How to Set Up a Foursquare Special Offer

Wondered how you can use social media startup Foursquare to actually promote your business?

…setup a Foursquare special offer, of course!

Setting up a Foursquare special is free and quick to do. Follow these instructions to get the power of location-based social media working for your business!

Setting Up Your Foursquare Special

I’m assuming you’ve already setup (claimed) your venue on Foursquare. So the next thing you need to do is head to Manager Tools from your account page. From there, go to Campaigns and then to Start a Campaign. In that menu, you should find ‘Add a Special.’

There’s a few different specials to choose from:

• Swarm Special
• Newbie Special
• Loyalty Special
• Check-In Special
• Flash Special
• Friends Special
• Mayor Special

Before you go any further, stop to think about what your special is designed to encourage, and base your special type on this decision. For example, if you want to reward regular customers, then the Loyalty Special makes sense. If you want more people to check into your Foursquare venue, use the Check-In Special.

As a general rule, the best special for attracting NEW customers is the “Newbie Special!” The ultimate option for rewarding regular customers is the “Mayor Special” which unlocks a special offer for the person who checks into your business the most often.

Once you’ve picked your special type, it’s time to write up the offer itself. Go into the description of the special and clearly describe your special offer. I recommend you write this up in your word processor first and then copy it into this section. You only have 200 characters so keep it short, appealing and to the point!

You also have the option to include or not include fine print for your special. I always recommend clients use this. Make it super-clear who does and doesn’t qualify for your offer, so there’s no embarrassment or awkward scenes at the cash register.

Then you need to click on Create Special and choose the venue. You can choose a certain group of your stores or you can just highlight your only location. This will ensure that people can find where you are and that they will head there during the indicated times.

Approval

Within 24 hours, the Foursquare team will review the Special and add it to the Foursquare listings in your area.

Next Steps

Once your special is submitted to Foursquare, be sure to tell your employees about the deal. There’s nothing worse than people trying to redeem an offer and the staff having no idea what they’re talking about!

Prepare for an increase in business, too! You certainly don’t want to have more customers than you can handle.

In our experience, things start slow at first but then quickly gain momentum as word of your Foursquare special spreads. You don’t need to take on an army of new staff… BUT have procedures in place for where you’ll get extra help at short notice if you need it!

It doesn’t take much for people to choose one local retailer over another, particularly in competitive industries. So your offer could tip a LOT of people over to your business instead of your local competitors!

TIP: Our clients have had most success offering simultaneous specials. This ensures people are always going to find something going on at your store when they’re in the neighborhood.

Article by James T Noble

James makes small businesses bigger. He's previously worked with some of the world's largest brands and companies to market their products and services online - including Disney, Microsoft, 20th Century Fox, Virgin, Coca Cola, MTV and many others. Read more about James...