foursquare may still be primarily a location service, but is increasingly moving towards becoming its own brand of social networking site. Whether others acknowledge that or not, Foursquare is showing it deserves some attention and that it may be a force to be reckoned with amongst the competition.

Social Media in Progress

There are interesting strides being made with social media, as companies seek to shape their own direction as well as influencing the direction and decisions of their users. Take Foursquare, for example, and its recent partnership with American Express http://nyti.ms/iC5wx3. Users that link these accounts will receive special deals at shops and restaurants they check in at. There are some definite upsides of this partnership, American Express reaching a younger demographic (Foursquare reaches the 35 and under crowd), American Express users spending more, and more people signing up for American Express cards. For Foursquare, the ROI is that this opens the door for other similar partnerships. This partnership came about through a pilot of the program run at South by Southwest music and technology conference. The results? On average, users in the program (card holders linked to Foursquare) spent 20% more than users not in the program (card users not linked to Foursquare). This definitely indicates more engagement, but what does that really mean? 20% of users spent more money on average. On average means that the majority spent more money, but not all did because the total was averaged out. Also, this was a small demographic and fails to account for other variables. Other variables would be customers own thoughts and desires before receiving the deals, plus their rationality after receiving the deals. These are tough things to measure. While the effort shows promise and indicates some type of engagement, it is indicative of most social media efforts thus far. Moving in the right direction but not quite to the point of completing the equation when it comes to ROI. Farhad Manjoo examines this same topic in his article “Does Social Media Have A Return On Investment?” while looking at a couple of other scenarios. I love social media and see it as having great potential. What I am merely saying is that its measurement metrics are still a work in progress. They are great indicators of engagement but do not directly tie social media and sales together yet. Foursquare’s American Express partnership is an example of social media in progress because it’s a mutually beneficial partnership, but measurement metrics have not advanced enough to measure its full effect.

Something else about social media that needs work, and this is more in the minority than the majority, are websites that develop methods of shaping their direction by offering rewards that do not tie in well with their identity. American Express works for Foursquare because Foursquare is all about rewarding check-ins with deals and getting customers to spend money. If they are spending money on their American Express, and getting unique deals because of that, well then it’s that much better. Wikipedia’s effort to gain more editors and develop a more loving vibe on the website seems ill-matched. Ben Parr talks about how Wikipedia is adding a love button so users can spread the love to reward good edits and updates on the site http://on.mash.to/ljX27o. While this seems like a positive idea, it’s the way they go about it that cheapens the experience. When users click on the heart button on a user page it brings up a ‘WikiLove menu’ that enables users to send things like kittens and beer to other users. First of all this sounds like a direct rip off of Facebook and their free gifts (which eventually had to be paid for in order to send them). Wikipedia’s effort seems very juvenile, it’s unoriginal, and it does not seem like a system that would attract the type of editors needed to improve its content. I do agree with their graph analysis that indicates something must be done about the negativity, but I do not think this is the way to go about it. This is an example of social media in progress because some sites are still developing their own identity. Ok, I’ll admit it. The title for this entry is a double entendre. While I have been discussing how social media is making strides, at the same time I am indicating that it is still a developing medium. I think that is an acknowledged fact and I don’t believe that anyone would say social media has arrived and has all of the answers yet. In time, I believe it will improve and paint a more complete picture of the effect it has now and will have in the future. Social media can be a useful tool, and will only increase in the analysis and development of measuring its ROI.

