Facebook and Twitter have allowed people to share details of their private lives on a completely different level to what we knew before.
Now, the web is set to offer us the chance to let others know where we are at any particular time. Geo-location services have started to gain momentum with social media blog Mashable reporting Foursquare nearing 1 million check-ins per day in May.
Services, such as Gowalla or Fouraquare, allow users to check in in a particular location – for example, part of a city or a conference venue – and see who else is there.
Should these services be adapted as widely as ‘traditional’ social networking tools, the internet would again be set to change the way people interact, taking a huge leap towards more mobile social networking.
Location-based services would also undeniably provide new opportunities for marketing – especially for small and medium-sized businesses. By being able to target people passing through a particular area they know that the ad is being received by the most relevant audience possible.
So who’s using them and why?
Brian Kelly, UK Web Focus (national Web coordination and advisory post), has been eager to explore the potential of geo-location services.
“I first started using Gowalla at Easter time this year, after using the GPS on my phone to keep a record of a walk. I realised that by just uploading the GPS trail to Google Maps didn’t add much value to it. So I subscribed to Gowalla (and Foursquare) in order to explore the potential of social geo-location sharing,” Brian explains.
According to Brian, the great benefit of geo-location services is in a networking context.
“I’m interested in the potential of social location sharing for when people go to conferences and other events – this can provide an opportunity to meet people and enhance professional activities,” he says.
Gowalla aims to make discovering and exploring new places easier.
Compared to Twitter and Facebook, there is a significant advantage of making new contacts.
“I myself have found Twitter very valuable when I have been away at conferences in meeting up with people, making new contacts, etc. However this has required me to either be following the people or following the hashtag. Using location provides a new dimension to the ways in which such contacts can be made,” Brian says.
But doesn’t it sound a bit like 1984?
However great the benefits might be, geo-location services will inevitably raise concerns about privacy and security.
Imagine a world where your movements are recorded online. There are numerous ways in which such information could be abused, opening the door to for criminals, most obviously burglars.
“There are clear issues about privacy,” Brian admits.
“However, the use of these services in a managed and time-constrained context, such as an event, can help to minimise such concerns. Users are being advised on possible privacy issues and will have control over whether they wish to check in or not.”
The key element of choice addresses the initial concerns and makes location-based services worthwhile exploring. Just as any other social networking tool, when used with care and consideration, geo-location services have their place on the web – plugging a hole in the practicalities of our social lives.
It’s also worth mentioning that for early adopters there’s also the benefit of claiming a logical user name instead of incomprehensible combination of initials and years of birth!
Case study
Brian Kelly is planning on using geo-location services to provide an easy way for people to meet and network in an event in July. Taking place at the University of Sheffield, the Institutional Web Management Workshop 2010 will have a strong online presence using various Web 2.0 tools to get the best features from each. Read more…
Tags: Foursquare, geo-location services, Gowalla, social networking
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