For the past 18 months, Foursquare has created about 3,000 business pages in-house, relying on its developers and designers and coordinating with brand creative teams along the way.

It was a time-consuming, unsustainable and restricting growth model that limited the amount of businesses that could be “followed” on Foursquare. As a result, the location-based service tended to work with big names, such as Louis Vuitton, Zagat, The New York Times, the History Channel, Brooklyn Museum and the city of Chicago.

Now, any business can create a free Foursquare business page, enabling it to customize a branded page where fans can “follow” the brand and unlock its tips.

Foursquare’s new self-serve model for brand pages will be particularly beneficial to small businesses, who have gained from managing their venues on Foursquare, but have not had the ability to interact with users by leaving Foursquare tips.

The biggest improvement to the business page experience is the ability to have entire teams of people manage the same page. Foursquare introduced a new tool to enable brands to add multiple page “managers” to a page’s account.

Before getting started, brands should read through Foursquare’s FAQ on business pages to get an idea of what they’ll need to get started and maintain the page.

Source: http://mashable.com

Vitaminwater is underlining its energy-boosting powers with interactive bus shelters that allow commuters to recharge electronic devices.

The bus shelters, installed on bus routes in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Boston, offer a 5-volt battery powered USB port that allows users to charge mobile phones, music players and gaming devices. They form part of the soft drink brand’s ‘You’re Up’ campaign, underlining its message that it is formulated to provide a quick boost when you are on the go.

Source: CreativityOnline

Businesses using Google Apps will have to wait a little longer to get on the Google+ bandwagon as this Information Week post illustrates.

Google Apps users who have an invite to Google+ will have already seen an error page appear. This has to do with an incompatibility between Google Profiles and Google Apps which means that, as of now, it is impossible for Google Apps users to sign up for Google+.

Reading all the tips and advice from Business Insider makes it all the more frustrating for businesses wanting to integrate with AdWords.

The message from Google’s Christian Oestlien isn’t encouraging either. Apparently, businesses have to wait until the focus switches from consumers. Business users won’t want to wait too long, because the hype is so big right now for Social Media marketing. With mixed views around about other options e.g. Facebook “Like”, Twitter “Retweeting” and LinkedIn sharing, the time seems right for Google to establish the default way for businesses to use social networking.

Google’s statement is fair enough; they want to get it right before opening the service up to business users, traditionally less tolerant people than personal users who don’t risk losing advertising revenue during a new service’s development phase. Many companies now rely on PPC income and can’t take a chance on a system until it’s been fully tested. The genie is out of the bottle now, though, and Google can’t put it back.

While Google is still the number one search engine for businesses and consumers alike, it has pole position in the race to establish a “button for everyone”, something all online sellers and buyers recognize and understand. How long we have to wait for it, only they know.

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• On business cards: A fast and simple way to use QR codes for your own professional purposes is to place them on business cards. Generate a bar code that directs scanners to your online resume, small business Facebook Page or your website to help new contacts find you or your business faster.
• On marketing materials: You’ve got fliers, brochures, programs, handouts, whitepapers and a myriad of other materials in your media kit. Add QR codes to direct viewers to a particular how-to video, send them to a Flickr photo set, get them to follow you on Twitter, or point them to a mobile-friendly landing page that promotes a new campaign. For inspiration, check out what the Detroit Red Wings did with QR codes in their arena programs.
• In storefront windows: Google is sending out QR code window decals to top local businesses with Google Place Pages. If they don’t send you one, steal the idea and generate your own QR code to place in your window. You can use this code to encourage Foursquare check-ins, point scanners to your Yelp profile, or simply invite customers to share memories in photo, video or text form via Stickybits.
• For freebies: If you really want people to pay attention to your QR codes, make them good for something fun. Say you’ve placed a QR code decal in your storefront window, why not reward those who scan it with 10% off their purchase or a free pastry? Give them something small to thank them for their patronage. Simply create a custom QR code for the freebie you want to offer. You could even get creative and hide the QR code offers online, like on your Facebook page or website, or somewhere inside your store.

Things to Remember

If you’re going to use QR codes for small business marketing, you’ll want to keep in mind that QR codes — and the apps that scan them — are still foreign to most people.

Yes, more and more people are starting to associate the codes with action, but never assume your customers will know what to do. Make it a point to spell out how to scan the QR code, and help instruct customers on where they can grab scanner apps.

Also, remember that QR codes should provide some kind of value to the scanner. It may be easiest to direct QR code scanners to your website, but that’s likely not the most engaging place to send people.

Source: http://mashable.com

As a result of the clamor that currently exists surrounding the popularity of the on-line space, it’s easy to forget that there are many examples in which the printed item has a place in the marketing mix of just about all businesses and, used correctly, can be very effective indeed.

» Business cards

Business cards are a convenient and universally accepted way of providing an instant reminder of who you are and what it is you do, along with how you can be contacted.

Always carry a good supply of business cards with you at all times either on your person or in the car as you never know when a potential customer might just show up. Of course, they’re also essential when you’re networking.

Business cards can also be handed out liberally to friends, existing customers and other contacts for them to redistribute on your behalf.

It’s important that your business cards are of a very high quality, as the look and feel of the card could well be a deciding factor in either engaging or putting off a potential customer.

