Aug 21, 2013
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Remember Foursquare?
You know that app that allows you to check into various businesses and locations. If you check in often enough you become the Mayor of that business and people who check in get special perks like discounts and free goods. Many businesses have found over the years that utilizing Foursquare has provided an outlet for their customers to socialize with other customers, develop a personal relationship with the business itself and look forward to going to their shops on a regular basis.
The question is, do people still use Foursquare? Like some Facebook relationship statuses, “It’s Complicated.” Many businesses still use Foursquare and they still retain some of the same clientele that started from the use of the app but there have been some downfalls to Foursquare that have caused somewhat of a lapse in its popularity.
One of the main issues that many Foursquare businesses came across during its height of popularity is that if they offered a free or discounted item (for example, buy one get one free onion rings at a burger joint) so many people would take advantage of the promotion that the company failed to make money with the venture and in fact, showed losses. While the free promotion was beneficial to the overall brand, the deficit caused by the promotion made the whole project futile. Obviously, any venture that doesn’t create profit over the long term may be considered a failure as a marketing campaign.
That being said, there are still some merits to using Foursquare. The social aspect of the app continues to attract those loyal clients who enjoy the rush of becoming the Mayor and who frequently visit your establishment. Best of all, Foursquare is still FREE! Other than the time you spend creating specials, managing the details and whatnot there is no financial cost to being a business on Foursquare.
So, is Foursquare a thing of the past? The answer is a (sort of) yes, but… For some businesses, due to the nature of the social behaviors and free word of mouth advertising Foursquare is still usable. There are still enough regular users to merit the use of the app for marketing if you have the time to develop things properly for your business and if you know what is necessary for to maintain your profit margins.
For more information on integrating social media into your business click here.