Localization and Expansion of Shopping Apps

Shopping apps are expanding to fill more niches, and incorporating customer feedback at the same time. Their evolution is similar to the evolution of movies. Movies started with silent film and became talkies, then branched out offering more options like animation and 3D. Shopping apps also started out basic and now they are taking it to the next level. Naturally, more and more apps are branching out to fill the gaps in their category’s services. Consumers want to have all of the information at their fingertips. They want to look at an item and get all of its product information, a picture, price comparisons at local stores and online websites, be able to tell if it is in stock and be told how to get to where it is from their current location. Basically, they want the shopping app that does it all. I am not sure if that exists yet, because it seems each app comes along with its own individual strengths. At the same time, the trend is also moving towards localization. This means driving as much foot traffic into local independent, small and medium-sized stores as to stores belonging to national chains. eBay has recently entered into these areas with its first shopping app acquired in the recent aquisition of Milo http://on.mash.to/lAHoOp. Milo’s partnerships with over 100 retailers enables it to deliver real-time information on inventory from about 50,000 stores. The app can show you if a nearby store has the product you are looking for on its shelves, and if it does, how its price compares with other local stores. Meanwhile Shopkick, an app known for its launch with national retailers like Macy’s, is now focusing its efforts on driving more foot trafic to local stores http://bit.ly/mDnQ9E. Through a sponsorship with Citi, Shopkick plans to install its hardware for free at the first 1,000 local businesses selected. The hardware senses when consumers using the app walk through the door of a participating store. Shoppers then get kicks or points towards purchases and rewards for browsing certain items. The last app is not really an app yet but is planning on developing a mobile component, which means it will probably become an app.

It is a website that is claiming the niche for reviews of common grocery products and product categories. Known as the ‘Yelp’ of packaged goods, its Consmr. Consmr is a recently launched website that aims to be the main source of packaged goods reviews http://bit.ly/kdwaVZ. Meaning if you ever find yourself at the store debating which product within a certain category is the best, or which brand of product is the best for a certain recipe, Consmr is where you would go for the answer. The website features brand pages for each of its 50,000 products, complete with reviews and ratings from regular shoppers as well as well-known bloggers. Men’s Health, Women’s Health and Prevention reviews are also incorporated. Unlike check-ins for other places and products, there is no barcode scanning or product in hand required. A simple check-in on the website is all you need to do. Chobani and AriZona, the site’s first two advertisers, are awarding Foursquare style badges (also known as pieces of flair like in Office Space) to those who complete certain tasks. Although there are few products and advertisers at this time, the site’s unique niche is sure to attract more to participate. You may ask, where is the localization component here? Well, that would be my suggestion as they evolve. Consmr will need to incorporate some type of access to grocery store inventory and prices to stay competitive in this age of localization. Each of these shopping tools provides a missing piece of the puzzle. Milo empowers consumers with store inventory numbers and price comparisons between stores and between stores and online sites. Shopkick drives more foot traffic into local stores and drives more foot traffic and attention to their featured products. Consmr hosts packaged goods reviews and ratings so that consumers find their desired product faster, with less time spent trying several products that do not suit them well. Two out of the three focus on independent, small and medium-sized local stores and the third may eventually adopt that trend to suit its purposes also. Shopping apps are evolving. No longer are they one-dimensional barcode scanners. A whole new generation of shopping tools is coming, and with them come new consumers. It is truly a new type of playing field.

Turning Check-ins into Checkouts

Mobile check-ins are like store visits. It’s one thing to get a customer to come into your store, but it’s another thing to get them to buy something. So many companies have been focused on check-ins but not necessarily on turning them into sales, until now. Sure there have been rewards or deals offered for checking in but they are not always consistent or related to sales. Some deals are for free things and some rewards are not even deals at all but badges. Increasingly, services are popping up to generate coupons each time customers check-in so businesses can increase customer loyalty and capture more sales. There are a few different ways to check-in and various ways to tie a check-in to a checkout. One such way involves a consumer internet company called Meebo http://nyti.ms/lrtcIz . Meebo allows users to check into websites in order to receive deals, and regular visitors will soon be able to receive VIP status. VIP status includes earning rewards from businesses and suggestions for content they might like. VIP visitors can also follow each other and receive feeds of websites that others are checking into. In this way it still pays homage to the badge origin of check-ins while tying in crucial deals that will create repeat customers. Another is an ad network called LocalResponse http://bit.ly/m6lfNv. LocalResponse combines check-ins from 30 of the most common sources, generating relevant deals in real-time to those who check-in either directly or indirectly through a publicly posted sentiment or mention of a location. Additionally, LocalResponse is also targeting people who publicly post about brands or products. Meeting customers where they are in real-time is key to driving sales. That is what makes this next one, which involves geolocation in a different way, an interesting venture. As if we have not seen everything yet, here is a new reinvention of the billboard. There’s been ones that smell, such as the one I wrote about in my entry Taco Bell and Olfactory Billboards, there’s been augmented reality billboards and even live Twitter billboards.

