Group #3Alexander CantilloMarisa Del Priorie

Dianna DiSantoFransisco Juan

Cassandra Williams

What is Foursquare?• Location based social networking service (LBS) that has

been made available on smart phones and the internet since 2009.

• Introduces a competitive gaming aspect to social networking by encouraging “check-ins” at virtually any location

• Every time a user checks-in they are gain points and win badges which increase their rank amongst their friends.– Users receive special offers at participating locations

Marketing ObjectivesOverall Business Objectives

Through advertising, celebrity partnerships, business ventures, and leveraging users networks we intend to increase the amount of new users to 44,000 daily, and establish Foursquare as the leading LBS.

Specific Marketing Objectives

• Leverage our resources to decrease advertising costs. This entails brick and mortar stores displaying our logo in the store front to entice people to enter the store, use our app, and make a purchase.

• To gain more partnerships around the world with local vendors and well known retailers alike.• To encourage people to purchase and send gifts electronically to their friends using Foursquare.• Create partnerships with iconic celebrities, sports teams, and popular television shows.

Strengths• Free for Users and Merchants• GPS Integrated & Real Time Updates• Synced with Facebook and Twitter

Accounts• Collaborative Filtering• WOM Advertising• Accessible Via Web• User Generated Content• Gaming Aspect• Partnerships

Opportunities • Mobile Internet Value Chain

• New Medium • Mobile Technology

• Embraced by Millennials • Allow Businesses to Use Social Media

and Technology • Data Research

• Enhanced Data Logging • Multi-Media Fulfillment

Weaknesses• Difficult to Initially Comprehend• Users Must Decide “What’s In it

For Me?”• Retaining Advocacy Among Users• Privacy Concerns• Friends knowing exact location at

all times

Threats• Competitors: Facebook, Google, Gowalla• Amazon Server Crash• Mobile Privacy and Security • Rapidly Growing Mobile Industry • Lack of Awareness Among Smartphone

Users

SWOT Analysis Summary

OpportunitiesMobile Internet Value Chain• New Medium • Embraced by Millennials• Location captures content and creates value

Allow Businesses to Use Social Media and Technology• Offering customers specials and promotions by checking in

Data Research • Enhanced Data Logging• Measurable ROI for companies (ex: Radio Shack)

Multi-Media Fulfillment • Companies such as Virgin Mobile embracing foursquare in TV and

online advertising (via YouTube)

Screenshot of Virgin Mobile Television Ad “The Stalker”

ThreatsCompetitors

• Google Latitude• Facebook

Places• Gowalla• Based on value

creation and time to market

Server Crash

• Amazon EC2• Biggest online

cloud-computing provider

• Brought down Apache Hadoop and Apache Hive

• Suffered a technological problem

• Reliance on an outside source for most crucial part of service

Mobile Privacy and Security

• Location Based Services display exact latitude and longitude coordinates of check-in

• Users opt-in to make check ins as private as desired

• Check-In visibility maximum to friends and social network accounts

Rapidly Growing Mobile Industry

• Showing potential against other API’s

• Lack of Awareness Among Smartphone Users• fewer than 60

percent of respondents know about location-based mobile apps and just 39 percent used them

Threats - CompetitorsGo

ogle Latitude

•Check- In Notifications•Get a notification to check in at a nearby place once you arrive

•Special Status •Regular •VIP•Automatic check ins•Checks out •Notifying friends when user has left

Facebook Places

•Real time •Location History•Connecting location with Facebook newsfeed•Part of Facebook app• makes convenient to check- in

Gowalla

•Earn rewards•Check ins with photos and comments • Virtual items•Serve as digital souvenirs

•Earn “passport stamps” for check-ins

Foursqu

are

•Special Status •Mayor•VIP – checking in with mayor•BFF Bonus – checking in with a friend

•Online profile provide history, badges, mayorships, and friend information•Learn about venues •Follow partners •Earn specials

Strengths

•All features

Free for Users and Merchants

•Shows exact time of check-in

•Website has live newsfeed of newly crowned mayors

GPS Integrated & Real Time Updates

•Opt-in to showing check-ins on news feeds

Synced with Facebook and Twitter Accounts

•UGC and personalization

•Check ins with photos, comments, tips, to-do’s

Collaborative Filtering

•Recommendation through friends

WOM Advertising

•Provides users with a profile

Accessible Via Web

•Earn points and badges

• Compete for mayorships of venues

Gaming Aspect

•Measurable performance through statistical data

•Brand Awareness

Partnerships

Weaknesses

Privacy

• Friends knowing exact locations at all times

• Opt- in to having social network accounts show check-ins, mayorships, earned badges• Requires additional

privacy settings for accounts

Difficult to Initially Comprehend

• First Location-Based Service of its type

• Gaming terms are not common • Mayorship• Badges• Check-in • Ousted by User

• Requires hands-on interaction to fully grasp concept

Users Must Decide “What’s In it For Me?”

