A User's Perspective on Foursquare

Until you've used Foursquare, you may not understand what all the hype is about. After all, it's nothing more than a means for your friends to find you when you're out and about, right? And if it's nothing more than that, couldn't you accomplish the same thing by just sending a text message to your friends or simply tweeting it?

Well, sure.

But let me explain Foursquare to you from the perspective of a girl who in recent weeks has gone completely bonkers over one of the hottest social media trends happening right now.

When I first began using Foursquare, I assumed I would tire of it within the first month, maybe even the first few weeks. From what I knew about the social-media platform (which was very little at that point), I could see the benefit of having something like Foursquare available when I lived in New York and had friends spread across four boroughs and three states. (It might actually make it easier to meet up with some folks from time to time and grab a bite to eat.) But now that I live in the 25th largest city in the U.S., it's much easier to find my friends. There are only so many places a person can go and my friends and I tend to stick to the same neighborhood and its popular hangouts anyway. We're bound to run into each other eventually! But after playing around with the application for a few weeks, I was hooked, and here's why:

It's fun. Checking into venues, collecting badges, competing with friends for points, and becoming Mayor if I check into a specific venue more than anyone else on Foursquare . . . This is the gaming aspect of Foursquare and we all know how fun games are!

It's easy. Instead of texting my friends or, um, calling (can you imagine?) to let them know that I'm currently at our favorite restaurant and they should stop by, I can just check in on Foursquare and leave the rest up to them. And since I have the option to send my check in information to Facebook and Twitter, I can also alert my friends who aren't on Foursquare - yet.

It's motivating. If there's one thing I do more of now that I'm on Foursquare, it's going out into the real world and engaging with real people. I dine out more often (usually at restaurants that my friends often check into), meet up with friends more often, and even go the gym more often. (I'm currently the Mayor of my gym and while this is strictly due to no one else checking in on Foursquare yet, I still want to hold onto that title for as long as I can!)

It's mysterious. While there are a handful of documented badges out there, new badges are being created all the time. I never know which check in will trigger that "Overshare" or "Socialite" badge, but when it does, it's down right fun!

I get stuff. I recently checked into a movie theater with my husband and discovered a "deal near-by" pop up for three scoops of Ben & Jerry's ice cream for only $3. All I had to do to get the deal was show that I checked in on Foursquare. And Ben & Jerry's isn't the only company doing this. My friends and I have received everything from free fried pickles to free soda and half-price beer just by clicking a button on our Smartphones!

It gives me voice as a consumer. Each time I check into a venue, restaurant, gym, theater, bar or shop, I'm casting my vote for that business, at least once. Whether that business is paying attention or not (which they should be), I'm not only announcing to my friend's that I'm at this place, but I can tell them about my experience there too. And I will. Foursquare allows me to leave tips for others and will even pop-up an alert when I'm at a nearby establishment where one of my friends has left a tip. And we all know how powerful word of mouth recommendations can be.

So while I may absolutely get on the nerves of my husband and my friends and colleagues because I'm constantly fumbling around with my phone each time we walk into a place of business, or getting in heated discussions about badges that should exist and "wouldn't it be neat if so and so had a deal," I simply can't help myself! Foursquare has found a unique way to combine social media with real world interaction and that's something we could all stand to do more of.