Foursquare becomes social search engine with new Explore feature
16.01.2012
Foursquare has added an ‘Explore’ function to its website, which effectively turns its billions of check-ins into a social search engine.
Data from 1.5bn check-ins is now available in the form of local recommendations when users search for a service in a particular town via their computer.
The Explore function has been available on Foursquare's mobile app since March.
In a blog post the company said simply that this was designed to “help us personalise recommendations for you.”
It’s not just personalised, it’s specific. Search for ‘pool table,’ or ‘guacamole’; ‘deep dish,’ or ‘thin crust.’ Because not all bars, Mexican restaurants, or pizza joints are created equal, and we want to make sure you find what you’re craving.”
The tool allows users to refine searches based on four options; 'I haven’t been to yet', 'I have been to before', 'My friends have been to' and 'Have Foursquare specials'.
Recommendations then appear on a map of your chosen location as shown below.
By adding this additional functionality Foursquare is stepping away from the gaming model and providing users with a more tangible service.
This is a clever way of using the company's wealth of data, and if this tool encourages more people to sign-up – at last count it had 15m users – this search function will continue to become more comprehensive.
Foursquare can also now position itself more strongly as a travel tool, since planning your next trip to Paris would be much easier if you have your friends’ suggestions in one place, available from one search engine.
It also opens up new areas for monetisation through the sale of premium listings, or through sponsored social content similar to the news feed ads launched by Facebook this week.
Social search seems to be a huge area of growth for 2012, based on the assumption that people are more interested in their friends’ likes and dislikes than generic search results.
Though we've been hearing about the power of this for years, we're now seeing people truly invest in this as a function - most recently in the changes Google announced this week that incorporate social content from Google+ into search results.
by David Moth http://econsultancy.com/uk/blog/8681-foursquare-becomes-social-search-engine-with-new-explore-feature
Working with Webfactory was a cinch. At first my clients at BAF Global were skeptical since Webfactory was in Bulgaria, they were in the Bahamas and I (project manager) was in Jamaica. They thought it would have been a challenge but the opposite proved true.
Using an excellent project management system, BaseCamp, and other web based tools, our Webfactory project manager and other members of staff were always only a click away. They made themselves available for meetings and were never too busy to answer a question or explain technical terms. The turnaround time for building our website was very impressive and the response time on queries and issues was remarkable. As a consultant I have worked with several web builders but none have been as professional, friendly and easy to work with as Webfactory.
We have worked with Webfactory for over two years on the website igolenses.co.uk and have evolved our website considerably over this time. This has included incorporating functionality into the backend of a third party marketing platform, a complicated process. Webfactory have always been responsive to our requests and help out with ideas for cost effective changes for a small but growing company such as ours. We would definitely recommend Webfactory and have done so in the past, especially for small and medium sized companies who require a more personal, cost effective and experienced online resource.
Dear Webfactory, I am absolutely delighted with the end product of my web. It is exactly how I imagined.
Comments: 0
There are no comments. Be the first to comment through the form bellow