*808 Girl Media*

Before even reading this post on Mashable, I thought to myself, “There’s no way Foursquare doesn’t win this matchup.” Much like a sports announcer might say there’s no way USC gets beat by Oregon State. Oh wait… :D

But I digress.

Let’s just say that Foursquare kicked some major Gowalla-by booty. It had already been speculated that Foursquare had a “tremendous” SXSW; but ViralHeat brought the proof in the pudding. The infographic above shows that the West was won by Foursquare…by quite a bit.

I’ll be honest - I don’t even think I KNOW anyone who uses Gowalla? Do you?

Mashable reposted an article on their site yesterday that small business owners should take notice of. The article that was orignally posted on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles and insights, gives small business owners tips on why they should become geolocation-savvy.

Everyone Else Is Doing It…
One suggestion for small businesses is to become familiar with and be aware of location tagging networks. Now, using location tagging networks for personal use could open up a whole other can of security breaching worms; however, for a business, this is a good way to get the buzz out on your biz.

Take The Time to Find Yourself…
Is your business listed? If not, add it yourself or contact the site to find out how to get your business added. It’s been said that it’s not just about search engine optimization anymore - you have to be socially optimized and geographically optimized as well.

Tag, You’re It…
Get your customers to tag you via Twitter and geotagging apps. Hosting a meetup on days that business is slower is one of the suggestions to build awareness about your location-tagging network (and will hopefully get them to use it!).

Hook, Line and Sinker…
Geo-tagging apps are currently dominated by plenty of “social influencers” - early adopters with a broad social reach who have the ability to spread a business’s message.

They ALL Come Back…
Building loyalty programs into your social and geotagging network presences is a another way to reach out to your customers. Think of it as the new frequent buyers’ punch card.

The full post/article can be found here, on Mashable: http://mashable.com/2010/02/19/business-geolcation-ready/