Written on March 30th, 2010 by Brendan
Is FourSquare the new Wii?
Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments »
I’m not a technology nut. I’m just as happy as the next guy that I can pull up tv shows on demand and email from my bed, but I usually find myself asking, “Is this necessarily a good thing?” when the next big thing comes out. This might make me seem like a wet blanket to some, but I just see myself as a big picture thinker. In my mind, all too often the things that are supposed to be conveniences just end up drawing us further into the digital realm, distracting us from the real world. Unfortunately, in the digital revolution, the law of the land is “shoot first, ask questions later” and we don’t realize how distracted we’ve become until the cause of the distraction seems irreplaceable. Recently, however, I’ve noticed trends in the technology world that seem to indicate we’re trying to make technology work for us again instead of the other way around.
Take, for example, video games. For almost two decades now, video games have been blamed for everything from bad grades to school shootings. Then the Wii showed up and suddenly video games were bringing families together instead of separating them. This was followed by Beatles Rock Band and I’m sure the trend will continue. Just a few years ago, no one would have anticipated that parents would embrace a video game console; it’s a textbook example of disruptive technology.
In my mind, the technology that has done for social life what the Wii has done for families is FourSquare and pretty soon it may be revolutionizing customer service too. Foursquare is an app for the iPhone that utilizes the GPS tracker to allow friends to find each other, discover new spots and compete with each other for figurehead positions. Before FourSquare, the iPhone was inhibiting social interaction as much as promoting it, which anyone who’s waited in line with a friend playing Papertoss can attest to. I have to admit that I can see how this might encourage people to stick to familiar territory even more, but overall I think that any digital tool whose primary purpose is to support interaction in the real world is a good thing for humanity. I’m more excited, however, for the potentially endless uses of FourSquare for small businesses and organizations.
Smart businesses are already offering specials for their most frequent visitors, also known as mayors. Foursquare is going to the next level in a few weeks by introducing a tool that will allow business owners to track check ins by time and frequency and surely other variables as well. It’s almost like Google Analytics for real life. Imagine if FourSquare could track the duration of a visit and set goals (purchasing a product, ticket, etc). There would be a whole world of statistics awaiting the small business owner that was previously only available to those who could afford massive surveys. What if FourSquare could offer coupons for the tenth visitor of the day that could show up as scannable upc codes on the iPhone screen?
An even better idea would be to figure out a way to team up with websites like The Point or Groupon. These are services that create deals that only become active once a critical number of customers have agreed to make a purchase. A coffee shop owner could, for example, clear out a batch of muffins that would otherwise be wasted by creating a deal that would make that product half off if ten people made the purchase. Anyone in the area would see the deal and once the tenth person signed up, they’d receive the coupon.
The possibilities for the use of foursquare are bountiful and if its popularity continues to grow then it will continue to level the playing field in the favor of the responsive small business. I can only imagine that as the features on the iPhone and other smartphones continue to improve, the potential for applications like FourSquare will as well.
5 Responses to “Is FourSquare the new Wii?”
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Brendan,
I read your post and downloaded foursquare. I think it is a cool concept but I feel like there are so many creative apps that none of these have staying power. I feel like foursquare can’t gain enough momentum and get enough businesses to buy into it before a new, better app comes out that does the same thing but more. Maybe I’m dead wrong, but how do you see an app like foursquare staying curent and avoiding getting overtaken, without big brand name like google behind it?
You bring up a good point, Doug, and I can’t say whether it will grow or shrink in popularity and, to be honest, I don’t think anyone can. I do believe it has enormous potential and is doing something that nobody else is, which is unique enough in this day and age to take a second look. Foursquare is facing the same problem that every app from a company big or small is facing – consumers are overwhelmed by a tsunami of choice. You could argue that Google Buzz is facing the same predicament. Lots of great ideas that should make it don’t make it and I’m curious if there is a formula that app makers in particular should follow to ensure relevance or if there even is a formula. My bottom line is that FourSquare encourages interaction with the community and for that social reason I think it has the upper hand in the “continued buzz factor and growth” departments over an app like a video game or restaurant locater that is not social at all.
It almost seems like every bar/restaurant needs to hire a director of social media, to keep up with all the avenues to promote their business and keep everyone in the know. I’m picturing myself as a bar owner, and some guy from FourSquare walks in asking me to provide coupons. I would probably be frustrated. Between Yelp, Opentable, Twitter, Facebook, Groupon, the Airline Dining programs and countless other avenues, it seems like keeping up is a full time job.
Yea, I agree, the options are overwhelming and small business owners don’t really have the time to be doing all of them, nor should they. I think that right now because the mobile markey is still in its infancy there is going to be a glut of marketing/promotional options, but I would imagine over time a few clear winners will emerge and small business owners will only have one or two to think about. Also, it depends on what your goals are for your business. Is twitter useful for an upscale restaurant? Probably not, but it might be for a dive bar that’s got a hot garage band coming in that night. Smart entrepreneurs will recognize that the ideal tools for them depends on who their target market is and how people perceive their product.
I, too, and struggling with figuring out how my clients (small businesses) can use Foursquare to create traffic. There is a major disconnect from businesses to the general public. For example, being in fashion, I’d like to use Foursquare to allow the public to view where trunk shows in their areas are being held. More interaction from businesses on Foursquare would be great but since their locations are mainly static, how can we get their information out there? The search function could also be more user friendly and/or in-depth.