What is FourSquare? FourSquare a hybrid of a social network mixed with an interactive real-life game, accompanied by a very cool smartphone app. After account set-up, FourSquare is mostly used on your smartphone. You "Check-in" to places while physically at the location and offer "Tips" to other potential customers about what not to miss when they visit. This is one of the latest advances in Online Local Marketing.
Restaurants, bars, and live music venues are FourSquare's initial focus, but other local businesses can and are already starting to add their physical locations as "Venues" to FourSquare in order to show up in "Check-in" searches. I recently checked in at Home Depot, not exactly a nightlife hot spot. Here's what you need to do to get your business listed.1) Sign up for an individual profile on their website. Don't create a profile for your business. Create a profile for yourself. Do not skip the "upload a photo" step.
The clergyman is expected to be a kind of human Sunday. Things must not be done in him which are venial in the week-day classes. He is paid for this business of leading a stricter life than other people. It is his raison d’être.... This is why the clergyman is so often called a “vicar”Mhe being the person whose vicarious goodness is to stand for that of those entrusted to his charge.
—Samuel Butler (1835–1902)
You cannot collect "Badges" if you do not have a photo, nor can you become a "Mayor". Do not use your business logo.2) Search for your business. There is a slight chance your business is already registered as a venue and will come up in search results, so perform a quick search. If you don't find it, click "add things" in the top navigation menu then follow these steps.a.
Click "add a venue", then enter the name of your business.b. Enter the address. FourSquare requests that you use abbreviations for streets and avenues. Cities should be spelled out. States and countries should be abbreviated in CAPS, like this.100 Main St.
Our business is to have great credit and to use it little.
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)
Dallas, TX 75043c. Enter your business Twitter ID.d. Add appropriate tags (i.e. keywords) relevant to your business. The default is that all Tags appear in lowercase.
Very important: Add your city and state as a Tag. It doesn't make a difference in searches on the website version of FourSquare, but it does in the iPhone App! When the steps above are completed, here's an example of a correctly added Local Business venue: http://FourSquare.com/venue/559367.3) If you have a smartphone, download the FourSquare App and then Check-in to your Local Business venue. FourSquare is available for the iPhone, Blackberry, and Android. Download the App, Check-in, and then on the next day, Check-in again. At that point, you might become the "Mayor" of that venue. You have arrived!.