Badges | SocialWayne.com by Wayne Sutton

Posts Tagged ‘badges’

Posted on February 6, 2011 - by Wayne Sutton

5 ways to check into the super bowl from your couch and collect some badges – Poll

flickr photo by alvi2047

Super Bowl 45 is today between the Green Bay Packers vs the Pittsburgh Steelers and the NFL along with various brands have all gone social media crazy this year. For Super Bowl 45 we have everything from pre released Super Bowl commercials trying to go “viral” such as my personal favorite the VW’s “The Force” Super Bowl Ad to anti super bowl marketing such as the Network Solutions GoGranny campaign. Visa even has a social media, twitter, measuring dashboard where you can tweet from at superbowl.com.

Not to be left out of the social media conversations and Super Bowl hype foursquare has partnered with the NFL.com to reward foursquare users who check into the actual Super Bowl game in Texas with a special badge. For everyone else watching the big game, you can shout “Go Steelers” or “Go Packers” with your foursquare check-in to unlock a Steelers or Packers team badge. The foursquare Super Bowl Sunday promotion is the startups first global venue and something I believe is the beginning of a pivot for foursquare as they could join other media check in apps to allow foursquare users to check into TV shows, movies along with offering group discounts to compete with Groupon and living social. It’s something I mentioned yesterday during an interview with News14. You can watch the News14 interview here: Foursquare offers ‘Super’ deals for football fans.

But what if you’re not using foursquare? There now four applications that allow you to check into any TV show or movie. Three of the apps I reviewed previously in a post called 3 Ways to check-in to your favorite TV show or movie which mentioned Miso, GetGlue, ScreenTribe and now there’s a forth one called IntoNow.

IntoNow tagline reads “Connect with your friends around the shows you love” and the iPhone app acts like a Shazam but for TV shows. I really like the simplicity and interface of IntoNow. It’s a much watch startup.

What is your favorite media/tv check-in app?

Posted on December 8, 2010 - by Wayne Sutton

I just checked into your blog

At the core of location-based services is the term check-in. The act of checking in using location-based applications can announce to your friends and/or social graph that you are physically present at a location. From there a business/location owner can reward you for visiting the location or by publicly announcing that you’re at a location your friends may join you. The location could instantly turn into a hot spot with more of your friends joining you in a matter of minutes. Now, take the same concept and apply it to websites.

With most static websites there’s very little interaction. You read information and if the information is valuable you may email a link to a friend and the only interaction the website owner may have with you is a cookie or IP address. If you have a blog there are a few ways to interact with your visitors. They can leave a comment, like a post via, Facebook or Disqus and if they share a link via Twitter or other social networking sites you can enable social backtracks to see who they are.

Now playing off the success of location-based apps a new wave of web applications have launched or either added features to enable site visitors to check into your website. Some are calling it participation engine or add game mechanics to your website and others saying turn your visitors into loyal fans. Either way, here are seven web applications to allow your website visitors to check-in.

1. Badgeville

2. OneTrueFan

3. Meebo check-in bar

4. Marginize

5. Bigdoor

6. bunchball

7. Reputely

Bonus: You could create a location for your blog using TriOut World, give it a QR Code and let people scan the QR Code to check-in. For super geeks only. #TriOutShamelessplug

You may be wondering why would anyone want to check into a website? I’m sure the same question was asked four or five years ago about using a mobile device and checking into a businesses. By offering a way for visitors to check-in to your website or blog provides a way for you to reward them with badges, points and can increase time spent along with social sharing. Just like with a few popular location-based applications these platforms are building on the success of adding game mechanics to increase visitor loyalty and engagement. There’s always talk about moving beyond the check-in and rewarding customers, in this case you could reward your visitors if they check into your website or blog.

I’m currently using OneTrueFan on SocialWayne.com via hat tip to LouisGray. Have you check into a website or blog before? Would you add a check-in bar to your website or do you think the whole idea of checking into a website is lame?

Posted on July 31, 2010 - by Wayne Sutton

This Week in Location: 33 Location-based must read articles you may have missed

What a week for location-based applications/services. From being called the next big thing in social marketing to being said no one is using location-based apps, this week one of the most exciting week for location-based applications in a while. Here’s a list of 30 location-based articles you may have missed from last week.

For those who keep doubting the geo/location-based space, just read a few of the articles above and you can see why those who “get it” are excited about the geo/location-based industry…. keep doubting.

Did you read any interesting location-based articles last week or have a comment about any of the above articles? Let me know in the comments.

Posted on June 13, 2010 - by Wayne Sutton

This week in location: @Foursquare dominates location-based services news, @Gowalla says it’s focused and more.

