Jan
I’ve been using the mobile location service Foursquare for sometime now. Originally via the mobile web and more recently as part of the Beta test group for the Blackberry – sorry but I can’t reveal anything about that at this point. What I want to cover in this post is the more basic question of ” Why the heck should I bother with another app?” Over the next two days I’m going to try cover this from two angles, that of the user and that of the business looking to leverage another Social Media platform.
From a user perspective Foursquare appears, on the surface, to be nothing more than a game. Check-in more times than your friends and claim the title of “Mayor” of a location. So what? In much the same way that new Twitter users are stumped by the question “What are you doing?”, new Foursquare users find the act of checking in at a location somewhat pointless. As a friend of mine says, other than enabling stalkers what exactly are you getting out of it?
It’s true that the current actual value of Foursquare to the average user is minimal, if you stay mostly in your home town, you might find you are checking in at the same location as friends, possibly you might get a recommendation for an alternative to the location you are at, but that’s it. If you travel then you are likely to get more from it in terms of recommendations for places to visit, things to do and the potential of meeting other users – the core of Social Media.
However, just as Twitter as a service has spawned numerous add-on services and applications (see OneForty for the definitive list), so Foursquare is doing the same thing by opening up their API. The heat map of my checkins below was created by WhereDoYouGo.
Ok so it’s a pretty picture but, again, so what? Imagine being able to layer your friends check-ins over the top and see it all graphically. You would, at a glance, literally be able to see the “hotspots” of your location. Much more useful, now add to that augmented reality applications like Layar – put the two together and you have a real-time city guide written by you and people you know.
Imagine being out for an evening, hold your cell phone camera up to a bar front and instantly see layered over the image reviews by people you know, see who you know who is in the bar without going in and what the special offers are for users of the application. Sounds like science fiction but all of the tech to achieve this already exists and is rapidly converging on a phone near you very soon.
Ready to sign up? Go on try it, and send me a friend request at the same time.
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Simon, I think the ultimate proof (and I wager the topic of part deux) is whether business gets behind this – and other location-based – apps. My guess is they will and we'll begin to see more action in this arena. From a user's standpoint, if business doesn't get behind it, there's going to be little reason for mainstream adoption.
Location-based mobile tech isn't anything new..it's been around for a while. In 2001, I worked to get a location-based industry trade association off the ground but the infrastructure and public attention wasn't in place to launch the association or our founding companies. Maybe now is the time and all it took as the advent of more "social" applications.
one of the most annoying new technologies from a 'friend' perspective. I could really give two poos where you are right now. So you're getting a coffee, thanks for that info. You're the mayor of your office, here's a cookie.
I'm in the process of parallel testing Gowalla and Foursquare from both a user and business perspective so your take on Foursquare is very interesting. I think you've done a nice job outlining the benefits of tools like Foursquare to users, and I'll throw a couple of more out there, one of which is directly related to Chris' comment about the adoption by businesses.
1. They add more value to location-based status updates. While I can simply go into Twitter and Facebook to say "I'm having dinner at the Carillon – Josh Watkins rocks!", there's more power when the update comes from a tool like Foursquare or Gowalla because it links back to supporting information like: the actual location, tips or reviews (depending on the application), and other friends who have been there in the past. The tools allow me to be more useful in my updates without any additional work.
2. They provide an opportunity for businesses to have an easy-to-use loyalty program. Currently this is unique to Foursquare and may be what pushes me over the edge with them if Gowalla doesn't follow suit. One of my favorite Austin cupcake shops, Sugarmama's, offers a free cupcake for every 10th checkin on Foursquare. This is simply a new version of old-style loyalty punch cards, but the benefits to me and to the business are substantial. For me, it means one less punch card to schlep around and possibly loose. For the business, it's not only easier administration of a program, but depending on the tools Foursquare makes available, it can help them learn more about their most loyal users. To Chris' point, if businesses get behind these applications, then their value to users is increased 100x. I also think whichever app can win with businesses will ultimately win with users.
While I can get most of the information these tools offer from a variety of other places (Google maps, Twitter, Facebook, Yelp, etc), it's fragmented and I'm responsible for putting it all together when I'm at or ready to find a location. The aggregation of information is of high value to me and makes it worth having another social application to keep track of.
I'm looking forward to your next post in this series.
Simon, thanks for this great post. All excellent points. I like Foursquare and Gowalla for the game of it, the bennies (hopefully more to come), and knowing where my friends have been/currently are. Getting tips for places (Foursquare) or shouts (Gowalla) are super helpful when deciding where to go or what to do there.
Natanya, I'm super interested in your comparison of the two as well.
Simon, can't wait to read part 2.
Chris- I'd love to hear your thoughts on how 4SQ could better engage businesses…
I'd like to hear you discuss the merits of getting involved with Foursquare from a business persepctive. As of now, Foursquare beats Gowalla in that arena. There are no "special nearby" popups, which is a powerful advertising tool for brick and mortar businesses.
Hi Ryan, Natanya's and my posts comment below illustrates one example here in Austin – Sugar Mama's:
http://www.sugarmamasbakeshop.com/
And here is their Foursquare page: http://foursquare.com/venue/52689
I don't want to steal Simon's thunder as I think his next post will answer your question about how to use Foursquare as a business. There should be even more ideas coming out of that post.
Natanya, I was thinking specifically of Sugarmama's when reading Simon's post. There are a few other local businesses I can think of who do similar promotions. I'm introducing applications like these to small, local business because I believe they can be a great equalizer for competition with larger, more established [read: big box] stores. Yes, it does take a bit of training and additional oversight – but if it means businesses have another way to find, reward and retain loyal customers, it's worth it.