What is Foursquare, and Why Should I Care?

Foursquare is a GPS-based geo-location, social game.

How does Foursquare work?

Well, as you go about your daily routine, you can “check-in” to certain places, Starbucks for example.  The more times you “check-in” at a particular place (from regular visits), the higher up the foursquare ladder you will get.  At some foursquare locations, you can earn badges, or titles, enabling you to oust anyone who may have earned these titles before you.  Getting a barista badge at Starbucks will cost you five “check-ins”, to become mayor however, you’ll have to be a regular, loyal customer.

Here’s a list of just some of the badges you can attain on Foursquare: Foursquare Badge List

How are businesses getting involved?

One of the coolest add-ons to Foursquare is the ability to offer your loyal customers discounts or deals when they become a certain rank. How does it work? Well if your business is listed on Foursquare, you can offer a coupon when an individual earns a “mayor” rank say.  This customer’s smartphone then shows a coupon and scan-able barcode to take advantage of the offer. Starbucks, for example, offers all Mayor’s $1 off frappuccinos.

Foursquare can also be leveraged in an entirely different way.  For a company willing to think outside the box and are open to donations and charity – Foursquare can be leveraged from a philanthropic perspective.  Instead of coupons or discounts, consider offering donations to charities, buying carbon credits or buying food for food banks.

Foursquare offers businesses who sign-up a free analytics program to help provide some tracking and analytics around customer “check-ins”, the coupons they give away, and allow them with a channel to connect directly to the customer.

Is my business the right fit for Foursquare?

Foursquare is a great way to develop a loyalty program for your frequent customers, assuming you have a physical location.  If your customers are largely online – Foursquare is likely not right for you.  Many companies are jumping on the Foursquare bandwagon – financial institutions, grocery stores, cas stations, coffee shops – isn’t it time you got involved too?

Ask us how.