What a novel concept concocted by my friend @NateBW over at Bright Eyes Vision Care. That’s right a person I know, came up with the whole foursquare day idea. April 16th is now officially known as foursquare day. 4/16 is 4squared = 16 Get it? Yeah OK just checking

What an awesome event this was, it really brings home the impact social media has on local businesses. Tweetup’s are pretty informal and probably a lot less organized or centered around businesses than a 4sq swarm type event. We unlocked the Swarm badge (50+ checkins at one location) in like 30 minutes. While Tampa did not make the Goal of 250 check ins for a Super Swarm badge, something tells me we are not far from achieving that milestone.

Afterall foursquare is still young. Most people have heard of twitter and facebook. If you mention foursquare, people probably think you are talking about that game you played in grade school. Remember that? four kids, four squares in a 2×2 grid, one ball…the ensuing chaos!

This version of foursquare is much, much better. This version is a game of sorts, with people ‘checking’ in to places they frequently visit. Earning badges and completing to do’s. Competing for mayor titles, and generating user supplied content about the places they frequent.

Businesses are in love with the cost effective ways of promoting their offerings through an online presence. Take for example the Hyatt Regency in Downtown. Not only did they host the Tampa 4sqday event, they offer a huge discount of %50 off purchases made by the mayor of their location. You get to be mayor of an establishment by checking in there more than anyone else over a 60 day period.

Watch this service blossom as adoption rates by local businesses soar. What possibilities could foursquare unlock for your business? Does you business have any tips? Have you claimed your business and made a special offer available to foursquare users?

You should act now, before your competition does. This is one great tool for business. Geek out!

Mike

Tech writer and creator of this blog. Living the dream of self employment under the warm Florida sunshine. I write about a lot of different things, tech, internet marketing, and search engine optimization. I love helping people find useful and helpful information. You can find me on many social networks and very active in the local music scene of Tampa Bay, FL Our Sponsors help keep MichaelQuale.com Alive and improving. Connect with me on Google+

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