My presentation on the business application of location-based service Foursquare from last week’s AMI FutureComms workshop:

foursquare is a cross between a friend-finder, a social city-guide and a game that rewards you for doing interesting things.

Yesterday was a good day – it was inadvertently brought to my attention that foursquare is finally available in Perth! And, it comes only a couple of months after its Australian debut in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Here’s how it works:
Using a mobile app, mobile web or SMS (US only), users voluntarily check-in at a variety of locations – cafes, stores, bars, parks – and in doing so alert friends of their whereabouts… perfect if they’re in the area and keen to drop in to say hello. It’s also possible to check-in and keep the location private – designed for those times when three’s a crowd.

When checking-in, users can share tips (i.e. try the frites at Little Creatures!) and add activities to personal to-do lists. Check-ins earn points; there are extra points awarded for going to new places and the user who has checked-in most at a given location becomes the “Mayor”. Users can also unlock badges by checking in at interesting places… it’s a competition to explore your city!

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