The art of check-in seduction
I just checked-in for the first time on Facebook at a place I’d been to many times. I love their products and the people are nice enough, but I’d never felt compelled to check-in. On this visit, however, the store did several strategic things to seduce me into checking-in. This experience proved to me that there’s more to using a location-based service for marketing your business than simply claiming your page and hoping people show up. Yes, unfortunately, the build-it-and-they-will-come theory is not an effective strategy for most businesses. You need to be a little more strategic to get a little more out of your location-based campaign.
Why should your business join a location-based service like Facebook Places, Foursquare or Gowalla for marketing? The theory is that if someone tells their friends how great a place is, their friends will follow them there. It can also help build loyalty between you and your frequent clients. In addition, location-based marketing can be an inexpensive investment that is easy to set up and it’s growing.
With all the buzz about location-based services, not everyone is using them (yet). The chance to be a mayor, receive a badge, or tell everyone where they are all the time just is not enough of an incentive for many people to check-in. Which also means, it’s not enough for you to simply be on these location-based services for customers to tell their friends what a great time they are having at your location either. Of course there are people who will check-in because of your amazing service, fabulous products and friendly staff. But those things are not enough.
How to get more check-ins
- Ask. Sometimes all you have to do is ask. While most locations have claimed their place on a location-based service, they don’t tell their visiting customers that they have. Just remember:
- Think about your signage. Can you add a note encouraging visitors to check-in?
- What about your staff? When I checked-in for the first time, it was because a staff member welcomed me to the store and asked me to check-in for a great reward.
- Not all visitors buy something at every visit. Make sure you greet every visitor, not just those who make a purchase.
- Be bold with your giveaway. Sure it’s a nice idea to give something away to your visitors for checking-in. But if you really want to encourage check-ins, do something unique with a fun spin on your brand. Here are some examples:
- Lululemon sells yoga and athletic clothing so logically (and creatively), they partnered with a local yoga studio to offer a free class to visitors just for checking-in. This offer ties perfectly to the brand and is an exciting gift to customers.
- Gap had their online fans buzzing a few weeks ago when they gave away 10,000 pairs of jeans through check-ins. Each person who checked-in was entered to win and every store had at least one winner.
- Pick one service. You can’t be everywhere are at once so pick one service to focus your energy on. Do you already have a large following on Facebook? Or are you looking to attract more foot-traffic from the local neighborhood? Think about where your client base is and where you can best connect with them.
- Start with a plan. Even new marketing concepts need a well thought-out plan behind them. Ask yourself some questions about your client base. Be sure to set a goal of how many of your current visitors you want to check-in and how many new or repeat visitors are coming to your store. If you’re looking for some guidance to start your location-based campaign, let us know, we’d love to help.
Do you use a location-based service for marketing? We’d love to hear what you do to encourage check-ins in the comments.
Photo courtesy of victoriapeckham.