Now there are gaming billboards where you can play for rewards that are redeemable nearby, such as this McDonald’s one in Switzerland http://on.mash.to/lDkghb. Any player with a smartphone that is in range of the billboard can play the interactive billboard’s game, which just happens to be Pong. Interesting retro throwback there. Basically, a player types the URL into their smartphone browser and when it confirms that the player is in the area the game begins. Players control the billboard game by utilizing their smartphone’s touchscreen. What they see on the screen is being played out on the billboard and vice versa. The game gets harder and harder, but if the player can last for 30 seconds they receive a coupon redeemable at a nearby McDonald’s for the reward they selected at the start of the game. A coupon is sent to their smartphone and they can redeem it at the register. Imagine if this concept came to the US. All of these methods are creative and relevant ways to lead customers from check-in to checkout. However, I think they can take it a step further. I think that when a customer checks in their purchase history should be tied into the types of targeted deals they receive, kind of like the coupons you get at the grocery store checkout. I also think that a map of the store they are in should pop up and it should be an interactive map that takes them directly to the product in the coupon they receive. One thing I have learned in all my years of customer service is the more seamless and easy you make the sales process, the more likely the customer will purchase what you are suggesting. In other words, make it so easy and accessible that it is highly unlikely that they will turn your offer down. It is good to see a solid start to closing the gap between check-in and checkout, and it will be interesting to see the statistics from these methods. I hope that, just like anything else, they will use this as a jumping off point and continue to add to it. Maybe even in some of the ways I have suggested here. Regardless, this type of innovation is the inevitable next step in the check-in process and should produce some interesting results.

Battle of the Geo’s

Geolocation has been a popular trend this year, with Gowalla, Foursquare and Facebook Places all vying for the ultimate mainstream popularity title. So who looks poised to become the ultimate go-to service? Let’s review. Recently Gowalla designed specific stamps and badges for those who check-in at Disney parks across the country http://rww.to/9FFc6A. While this may seem like a way for it to gain acceptance and traction it is more likely that children and adults alike would be more preoccupied with the attractions and less so with their phones. Foursquare’s major claim to fame is it’s ‘mayor’ title awarded to those who check in most often. While there are great discounts and perks that go along with this title, every geolocation service contracts with sponsors who offer discounts and deals of some kind to those who check in at their location. Facebook Place seems most likely to take the title and here are a few reasons why.

1) Facebook Places is an extension of an already popular service, Facebook, which already has several million users. Facebook has already achieved mainstream status and is already an established platform. Foursquare and Gowalla are still relatively new and in the establishing phase, as they do not have the same user base. It is much easier and more attractive for users to join up with a service they already use then to add-on something new that they are not familiar with yet.

2) Facebook already has the necessary privacy controls in place. They have recently tightened their privacy controls to the point where they rival other services. You can make it look like you are not even on Facebook, hence it is possible to only share your location updates with friends and to control if someone tagging you at a location is allowed or not allowed.

3) Facebook Places does not need Twitter to update with, as it has its own status update service built-in. Foursquare and Gowalla use Twitter.

4) Facebook Places is connected to Facebook and Facebook is never down or unavailable. Because Foursquare and Gowalla use Twitter they are at a disadvantage. Twitter can easily exceed capacity. Ever seen that blue whale acknowledging Twitter has exceeded capacity? I have. Frequently.

Essentially,  it comes down to simplicity, availability and convenience. These are key and they are the reason that Facebook Places holds this title.

