Facebook Goes Places: Implications of New Geo-Social Features

It remains to be seen if the dozens of geo-social networks, from Foursquare and Gowalla on down, got a boost or a boot from the launch of Facebook Places in August. U.S. and U.K users of the world's biggest social network can now use the feature to check into locations on the go, let their Facebook friends know where they are, and (if enabled) learn about other Facebook members in that location.

Where Facebook goes, should marketers follow? Business owners can get in the game by searching for, claiming and verifying their location on the Facebook site, then advertising a Places listing just as they do their current Facebook page. A Betsy Johnson outlet in Santa Clara, CA, is one of the first merchants to tie a Places check-in to a promotional coupon, and e-commerce novelties vendor StylinOnline.com is asking users to check in at several New York landmarks to earn a discount during New York Comic Con in early October.

One big question is how much leeway local outlets or franchisees of national chains will have to run localized promotions in a feature like this — a geo-social version of the same tension big brands are encountering in other highly local marketing channels.

Another issue: consumer acceptance. According to online research firm AskYourTargetMarket.com, about a third of 1,000 Facebook users claimed in September to have heard of Places. Of that third, about half said it was the only geo-social check-in service they knew of.

A small group, yes. But if those proportions hold true over Facebook's 500 million global membership — or just the U.S. portion — then marketers might find themselves jockeying for position in Places sooner than they think.

Connecting the online and offline worlds is something marketers have been seeking for a while, says David Berkowitz, director of emerging media for agency 360i. “It may take a while for consumers to take it up and for marketers to follow them, but this should produce some creative stuff.”