Status updates are so 2009.
The next big thing in social networking is location sharing – showing your online friends where you are.
Location-based social networking allows a user to “check in” at a specific location, like a restaurant or bar, marking their position on a map and sending out a message to friends using the service. Users can then interact, share, meet up and recommend places based on their physical location which can lead to increased traffic and revenues for “tagged” businesses.
The most buzzed about location-based social networking sites are Austin-based
Gowalla and
FourSquare. Both services boast a wide array of consumer focused features. However, these two platforms will soon be facing some stiff competition as big dogs Twitter, Facebook and Google begin to add their own location sharing features later this year. These larger social networking sites will be focusing their features on small businesses to capitalize on hyperlocal advertising opportunities.
Small businesses experienced the benefits of location-based marketing during this year’s South by Southwest Interactive (SXSWi) festival in Austin. As attendees traveled all around the city doing check ins, local businesses could see who their most frequent visitors were and offer incentives to drive sales. For example, Buffalo Billiards offered free beer to people who checked in five times and Alamo Drafthouse offered free movie tickets to visitors who had earned mayor status on Foursquare (Mayor status means you have checked into that venue more than others in your city). In addition, several local restaurants and bars, such as Kenichi, Emo’s and Molotov, partnered with
CauseWorld, a location sharing service that donates money to charity when you check in at participating locations.
As location sharing services, become more widely adopted, business will have plenty of opportunities to market to their customers. Businesses can offer coupons to people who check in nearby to drive them into the store in addition to using these networks to communicate and engage customers.
If you are interested in utilizing location sharing for your business, check out Mashable’s articles
9 Killer Tips for Location-Based Marketing and
HOW TO: Make Your Small Business Geolocation-Ready.