What a week for @Dens @naveen @tristanwalker and the @Foursquare team. From @Mashable and @CNN partnerships to securing another round of venture capital, last week Foursquare was on a roll. Over at camp @Gowalla they posted a lengthy blog post about their focus and World Cup badges. Team @TriOut launched a HTML5 check-in web app and @Standford is graduating with the @Loopt Star app. Also a few other location based services made some news this week along with a ton of blog post still debating the value of location-based services. Here’s a list of location-based news from last week.

TLC + Foursquare = New Tips and Badges for Summer
by @jolieodell

TLC’s Foursquare integration will help users find venues conducive to enjoying the warm weather, including barbecue restaurants, zoos, amusement parks, swimming pools and the like. Users will be able to earn the TLC Summer badge by checking in at any TLC Summer-tagged location.

Checking in? Follow Mashable on Foursquare
by @lavrusik

Mashable is partnering with Foursquare to give you insider tips and recommendations when you check in. From New York City to Silicon Valley, our reporters and editors will be your guide as you explore your city.

Two Dudes, One Flip, and a Disappointing Lack of Focus
by @Gowalla

Keeping focused affects the development schedule, which features we implement and which we trim. It affects which spots get featured sooner rather than later, which promotions we engage and which we table, all via the filter of ‘Does this help make Gowalla the easiest way to share the places you go with friends?’ And we do our best to answer that question honestly: Adding a function within Gowalla that gives you hints at where to find items you’re missing might not necessarily help Gowalla be the easiest way to share places with friends, but adding the ability to upload photos at a spot–now that’s something that will help you share the places you go!

Stanford mixes in mobile social media for Commencement Weekend
by @Stanford

For graduating students, Commencement can feel like a whirlwind of events and goodbyes. But this year they’ll have a new tool to help them get the most out of Commencement Weekend: a social mapping application (and mobile rewards game) known as Loopt Star. Students who download the Loopt Star application onto their iPhone or iPod Touch will be able to follow their friends and earn a special Class of 2010 graduation gift by checking in to multiple Commencement events.

Location Based Services: Where’s the beef?
by @greggvm

The real value of course, outside of the tangible benefits of coupons, loyalty programs, gifts and savings, is on the social side of things and the convenience side. Imagine you’ve just finished dinner and you want to get a drink or a cup of coffee someplace else. Again, using TriOut as an example, you’d simply go to the app, or the mobile site in a browser if you prefer, and you’d see a list of those places close by. A quick tap and you’d see what your friends think of the places, see photos of the venue, available menu items, etc. That’s convenience.

Flook Builds Location-based Offers Right Into Its App
by @martinsfp

The partnership with voucher, sale and discount search engine Geocast, which it will formally announce later today, sees Flook automatically select the relevant offers from Geocast’s catalogue for inclusion in Flook’s content stream. BView vouchers will be presented as just as any other content is within the app. “Booking forms” will be built in, allowing users to take advantage of the offers without leaving the app.

Is this Foursquare or Bore-square?
by @Markwschaefer

One part of the experiment was becoming a mayor. I wanted to see what happened when you were crowned king of a location. This happened fairly quickly when I was the first Foursquare visitor to a local barbecue joint. “How sad. This location has no mayor” it reported. So the next day I went back and became the mayor. Great for the restaurant but what did I get out of it? An electronic award. Hmmm.

5 Reasons Higher Ed Can Forget about Location-Based Services
by @Inigral

While they might not be a marketing goldmine for higher ed, location-based services are far from dead in the water. But let’s face it, we’re not Starbucks and we’re not giving out frappacinos. You’re welcome to keep the technology on your radar, but for now keep it out of your marketing playbook.

Foursquare Now Experimenting with Badge Rewards
by @jbruin

The future for Foursquare will be defined by adding more value to service, which Crowley says will happen through more partnerships and more sophisticated features. The hope is that the company can engineer ways to encourage interactions between users who are checked-in to the same venue.

Foursquare Stats: The Importance of Check-In Time
by @ryantaft

These are only a few of the benefits to knowing when your customers are checking-in at your venue on foursquare. Keeping a close eye on the Time Breakdown section of foursquare Stats is extremely easy, and very useful.

Geotoko Piggybacks Location Services For Local Business Campaigns
by @MobileMW

Geotoko gives businesses a dashboard, where they can create a designated site for a promotional campaign. That site will then aggregate check-in and geolocation info from Foursquare, Twitter and Gowalla (with Brightkite, Facebook and others to follow) for the business’ location along with the details of a campaign or promotion- such as prizes, free gifts, etc.