Personalization and Localization

A very interesting trend is afoot, one that could spread and become the norm if its success continues. It all originates from personalization and localization of mobile media. For example, take Starbucks, who is now tempting customers with more than just delicious coffee and tea (not that they don’t already). Starbucks unveiled its revamped landing page, a digital mecca of sorts geared directly towards its customer base. A very smart move. Caroline McCarthy’s article “How Starbucks is Trying to Change the Media” http://bit.ly/cx1NKq discusses the content of the ‘Starbucks Digital Network’ and references a quote by Adam Brotman, senior vice president of digital ventures, which pens it as “the digital version of the community corkboard.” A very interesting reinterpretation for sure, with its offerings of free local information, downloadable music and quick bites of news and video. All of this content is geared towards a very specific customer in a very specific place. Now take this concept and spread it to other stores, restaurants, hotels, vacation destinations. You walk into an Albertsons and you have access to information on the originating source of any food product in the store, or you have a special network composed of recipes made from items all available within the store. Then you take a vacation to Hawaii, and you get instant access to visitor guides and food, entertainment and activity sites where you can just as instantaneously book your reservation.

A similar concept is an expansion on cause marketing that ties in the importance of place. Building on the success of Foursquare and those checking in, groups like Earthjustice have made it possible for people at transit stations where their ads are posted to check in. Every time they check in an Earthjustice donor donates $10 to protect endangered species. That is the premise of Todd Woody’s “Ads That Let You Check in At Your Favorite Billboard” http://bit.ly/cWagOf. Take this concept one step further and you have stores tied to causes. Using Starbucks again, their RED program makes a contribution to the Global Fund to fight AIDS in Africa every time a customer buys a Starbucks RED product or uses their Starbucks RED card. Customers could check in at a Starbucks RED ad in Starbucks and a contribution could be made. There are many companies that have ties to a particular cause, why not tie that in with an ad that adds to and strengthens their contribution from check in’s too, all while in that particular store? Possibilities abound when you focus on personalization and localization.

Facebook Places: Consumer Psychology At Work

Ever wish you had ESP ? Facebook has invented something just as good. First there was Gowalla and Foursquare and now Facebook has joined the geolocation trend. Recently Facebook launched Facebook Places, an entity that is simultaneously an example of word-of-mouth and consumer psychology at work. I wrote a post several weeks back about the tie-in between Amazon and Facebook utilizing word of mouth to make shopping more social. Facebook Places takes that to another level by existing as a social networking tool that utilizes the power of word-of-mouth and the influence and weight of a friends’ opinion (which carries tremendous weight as I can tell you from my experience in retail) to drive business.

1) Facebook Places Connects the Virtual and Physical World: There are always those who say that social networking and technology are erasing face-to-face communication. Facebook Places encourages social networkers to get out and explore and bring their friends along. A log is kept in the virtual world of events taking place in the physical world. In fact, it could restore the value of face-to-face communication.

2) Facebook Places Gives Businesses More Visibility: By allowing businesses to connect with current and potential customers, distribute special offers and reward customer loyalty, business increases.

3) Facebook Places Drives Business: Friends see that friends of theirs are nearby at a business, chances are they will be enticed to join in and spend money at the same place their friends are at. At the very least they will see that a lot of their friends like particular places. Everyone wants to belong and the easiest way to belong is to conform to a set of beliefs and ideals that the group you want to be a part of has in common. Friends persuade friends, introduce friends, or recommend that friends try different products or services that they use everyday. Facebook Places makes this more public by displaying and distributing that information on a grand scale through announcing their location. Not so grand that users do not have control over privacy though. 

With so many technological and social networking conveniences, the power and influence of word-of-mouth and face-to-face communication gets taken for granted. Facebook Places poses an interesting opportunity for a ’back-to-basics’ approach. It brings people together in the virtual and physical worlds simultaneously, offers businesses more visibility and  because of that it drives business. In short, Facebook Places is a social networking tool with tremendous potential and benefits.