Facebook Deals: The End Of Foursquare Is Looming

I have always wanted Foursquare to work since the day I discovered it. Sadly though it has not yet reached mass appeal in the UK despite showing really positive growth in the early days. Recent developments with the Facebook advertising platform are now likely to mean the beginning of the end for Foursquare.

Facebook launched its awards system yesterday which they are calling “Facebook Deals”. Whilst it is explained as revolutionary to most the users it is actually nothing really that Foursquare do not already do. The main difference is that with the backing of Facebook’s large user base the idea could now take off, much like many other ventures started by other companies that Facebook has left in its wake.

For those unfamiliar with how Foursquare did it, here is a quick summary of the Facebook Deals system:

• Using your smart phone handset you open your Facebook application and you need to click on the places button.
• You then need to check in to a one of the nearby registered locations that pops up. Depending on the size of the area you are in this list could either be very long (London) or very small (Beverley!)
• Places with deals are highlighted with a yellow flag and you can then see the deal by clicking on the destination and seeing the deal before then deciding to check in or not.
• Finally you check in at that location in order to claim the deal which you then present to the member of staff within the business.

A lot of the hype around the concept is justified as it has the potential to be huge and not just seen as an update to the Facebook system but rather a change to the way people shop. With Facebook now having more than 26 million users in the UK the potential for shops and services to target these people whilst they are out and about is huge.

The service is expected to take off with advertisers because redeeming an offer will show up in customers’ Facebook news feeds, essentially advertising the products to their friends and peer group. The potential for offers and promotions to go viral amongst friends is then really exciting for companies and a big incentive for them to sign up to the programme. Emily White of Facebook UK noted at the launch that “The wisdom of friends has taken over from the wisdom of crowds.”

The main concern will be of revealing your location and checking in at places meaning you are giving away even more details online than before which will cause concern among parents mainly. This does seem to be the way social networking is going though and is going to happen, for some it’s even an appeal or a status to be associated with certain shops, businesses or restaurants for example (who wouldn’t want to tell everyone they were checking in at the fat duck).