» Printed leaflets

For businesses with a strong local focus, leaflets can be an effective way to garner a presence in your geographical area. Leaflet drops to homes and other businesses in your area are relatively inexpensive and they let local people know that you’re nearby, as well as tell them exactly how you can help them.

Newspapers and regional magazines are good vehicles to reaching an audience or market within a specific geographical area.

» Printed brochures

Leaving a brochure behind after a business meeting can help hugely in representing you and your business long after you’ve left the building.

A well printed brochure will serve as a strong reminder of all the key facts surrounding your products and services and it also means they can refer to information about you without having to necessarily have made notes.

To work well, all brochures should be expertly designed, written and printed simply because whatever you leave behind should always be viewed as an asset to your business.

» Posters & wall charts

Large format printed items usually take the form of posters or wall charts and are most commonly produced in fairly small quantities for local display or at exhibitions.

Quality is an essential part of an effective poster. A printer can help advise you on paper sizes, paper stock and the most cost-effective method of print as well as discussing how new technologies may be able to set you apart from your competitors.

» Envelopes

Despite the massive use of electronic communication, there’s still a strong demand for written communication – particularly when important documents are enclosed.

Printing your company logo or other information onto envelopes will provide a very professional touch to all your outgoing correspondence. This delivers a level of assurance to the recipient as well as helping improve brand recognition.

» Get in touch with Fineprint

Is there any aspect of commercial litho or digital print – or any other print-related matter – that you’d like to know more about?

Source: www.fineprintbasingstoke.co.uk

Before you pick a company to create the sign, however, it is important to decide what type of sign is wanted. This requires some questioning as to the target audience that you wish to focus on. Although the actual words used are important, they aren’t the biggest thing to consider. The most important thing isn’t so much the words that are used, but the way that message is presented.

If you consider the companies that are the most successful out there, they always have big recognizable symbols and signs such as the two gold arches for McDonald’s. Without this symbol which represents their company, there would just be a bunch of big letters that spelled out the name of the company, but that’s not very easily remembered; what people remember (especially the kids, who are the target audience) are the arches.

You always know, matter where you go in the world, if you see the golden arches then there is a McDonald’s that you are familiar with and you know exactly what they have to offer. Especially if you have kids with you, you know that they automatically will recognize the sign and symbol and beg to go there.

In thinking of a symbol to use in your company sign, think of bright colors and shapes that will catch the eye. Depending on what you are offering, the types of colors you will want to have will differ. If you are selling furniture, for example, you’ll have to think of your target audience; in this case it would be middle-aged adults. To attract them, you wouldn’t necessarily want to use bright colors to attract them, but elegant and maybe darker colors that show you have something sophisticated and formal since that is what they want their house to look like.

Children, on the other hand, think nothing but of shiny or bright things and they keep them amazed. That is why stores such as Toys ‘R Us which are geared towards attracting kids have bright reds and yellows. Fast food chains, for example, very commonly have bright red and yellow colors in their signs for the community. One reason for this is the reason previously mentioned in that it attracts kids. However, there are further reasons why this is used since target audience for these places isn’t only kids; in fact, many times it is mainly adults.

The further reasoning in this case is that there have been scientific studies done which have shown that these specific colors trigger hunger responses in the body. This is why it is important to check out the science behind different colors you are considering to see if they are conducive to attracting people to the particular product that you are offering.

Source: www.onlinebusinesswatch.com

If you are wondering how to give your business some leverage using Foursquare, here are some tips to help you get started:

Persuade users to shout out: Though users can get the word out about your offerings by telling the same to their friends on Foursquare, it will be much more helpful if they shout out about the same on their Twitter profiles too. So, encourage them to shout out and you will see how amazing such a word-of-the-mouth publicity can turn out to be.

Engage your customers with some fun activities: You can create some unique tips list or to-do lists with a touch of fun and humor for the Foursquare users. Entice these people complete one or more of the tasks, and ensure that they get rewarded for the job. This will not only bring the fun side of your business to the forefront but also help customers to be at ease while they are at your place.

Create Foursquare specials: There are some tools that you can use to create a wide range of Foursquare Specials, which are customized for your customers and your venue. You can use Mayor Specials where your most loyal customer acts as the Mayor of the venue to unlock the special offers, Check-in Specials that’s unlocked by a user who has checked into your venue a certain number of times, Frequency-based Specials where users with frequent check-ins get rewarded, and the like. The basic idea behind these specials is to empower you to develop more engaging and long term ongoing relationship with your customers.

Promoting specials via mobile: You can actively promote your business offerings to Foursquare mobile clients (those who have Androids, iPhones, and Blackberries), thereby drawing their attention to venues that offer special deals to them. For example, a Foursquare user near your store can be informed about special treatments that he or she will get on visiting your store. In case you run a restaurant, a Foursquare user who has come to the venue can be informed about how he or she could unlock a free snack or discounted beverages.

Integrate it with other tools: You can use Foursquare more effectively for your business by using it with other social tools like Twitter and Facebook. You can also make videos or write a blog to attract and encourage the customers to use Foursquare. You can even thank the users who have checked into your location on Facebook or Twitter, and invite them to share their experiences and offer feedback, which in turn will help you to better your offerings.

So, start now and see how Foursquare can give a boost to your sales figures.

Source: www.studio1c.com

How to Acquire, Engage, and Retain Customers with Foursquare

Source: www.howcast.com