The Background

The first survey was done while listening to a number of students who joined our tailgating fun prior to the latest Penn State football game – a win I might add here, especially since this does not look like a stellar year like times of old. I purposely did not participate in the conversations as they discussed their dislike of the Facebook changes. There was a universal dislike – “they didn’t ask us if we wanted it to be changed like this” was one comment. Then a surprise as a couple of the young ladies discussed how they spend hours on Tumblr. While most of the other folks did not know anything about Tumblr this group raved about it – hmmm interesting.

The College Class Survey

The second survey was conducted with a class I taught at Temple University where I was asked to come in and discuss the differences between companies that have adapted to the internet versus companies that rely on the internet versus companies who are a result of the internet – much like Dinkum. There were many good questions and I was impressed with the way the students had prepared for the class, most of whom had checked out our website. Just before leaving I took a poll of the social media websites being used by the class and their feelings on a few things. Here are my findings:

• Once again Facebook was tops on the list and not one person liked the new changes.
• 50% had tried Twitter but only a few keep up with it.
• Only a few had tried Tumblr but loved it
• 75% spent significant time on YouTube
• Many tried Google+ but only one person still checks it out – more on that later
• FourSquare, StumbleUpon, Pandora and LinkedIn rounded out the list.

The many comments about Google+ were interesting. Looks like it might be good someday but no one is using it yet. I asked if they would go back but only a few thought it was interesting enough for another look – Google+ did you not roll it out right?

Everyday I hear more about how Google+ is gaining traction but this survey and the many folks with whom I speak are saying that you have a LONG way to go. There are some interesting features – BUT! I wonder if Facebook actually did Google+ a favor by changing when they did and making folks angry? However, are they mad enough to move over to Google+?

In my opinion, they waited too long to roll it out for corporations.

Good luck Google. I am pulling for you on this one because I am really starting to dislike the arrogance of Facebook. It is a social media tool that does not care one bit about you, your opinion or anything more than tracking you to make some cash. Let me feel the love once in awhile – you have great potential but the arrogance may be your downfall someday. I guess we will see.

Share your opinions on any of these sites with us in the comments.

Photo Credit: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1172174

Rick Simmons is a principal at Dinkum Interactive, a firm specializing in online marketing solutions for small and medium sized businesses around the globe. With more than 25 years of experience in advertising and marketing, Simmons has spent the last four years focused on search engine optimization, and other Internet marketing strategies. Reach him at 267-626-9094 or rick@dinkuminteractive.com.

What is Foursquare?

Foursquare is a location based service that is part social networking tool, part city guide and part game. Intended for use on smartphones, users “check in” at various locations and can win virtual designations, prizes and points for visiting locations or doing interesting things. Foursquare also uses the GPS feature found in smartphones to pinpoint a location. Like Twitter, users connect with each other, communicate their statuses and compete for honors.  For example, a user that checks-in the most at a location is declared the Foursquare “Mayor” and given a virtual badge; other badges are awarded based on the use of location tagging and points are also awarded for check ins. The result is an addictive game with many hooks.

How Business Can Use Foursquare

To paraphrase a recent Advertising Age blog post, Foursquare helps businesses Build an Army of Hyper-Local Mobile Connected Advocates. But that’s not all: while Twitter enables users to talk about a specific business, Foursquare encourages users to act. Checking in, offering business specific Tips, suggesting To Do’s and other Foursquare-related activities requires users to visit the business which should result in an increase in business. Furthermore, Foursquare offers businesses the ability to learn more about their customers by monitoring not only the recency and frequency of visits, but also comments. So far, Foursquare has been used primarily by B2C businesses like bars, restaurants and coffee shops as a loyalty builder, but I’m sure that there are many more uses.

While you may have to skip through a few slides to get to the useful stuff, here’s a  slide show on What You Need to Know About Foursquare from We Are Social:

Why I Like Foursquare

So far, I really like Foursquare for a number of reasons. First, it puts the “social” into social media, by connecting people and encouraging human interaction. Second, it’s fun. Foursquare encourages people to visit new places and make recommendations. The tagging feature that awards points for tagging locations reminds me of some sort of geocache and it intrigues me. Third, Foursquare benefits users and business locations alike. Users have fun competing for titles, badges and points, not to mention meeting new friends. Businesses benefit from attracting more customers and learning more about them. After getting my feet wet, I’m looking forward to using this application more and finding new ways to use it to benefit business – and have some fun in the process.

The Winner: Foursquare vs. Twitter

Sorry to disappoint you, but I think that it’s too early to determine if there is a winner between these two applications, or even if there is a contest. So far, it seems that we are comparing an Apple to an Orange. To me, Twitter is much more of a utility; it facilitates real time communication between people and in many ways has laid much of the social media groundwork. It’s the innovator with millions of users that continues to grow by leaps and bounds. Foursquare is an interesting application that on the surface seems to offer much more direct value to business. Granted, if you operate a gasket manufacturer in a non-urban area it may not be all that helpful, but for many other businesses it may offer a much more significant impact. Targeted toward the Twitter demographic, Foursquare seems more like a Twitter enhancement than a competitor.

Bill Rowland