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Foursquare Info

What’s the Point? While on the surface it may seem pointless, consumers are motivated to participate because it is fun, engaging and there are rewards.  Foursquare is a game and the competition for “mayorships,” awarded to the person who checks-in the most often, and “fee item” or discount coupons keep the platform ever-changing.  Sheer entertainment is not the main utility but often it is the original hook.   Like the other more familiar social networking sites, Foursquare provides a venue for connecting to friends.  When users see where their friends are at any given time, it becomes a social planning tool.  At an event such as a concert or conference, a user can leave a note or engage in location-based chatter.  It then becomes an alternative tool for communication to text, email, Facebook or Twitter. Why Should We Participate?As a state government program with public locations, it is important that we consider participating for several reasons. The general public’s ability to establish venues by inputting any information they choose makes it essential that we engage.  If we proactively gain management of our Foursquare venues, we have the ability to

  • design the page for consistent branding and accurate information,
  • connect users to our other social media platforms and our agency’s web site,
  • monitor customer satisfaction comments, and
  • use information gained through the metric collection service to enhance our customer service efforts and effectiveness.

Foursquare does not require the monitoring commitment of other forms of social networking.  While the metrics can be analyzed randomly, viewing the site itself may be done once or twice per week.  Users of Foursquare are not looking for immediate two-way conversations but rather tips and incentives.

Getting Started Step One: Set up a Foursquare Account    Foursquare’s home page is the place to start.  At the bottom of the home page you will find a link to the Authorized Venue Platform Terms of Use.  Read this document carefully before you join and seek advice within your agency if you have any questions.  Once you are ready to proceed, click the join prompt.   A tutorial is provided on this page which gives you a quick overview of Foursquare. Establish your account by following the prompts.

Step Two: Claiming your Venues   Foursquare for Businesses outlines the basics of how to claim your venues.  If you have 10 or fewer locations, this process is best accomplished by searching for your location and verifying that you are the appropriate entity to claim it. (See page 13 of Foursquare for Business) he most probable user of Foursquare in Marylandstate government will be those seeking to claim more than 10 but less than 100 locations. Foursquare provides a Bulk Management Form to assist managers in claiming multiple sites as well as merging duplicate sites.  To obtain this form, send a request to partners@foursquare.com.   The Maryland Department of Natural Resources claimed all of the Maryland State Parks by searching each park on Foursquare and adding the Foursquare User ID URL to the Bulk Management Form as well as including each duplicate User ID URL for each park.  Once the form is complete, Foursquare will claim all venues for you to manage and clean up your duplicates.

This is an example from the DNR Bulk Management WorksheetView an example: 

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