Businesses don't cut corners with Foursquare

Since the recent launch of Foursquare, I admit that I've been unsure of just how useful it is. Sites such as the audacious Please Rob Me definitely definitely didn't help convince me of its merits. This Mashable article, however, offers a great look at the innovative ways businesses are starting to use Foursquare. A few notable examples from the article:

• The Wynn Las Vegas hotel, which provides luxury bonuses with check-ins as well as interesting trivia about the hotel
• Lucky Magazine, whose Fashion Week tie-ins provide information on where to grab a cup of coffee (among other things) and will eventually expand to include recommendations from editors
• Starbucks, which provides a Barista badge that will eventually evolve into a customer rewards program

The interesting thing about all these examples is the fact these business are using Foursquare to enhance and provide real-life benefits to customers. Much has been made of how social media and technology are infiltrating our lives. Rather than being a distraction, in this case it's being creatively used to enrich and complement, rather than intrude on a customer's experience. Just like how Facebook has evolved into a valuable business tool, it will be interesting to see how businesses continue to innovate and improve their customer service with Foursquare. Looks like it may be worth it it after all to try to become the mayor of Fabricland.

Google gets all whimsical

Unfortunately I missed the actual day, but April 2nd was Hans Christian Andersen's 205th birthday and Google chose to celebrate with some delightful doodles. I've always liked Google's doodles, but the whimsical, painterly style of these ones make them real standouts in my opinion. I'd totally love to have bigger versions of these.

The full set of doodles can be seen at Mashable.

And speaking of Farmville...

In my previous post about Facebook I mentioned the popularity of Farmville. This New York Times article from October 2009 gives a really interesting look at the popularity of the game, with this telling quote:

Of course, real-life farming is quite a bit messier and more dangerous than FarmVille (perhaps just one reason that FarmVille players outnumber actual farmers in the United States by more than 60 to 1). Yet some of the game’s biggest fans are farmers.

“I was having all these deaths on the farm and hurting myself on a daily basis doing real farming,” said Donna Schoonover, of Schoonover Farm in Skagit County, Wash., who raises sheep, goats and Satin Angora rabbits (real ones!). “This was a way to remind myself of the mythology of farming, and why I started farming in the first place.”

The article also describes other Farmville devotees, such as a medical transcriber in the Philippines who sets an alarm at 1:30 a.m. in order to wake up and tend to his farm. There seem to be two common threads running through the article...

Farmville is fundamentally changing how people structure their lives. Aside from the above example, the article also talks about several instances of how this addictive little Facebook game contributing to everything from poor study habits in college and university students to even marital tension. While, as someone who's been interesting in video games since I was young, I can related to to the can't-put-it-down feeling of being immersed in a good game, I can't imagine scheduling my sleep or social life around a game. The fact that people are so invested in Farmville seems to speak to an interest that goes far beyond simple fun, which brings me to my next point....

Farmville is an escape. This is what really stuck out at me. On the surface, the fact that so many farmers play the game may seems like one of those ironically funny things about the internet. When one farmer speaks of how the game allows him to experience the enjoyment of farming with none of its drawbacks, however, it speaks volumes about the game puts the player in his/her idealized little world. The article also hints at the idea of Farmville providing an escape from the bustle of urban life itself, which I do think is valid. With the onslaught of technology and business occupying life, it isn't hard to see how someone would long for what is perceived as a more peaceful existence. Farmville does seem to help people stop and smell the flowers, even if it is from behind a computer screen.

Facebook's growth continues

On Monday, March 24 at Centennial’s Centre for Creative Communications we had Elmer Sotto, from Facebook Canada come and speak. It was an excellent talk with some interesting insights into Facebook, including:

Facebook is growing at an explosive rate, partially because it's leveraging its international user base. Facebook is currently at 400 million active users worldwide, with especially rapid growth in nations such as the Philippines and, before they blocked it, Iran and Iraq. It has 100 million mobile users and, with an average monthly use of 278 minutes, it has officially bumped Google from the number one spot of most engaging website.

According to Elmer, part of the reason for this explosive international growth is because Facebook is available in over 70 languages. To insure that translations match the natural feel of a language, international Facebook users handle the translations and vote on words that will be used. I think this is a good move by Facebook because it’s a way to directly engage their user base. Also, because the users are adding value to something they use, they become that much more invested in and loyal to Facebook. Plus, who wouldn’t love to say that they helped engineer Facebook’s Pirate-language version?

Facebook is a powerful platform that's not only changing the way we interact, but the way news is delivered to us. Elmer cited a few examples of how news delivery is changing, including the fact that the Oscar Red Carpet had a livestream and that Sarah Palin announced her resignation via Facebook. I find it interesting to see how social media is breaking down the barriers between news consumers and, in some cases, news makers. While this process, such as the Sarah Palin announcement, may seem to make traditional news channels irrelevant, they themselves are also using Facebook. It will be interesting to see if the ultimately end up competing with or complementing each other.

It’s not your imagination - Farmville really is everywhere. Elmer told a memorable anecdote about a friend who went to Indonesia and met a farmer. When the farmer realized that the individual worked at Facebook, the farmer spoke enthusiastically about his love of Farmville. So there you have it – this game is so addictive that even real farmers can’t resist it.