Day 214 - Foursquare and Other Computer Games

image of Foursquare Log In screen
by brennanMKE, via Flickr.com 

I joined Foursquare exactly two years and a day ago. I know that because Foursquare told me when I checked into one of my locations yesterday. I know why I joined Foursquare. And I have had two years to think about whether it made sense.

I joined Fousquare because of a story told by Dux Raymond Sy, a SharePoint enthusiast and frequent speaker at SharePoint conferences. He told his story two years ago at a SharePoint conference in Virginia. Dux speaks all over the world and he had recently returned from speaking at a conference in Sri Lanka. After that conference, he traveled with a friend to India where they rented a car to see some of the sights. Along the way, they had a flat tire. Dux checked in with Foresquare to indicate he was stuck along a road, pinpointing the location with the GPS locator that is part of the app. Within 20 minutes, a car pulled up and a guy jumped out and walked up to greet Dux and offered to help. Dux recognized the guy as someone he had met at the conference in Sri Lanka, so he asked how the guy knew he was there and that he needed help. The guy responded that he had seen Dux's Foursquare check-in on Twitter.

It was a short story that illustrated the impact of social media at a very personal level. So I joined Foursquare to see what it might mean for me.

I haven't had any dramatic results yet. I haven't run into anyone at the same location as my check-ins. But I have continued using Foursquare, although with some long stretches of inactivity, in part because it is a lot like an online game, although not one that can consume all of my spare time.

Image of Foursquare badges
   by dpstyles™, via Flickr.com 

Foursquare gives me points for each check-in. The number of points depend on many factors, most of which I hadn't yet figured out. I know I get more points when I check into a location for the first time. So there is incentive to keep using the app over time. I know I get points when I am the first one of my friends to check into a location, and since most of my Foursquare friends are in places far from where I am, I get those points often. I know that if I check into different locations of certain categories I will get not only points, but badges. And eventually I even learned there are levels of badges.

Foursquare compares my score with the scores of my friends, always showing at least two of my friends along with my score, usually the friend who is ahead of me and the friend who is behind me. That adds just a hint of competition to the game.

The number of points go way down when checking in at the same location later, but Foursquare offers a different incentive for frequent stops - according to a formula I haven't yet figured out, I have become mayor of a number of locations I check into frequently, an honor I also haven't quite figured out what to do with.

All of these points and badges and mayoralties remind me of computer games - especially exploration and adventure games. I enjoy the continuous learning involved, even though most of what I am learning is nothing more than what the Foursquare rules are and they may seem to have little to do with what goes on in the world.

I have discovered some businesses have developed strategies for engaging with Foursquare customers. Some businesses, such as Target, offer special deals to those who check in. Some businesses, such as the Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport, offer gifts to the mayor when he/she checks in. Some businesses, such as Nordstroms, send messages to customers who check in, thanking them for stopping by. The latter I think is a very effective strategy since Foursquare posts are reposted also to Twitter and Facebook which means the businesses engages with a broader audience than just the one customer. When was the last time a business thanked you publically for stopping by - not even first checking to see if you bought something there?

At one point, I decided I wasn't sure I wanted my check-ins to be shared on Facebook, so I decided I would only check-in if I had a tip to leave about the location. The tips are where the real power of engagement lies. Businesses can see right away if a potential customer is displeased by something, and the smart ones reach out right away to turn the displeasure around. There is no more powerful advocate than a customer whose mind was changed to a more positive viewpoint by actions taken by the business. But I am happy enough just sharing when something delights me.

But right now I use Foursquare as a game. When Alex the extrovert wants to go out and I would really rather stay home, I use Foursquare as incentive to please Alex by jumping up out of my comfortable seat as I shout, "Where are we going first?"