Social Location Marketing: Outshining Your Competitors on Foursquare, Gowalla, Yelp & Other Location Sharing Sites

The first book on social location marketing: how to build communities of customer advocates to promote any service, product, or venue

This is the first book to focus entirely on the most important new opportunity in social media marketing: the use of social location sharing tools such as Yelp, Foursquare, Gowalla, and Loopt. Written by noted expert Simon Salt, this timely, marketable guide introduces the topic simply and clearly, with a focus on actionable advice and real case studies. Writing for marketers, entrepreneurs, and customer service leaders in businesses of all kinds, Salt shows exactly how to use these tools to build communities of customer advocates, strengthen loyalty, and enhance retention. Salt thoroughly explains each leading platform: what it offers marketers; how to get involved, both as an individual and a business; and how to use its tools to reach other users. He offers insights on reaching teens, tweens, women, and men; and on applications for fashion, retail, hospitality, and restaurants. This book offers strategies for organizations with large budgets, small budgets, and even no budget. It also offers specific guidance on measuring social location activity and calculating ROI. Salt answers crucial questions like: What does my business have to give users in order to earn their loyalty? Can these tools really affect my bottom line? How do I handle complaints? Drawing on his extensive experience at the center of the social media revolution, he concludes with case studies of organizations who are achieving superior results right now.