Everything You Need to Know About the Top Location Based Services

Katy // January 10, 2011 // Social Media // No Comments

Will 2011 be the year for Location Based Services? Perhaps. More specifically, I’d predict it to be the year that the top tools are defined, adopted and refined. In case you’re a bit behind on the new trend, here’s a quick rundown of what a Location Based Service (LBS) is, my list of top applications in the space and how marketers can leverage these tools.

About.com defines Location Based Services as, “Any information, entertainment or social media service that is available on a mobile device, and makes use of geographical position.” Basically, it is another social element on mobile phones that keeps people informed on where their friends are, what they’re doing and when. We’ve already looked into Foursquare and see it as a major contender, but here are the apps we see catching up:

Facebook Places

What it is – Places allows users to tag where they are, see where their other Facebook friends are, see who else is checked into the same venue at the same time, tag friends with you at that location and write or review comments related to that location. Personally, because of the number of users already logging into Facebook daily, I believe Places will be a force to be reckoned with once marketers figure out how to measure and properly market their venues.

How marketers can leverage it - Though a few brands have had a go at using Places and claimed success, users seem to run into a few snags (not understanding the difference between a check-in and wall comment, on-site customer service wasn’t properly prepared to handle inquiries, etc.). For a successful promotion with this platform, a venue should claim their official location, use the Deals feature, educate its current likers (fans) about the promotion it intends to run and make sure its messaging is very clear and concise. Furthermore, if running an on-site promo, test out a small scale check-in program and make sure employees on-site understand and know how to best implement the program. Once people fully adopt the service, Places can take off.

Gowalla

What it is – With over 450,000 users, Gowalla has created a community of passport holders that check-in to receive passport stamps, write reviews, upload photos, comment on places friends visited and highlight their own favorite places. Gowalla offers an added bonus to users and marketers by highlighting the best venues (selected by their users) on its City Pages.  This is great for marketers because it means more eyeballs on their venue and it’s helpful for users who want to discover new and popular places.

How marketers can leverage it – Gowalla offers venues cusomized stamps that its artists create. When a user checks into your venue, that stamp will be added to their passport with all their Gowalla friends able to view it. With the rewards program, brands have created virtual souvenirs that can be redeemable for actual real-life rewards.

Disney created a fantastic campaign by creating a trip with over 100 stamps within its park, allowing family and friends of Gowalla users to see a virtual scrapbook as users upload photos and share experiences. As a marketer, this sharing of personal experiences stretches outside the park and beyond any paid advertising.

It seems as if Gowalla is tapping travelers by offering suggested trips recommending a series of restaurants, gardens and parks to visit (creators of trips include National Geographic, CNN Money and USA Today). When a trip is completed, a pin is added to the user’s passport, tracking where he’s been in the world. For business owners, simple signage in your venue can encourage Gowalla users to check in and highlight your location, leading to a possible featured on the City Pages for users looking what to do or eat in a new city.

SCVNGR

What is it – Creating a game out of your check-ins, SCVNGR incorporates geo with challenges to people checking into venues. It’s ideal for creating a scavenger hunt. The services offered include standard challenges (non-location based), Treks (connecting places and challenges) and Rewards (points or real-life prizing). SCVNGR also integrated with Facebook Places, enabling users to post their points and activities to their wall as well as tapping into their pre-established community, rather than adding friends “from scratch.”

How marketers can leverage it – Brands need to dig deeper when integrating with SCVNGR because people use the app for fun, to look for trivia and for literal scavenger hunts. When promoting a venue, create challenges that would encourage visitors to explore, read and learn about your brand’s offering.

Whrrl

What it is - Similar to Yelp, Whrrl offers reviews of restaurants, bars, stores and more written by someone who has actually checked into the location. Whrrl then maps everything onto Google Maps so that when users enter their location, a map will auto populate with venues nearby. Click on one that looks interesting and you’ll get the distance from your current location and all the details about the establishment: when it opens, if it serves brunch and the type of payment options.

Whrrl’s point of differentiation is their use of “societies.” These are groups people can build to engage with friends based on common themes, such as the Live Music Society, American Food Society and Coffee Lover’s Society. The idea is to see check-ins and get reviews from like-minded people. Societies can be created with exclusivity – The Wine Bar society requires a Whrrl user to check in to at least three wine-related venues before accepting membership. This ensures other society members are receiving recommendations from friends they trust to be in-the-know.

Notifications of friends’ recommendations pop up as you navigate through the application based on your current location. If you’re in a new city and interested in what other Whrrl users recommend, click on the “Ideas” button at the bottom to see what’s nearby, what your friends recommend and what locations are linked to which societies. If you decide you “want to” take advantage of a recommendation, click “want to” and the person that made the recommendation receives extra points. Once you’ve actually followed through with the task, take and upload a photo or write your own review to receive points.

How marketers can leverage it – Marketers can leverage the pre-established point system by providing discounts and giveaways through the loyalty program. Whrrl also offers branded loyalty programs.

As people become more connected through their smart phones, I believe the ease of use and offerings will play a role in which program individuals decide to tap into. Which app do you predict most people will use as their prime LBS?