• Requires constant engagement

• Many badges offered during the initial stages • Need to follow

pages in order to earn new ones

• Specials not as common in areas beyond cities

Retaining Advocacy Among Users

• Novelty wears off • Concerns with

privacy • Not many users

continuing to engage• Specials expire

Marketing Problems• Only 10% of businesses specify that they would

pay to have their business featured on the site• Brand presence needs to be increased• Show businesses the importance it provides in

creating traffic• The word-of-mouth needs to be spread more • It is a must to find a method to market as a

viable resource for traffic.

Marketing Opportunities• Customer acquirement • Compensate loyal consumers • Monetize our social media presence • Low Risk / High Reward • Distinguish Foursquare from other LBS

competitors

Product/Service: • Foursquare has launched it’s “Foursquare for Business” page, to

encourage businesses to engage their customers • Create celebrity badges with the most popular pop culture stars of

today, such as the Kardashians, the Jersey Shore cast, the Twilight stars, etc.

• A customer will use Foursquare to check-in to certain places a particular celebrity loves to visit; once all places are visited the user will earn the celebrity’s badge.

• Some badges may even be linked to a contest drawing, where select Foursquare users get the chance to meet the celebrity

• Another application we plan on adding to Foursquare is purchasing gifts, such as a free item or gift card to participating locations

• This gift card is completely virtual and can be redeemed only through Foursquare by scanning the barcode of the gift card straight off of one’s smart phone.

• This brings convenience to the purchaser as well as the receiver:– for the purchaser does not have to physically go to

the location to buy the gift card – the receiver does not have to worry about losing the

gift card or wonder what the remaining balance is for it will always be on their smart phones in the Foursquare application

Product/Service:

Marketing Action Plans Marisa De Priore

Price: • Foursquare has developed a discount and special system

that any business can use to entice loyalty and increase business

• These specials are designed to reward good customers, and get them promoting the businesses through their check-ins

• The new gift card application, the more gift cards a company sells the more commission they will have to pay Foursquare

• Many celebrities have endorsement deals with various retail companies or even have a clothing line or a store of their own

• As a result, if Foursquare partners with celebrities the idea of fans checking into places the celebrity already endorses will just add publicity for the celebrity

Customer Acquisition and Retention Plans:

• Our target market is the millennial generation• Celebrities are role models to these young adults and the main

reason for the idea of the celebrity badges• Higher retention rate of customers if their favorite celebrity is on

Foursquare and is the face of promotions exclusive to Foursquare users

• Once customers are signed up on Foursquare the idea is that they will begin to use it, love the concept of it, and tell their friends about it

Distribution/Fulfillment: • With the celebrity endorsement contests, Foursquare has to make

sure the contest winners are drawn fairly and the terms of the winnings are fulfilled

• For the gift cards, Foursquare has to make sure if a customer purchases a gift card that they actually receive the gift card

• They key is to give the customer what they want and they will continue to do business with you

Quality and Customer Service:

• The gift cards will be able to be purchased off the website and will be legitimate and secure

• Every company that will like to add the gift card option to their account will be put through a Foursquare background check before it is added to their Foursquare page

• For the celebrity endorsement plan, Foursquare’s main concern will be making sure the terms and conditions of the contests, where lucky Foursquare members get to meet a participating celebrities, are fulfilled successfully

Evaluation Techniques

• Ability to turn life into a game• Business interact with consumers on a new level• Continuously grow partnership list worldwide• Innovative updates and improvements• New pop culture and sports teams badges• Reaching our goal of 44,000 members daily

Budget EstimateNew Campaign Expenditures First Quarter Second Quarter Third Quarter Fourth Quarter

Celebrity Endorsements $150,000 $110,000 $60,000 $80,000

Total Full Campaign $400,000

Each quarter we plan on introducing new badges so that users have are constantly thrilled and have new badges to unlock.

Our sports teams badges will be released at the start of the professional season.

Recommendations

• Encourage participating stores and restaurants to display the Foursquare logo outside of their business

• Incorporate pop culture icons, and professional sport teams

• Offer gift cards or appetizers/desserts as a gift that can be bought and redeemed electronically

ConclusionFoursquare has been able to do what no other company has managed. That is incorporate game like mechanics in real world settings and see it be quite successful. While it is not 100 percent perfect, it has the dedicated management team to create and introduce new and exciting features. With new competition arising like Google Latitude they will have their work cut out for them. However, with the help of our recommendations and future features of Foursquare we believe they will continue to be a successful company as they further pioneer the location based social networking scene.