How to Use Geolocation in Your Business

Recently I got a new app called “find friends”, after updating IPhone to IOS9.0
Geosocial apps is based on Geolocation technology that help increase in-store visits, brand's visibility and consumer word of mouth by connecting people with their locations and their friends.

How it works?

Users submitted location data and then Geolocation techniques can allow social networks to connect and coordinate users with local people or events that match their interests. It usually uses Global Position Satellites (GPS) in order to determine the geographical location of the computer or device. GPS is built into most smartphones, and there are many apps taking advantage of Geolocation to provide location specific information and services to their customers.

How it engages customers?

Social networking apps are starting to become very common, and more apps are using geolocation to provide up-to-the-minute, location-specific information to their users. Most of these geolocation-specific social apps, such as Brightkite and Loopt, also allow you to link to your Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites. 
For customers, they can share good restaurants, foods, and interesting places with geolocation App to their friends in social media. People can get new information from those recommendations, which are easier and more trustful.For companies, they can easily know where are their customers and what are they really interested in. They can effectively target customers at the most important point in the consideration cycle – standing right in front of you. Digital marketing has historically been tasked with either an awareness/brand-building role, or – more frequently – a direct response role, driving customers right into the ecommerce funnel.

Of course, this is based on whether your friends want to be found or not, as security limitations require the user to give express permission to share their location.

Build Geolocation Into Your Social Strategy

Sharing location is a high-trust activity.  To overcome consumer concerns about privacy, marketers can use the brand’s authority. In fact, brand trust is the only way geolocation technologies will move into the mainstream.Nike’s running community, Nike+, is a great example of this. Nike uses geolocation to share successful runs easily across Facebook and Twitter. Runners share their achievements with their friends and build new relationships as part of the Nike+ community. In both cases, the benefit of tracking your athletic performance and achievements provide a clear reason to share personal information with Nike.

How to build geolocation into yoursocial strategy:

•       Tell your social networks that checking in is important to you. Make sure you remind your fans and followers to check in, especially for important or large events.

•       Encourage cross-promotion from location services to social networks. Offer rewards for Foursquare check-ins – but only if the person is also a Facebook fan. Deliver rewards through Facebook to assure compliance.

•      Use geographic information from social networks to drive location-based participation. Social networks like Facebook have city/state data on users so use that for targeted messaging to drive in-store experiences.

Future of Geolocation    

But the fact is that consumer adoption of location-based apps is very slow. According to the new report, In 2010, only 4% of U.S. online adults used geolocation apps monthly or more; that number grew to 6% in 2011. In 2010, 84% of US online adults did not know what geosocial app like Foursquare or Gowalla even were; that percentage has changed to 70% in 2011.

While today Geolocation is still in its very early stages, the potential for geolocation technics is quite hard to overlook. By using Geolocation, business will be able to stay in touch with their clients and customers, knowing where are they and what are they interested in? Business can provide them with services specific to their needs based on their location (such as if they are at home, work or possibly at a restaurant). For ourselves, these new uses of geolocation may help us find our keys, wallets or any other ‘tagged’ object and then display its location on a map with exact longitude and latitude. The full potential for geolocation technology is not known, but expect to see the market flooded, possibly by the end of this year, with a plethora of apps and devices built around Geolocation.

This is a video that tells you how to use Geolocation and Social Coupons for your business