Yelp & Foursquare: Utility vs. Hipster Chic
by @gsterling

You may or may not agree with that perspective. I’ll offer a kind of ironic rejoinder to that view: Yelp, by adopting check-ins and badges, is now exposing a much larger audience to these game concepts and thereby potentially helping to mainstream them. By copying Foursquare, Yelp could be helping the site ultimately by “acculturating” people to LBS gaming.

Only 10% Of Businesses Would Pay For Foursquare: Survey
by @sengineland

Only 10% of businesses that are currently using Foursquare as a free marketing tool are willing to pay for the service; that’s one of the interesting survey results presented last week during the “Location Services: The New Local Search?” session at the SMX Advanced conference in Seattle.

Andreessen Horowitz To Win The Foursquare Investor Badge
by @Arrington

Andreessen Horowitz, despite rumors that they were pulling out of discussions with the company weeks ago over concerns that too much information was leaking to the press, is the last venture capitalist standing. The fact that founding partner Marc Andreessen is on the board of directors of Facebook, a key partner or competitor of Foursquare, may be the factor that put them over the top.

Foursquare’s Yelp problem (they just got time to figure it all out)
by @scobleizer

This week I downloaded a new Yelp app onto my iPhone. In it Yelp included a copy of Foursquare’s badges, which reward people for checking in frequently. Sometimes you might get a swarm badge for checking into someplace that has a lot of other users checked in too.

TriOut News:

TriOut launches API along with a new HTML5 check-in web app for Android and iPhone users
By @waynesutton

The second announcement was the launch of the new mobile experience for Android and iPhone users at http://mobile.TriOutNC.com. The new mobile experince is an HTML5 web app built on the new API. With http://mobile.TriOutNC.com it brings an entirely different look and feel to TriOut and focuses on a faster check-in experience, a better way to see your friends activity, finding nearby places, and upcoming events.

Location-based post on SocialWayne.com
Google announces location-based search tagging and post coupon feature. Will Google Latitude be the most important LBS?

Podcast #13 – The future of location-based apps? Checking in with @LawrenCecoburn & @DoubleDutch the build your own location-based startup.

Presentation: Location Based Marketing in 2010

Did you read any interesting location-based articles last week or have a comment about any of the above articles? Let me know in the comments.

Posted on March 27, 2010 - by Wayne Sutton

A location-based road trip to SXSW with TriOut badges, widgets and check-ins.

As some of you know I had the opportunity to attend SXSW Interactive, and participate in a great American Race style road trip/competition sponsored by Chevrolet. So while SXSWi was held in Austin, TX the road trip started for me from Atlanta, GA. For the road trip I traveled 3 other friends @TheRab, @Jakrose, @NikisNotes aka, Team NC. Chevrolet was a sponsor of SXSW and the hashtag we used while traveling was ChevySXSW.

As a location-based app fanboy and partner of a location-based service (TriOut) I was looking forward to not only checking in at various locations at SXSWi, but also checking in at new cities and venues I have never been before.

Prior to the trip I was talking with Lawrence Ingraham (@LawPower) (TriOut founder/developer) about how cool it would be if we had a widget that could display all the check-ins from the road trip and a check-in badge for NC residents who were attending SXSWi. Lawrence said no problem or something like that and thus we have the road to SXSWi check-in map via TriOut below.

Note you can create your own TriOut widget here: http://trioutnc.com/u/widgets.php

I was told by Jay Cuthrell (@qthrul) fellow NC friend who’s awesome that there were over 218 NC residents who attended SXSW. Although I wish all 218 were TriOut users, that just wasn’t the case but we did have 7 TriOut users checked-in at the Austin Convention Center. When they checked-in, they were welcomed to SXSW with the TriOut badge above.

While in Austin for SXSW I added every venue I visited to TriOut such as the Gingerman, the Hilton, Champions Sports Bar + Restaurant, The Belmont and more. One common question I received by doing so was that if TriOut is a NC location-based social network, why check-in at SXSW or add locations from other cites? My response was that even though we require TriOut iPhone users to be in the state of North Carolina to create an account and we emphasize on “Exploring the Triangle”, NC area, TriOut is also about NC residents as well. TriOut users let their friends know where they check-in to and/or where they’re on the way to. They write reviews about locations, post photos to share their experience.
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As a TriOut user this doesn’t apply to only NC locations but any location that he/she visits. Meaning if you’re a current TriOut user, it’s OK to check-in, add photos and reviews to locations outside of NC.

On the return trip back from Austin, TX Team NC took a different route back as you can see via the map. A big thanks to everyone who supported us and/or followed the check-ins, I still have a few more post SXSW articles to write in the upcoming days.

What are your thoughts on the TriOut check-in map and adding check-ins to activity streams?

Note: This was cross posted on the TriOut blog.