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6 Tips to Using Location-Based Social Networking to Market Your Business

Guest post by: Donna Gunter

Article Overview: Foursquare, Gowalla, Yelp, Brightkite, Facebook Places. They are the biggest players in the game of location-based social media. Location-based social networking provides a platform where your clients can "check in" at your place of business. Here are 6 tips you can use to market your business on these location-based sites:

6 Tips to Using Location-Based Social Networking to Market Your Business

Foursquare, Gowalla, Yelp, Brightkite, Facebook Places. These sound like games, don't they? In a way, they are. They are the biggest players in the game of location-based social media. Location-based social networking provides a platform where your clients can "check in" at your place of business. It's a fun and unique way to engage your clients, since you can get your clients to promote your business in return for bragging rights.

I primarily use Yelp and Foursquare when I "check in" on my iPhone. In fact, I'm the "mayor" of a number of businesses here in Orange, and every time I check in at Chili's, I get a free order of chips and salsa. The Foursquare app uses the GPS chip in your phone to locate you, and then lists the businesses nearby. You simply find the appropriate business, check in, and share with your Twitter and Facebook friends. You can check into restaurants, retail locations, hiking trails, state parks, and for me, I can check into the Texas/Louisiana border (less than 5 minutes from my house).

Like most of the other social networking applications, these location-based applications are free to set up and use. Even if you don't have a brick-and-mortar location and work out of your home like I do, I think it's still worthwhile to get into the location-based social networking game.

Here are 6 tips you can use to market your business on these location-based sites:

1. Claim your profile. In most cases, if you have a business telephone number and/or a physical location, your profile will already be listed in these services. If you don't find your business there, all of these services offer you the option of creating a profile for your business. For my physical address, I use my local mailbox service as my physical address.

2. Offer specials. The incentive to get others to check into your business is to offer them special deals. Depending on your type of business, you might offer a free appetizer or drink special if you're a restaurant, or offer a discount coupon after a certain number of check-ins if you're a retail or service business. In Foursquare, you can also offer a special to the "mayor" of your business, which is the person who has checked in the greatest number of times. Customers will compete against each other to unseat the current mayor.

3. Give tips. Use your profile to give your customers tips about how they can best use your business. Post daily/monthly specials in your profile, or how to best use your business as well as education about what you provide. For example, if you run a travel agency, leave tips about the best attractions in your city to recommend to visitors.

4. Interact with your customers. Location-based social media platforms offer statistics to the business owner so that she can how customers interact in her business. By reading reviews and tips left by customers, it gives the business owner a better understanding of customer needs. You might even host in person live events or Meetups for those who check into your business.

5. Make it easy for customers to check in. Offer a promotion to encourage customers and friends of customers to follow your account, like a promo code or limited-time offer. If you're a virtual business, put check in reminders on your site, your blog and in your email newsletter.

6. Check into your business each day. If you have a physical location, this makes more sense, but it pays to check into your virtual business each day as well, since it's free advertising. And, who wants to pass up free advertising?

Geographically-based social networking is here to stay, so it's worth the time for you to take advantage of this free promotional strategy for your business. By leveraging the networks of your clients, you may soon discover a greatly expanded customer base.

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Article Tags: Donna Gunter, Facebook Places, Foursquare, Get More Clients Online, Gowalla, locationbased social media, locationbased social networking, OnlineBizUcom



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Re: How can a social networking site make serious money? - Hi There, It is quite interesting, that some Social Networking do produce an income. I think testimonials are always a benefit to share. See one below: This Social Network has changed my life! Every night is a Friday night and everyday is a Saturday!! Because of it, I have been able to leave the workforce 10 years early.It has given me back my life. Many of us would like to retire early. I am sure there are many more. The point is of focusing with great determination. The ongoing challenge is to stay focussed and not be sidetracked into a newer scheme or so. Also I have read, during this financial turmoil, more people turn to Social Networking for various reasons.
Marketing 2012 - I am interested in what works for you in 2012, Social Networking, Search Engine traffic, Blogs, Articles, Forums, what? This is a quote from a 2009 Topic "Twitter, Social Networking, What is your Method? From my experience, social networking traffic (Twitter included) also converts at a far lower rate than search engine traffic. Evan Is this still true, or do you use something that gives us better returns and conversions
Re: Marketing 2012 - [quote="drdony":2y0daolc]I am interested in what works for you in 2012, Social Networking, Search Engine traffic, Blogs, Articles, Forums, what? This is a quote from a 2009 Topic "Twitter, Social Networking, What is your Method? From my experience, social networking traffic (Twitter included) also converts at a far lower rate than search engine traffic. Evan Is this still true, or do you use something that gives us better returns and conversions[/quote:2y0daolc] Great question Don! I'll create a video reply!
Re: Tactics for Blog Traffic - some more tips to drive traffic to blog or to promote a blog. Squidoo Lens Creation Hub Pages Creation Social Bookmarking (Digg, Delicious, Stumble, Reddit etc.) Be helpful in forums Social Networking (Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, LinkedIn etc.) syndication blog commenting (other blogs) Guest post
Business Tips - How about: Tips for managers to handle employees more effectively? Tips on how to deal with difficult customers? Tips on how to deal more effectively with suppliers? The only three I have in mind right now, but will try to come up with something else. Chris


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