There’s a certain allure to coupons.

Even though they have been around for years they still seem to have that magical feel to them.

I personally love that feeling. I did however start, help run, buy out, and publish my own coupon magazine; so I’m a little biased.

As a small local business owner you can implement a coupon like campaign within seconds on a platform that is directed towards people that are looking for a service in your area of town.

It costs you nothing but your time to setup.

And, the rewards are well worth it if you do it right.

More Than Just Check-Ins

Foursquare has been around for quite some time now. They continue to see growth and consistently add new features to help improve both the users experience….

and the local business owners as well.

As a business you can update your audience with a message and/or picture, setup check-in deals, add events for people to check-in at and more!

Really, you could invest all your time in Foursquare for a year and probably see the same, if not better, results than Facebook or Twitter.

Hint: It’s all about the time invested in these platforms.

Even better, your competition down the street has probably brushed Foursquare aside and the market is wide open for you!

Next time you’d like to promote a new item or service use the plan below and measure your results.

The Next Seven Days

Day 1 – Claim and Optimize Your Location

Add your business name (DBA) and brief summary of what you do and where you’re located.

Connect your Twitter and Facebook account (don’t worry you won’t be auto-posting to these, but you’ll want this option.)

Fill out your location details and hours. Leave the events section but remember where it’s at cause we’ll need to come back to it.

Bonus Tip: Get your Instagram setup if you don’t have one yet.

Day 2 – Create Your Collateral

Write a brief blog post about your new item/service or create a flier.

Take pictures of your product .

. Create a “Flash Check-in Deal” on Foursquare and schedule it to start the next day.

Day 3 – Start Promoting

Create an Update that is social but states your new item “Hey! We have a new item on the menu! Check out our blog to get all the details” (paste link to blog)

but states your new item “Hey! We have a new item on the menu! Check out our blog to get all the details” (paste link to blog) Turn on your check-in special

Turn on your twitter account and post the above message and check-in special.

Day 4 – Keep The Momentum Going

Create an update to promote you check-in deal “EXTRA!!! EXTRA!!! We are running a “Flash Check-in Deal” and the first (x amount) people to check-in get our new _______ for FREE!”

“EXTRA!!! EXTRA!!! We are running a “Flash Check-in Deal” and the first (x amount) people to check-in get our new _______ for FREE!” Attach your photo so everyone can see your new item.

Turn on Facebook and post this message.

Day 5 – Add Some Secret Sauce

Now create that “Event” you bypassed earlier. Name it “The Release of Our New ________.”

Create a “Check-in Special” a “Free Item for Checking In” works really well for this and schedule to go live the day of your event.

Post a picture to your Instagram with the caption “We are giving this away in _________ days if you check-in on Foursquare.” Make sure you post this while at your location and turn on the location finder. Instagram uses Foursquare data for location elements…Surprise!

Day 6 – Full Steam Ahead

Create a Message about your “Event,” attach your new “Check-in Deal,” and add a picture or attach your event flyer.

Post this to Facebook and Twitter

Travel around Foursquare as your business and check-in at nearby locations that you have patronized and leave comment. Don’t mention your special event.

Day 7 – The Day of Rest

Check out your stats and see how things are going.

Jot down new ideas that you could implement

that you could implement Rinse and repeat Days 3,4,5 and 6 for the next week.

Disclaimer: The inspiration for the worksheet came from local SEO expert

Phil Rozek’s 12-Week Action Plan for Google Places Visibility

More Than Just The New Stuff

You can use this program to help promote items you already have that may need additional exposure.

Get started today by doing these 3 simple actions:

Claim and Setup your Foursquare

Setup a test deal to see how it works

See who has already checked in and let them know you are planning something special.

Feel free to play with the above information to see what works for your business.

If you need any help or advice for your Foursquare promotion plan let us know in the comments below!

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