Eric – Better late than never! I do agree with your point here – there IS value in this geolocation game on the service industry side – targeted marketing, offering discounts for mayors and frequent visitors, etc. It will be interesting to see how this evolves.

Yes, the concept of geolocation-based social media is to sell data to businesses, but there’s another business use being overlooked here. What about the service industry places that embrace social media by rewarding the mayors of their locations and those who check in? What if the small business hang-outs around colleges banded together to organize a game of Assassins using Foursquare or some other app?

There’s something to be said for a brand that engages consumers rather than spies on them. I’d consider that a business use. Foursquare (or Yelp! or whatever app takes the lead in this segment) doesn’t have to be evil.

When you have to backup and revisit step 532 (for the 3rd time) you can become Mayor of the Job code conversion program. After a particular grueling all nighter running the conversion programs you could revel in your Crunked badge. When you finish the upgrade you will have been awarded your Adventurer, Explorer and Superstar badge. Since most ERP upgrades take days and days and days to complete you will also gain your Bender badge. Hey, for a Bender badge, I might be persuaded to dust off my upgrade skills and do an ERP upgrade by myself.

Diane – I struggle with the same issues. I have repeatedly said that I believe that people should be ‘real’ in their online presence. I don’t want to interact with a personal brand that isn’t reflective of your real personality. Online, as in person, there are people that will like you and people that will dislike you. I’d prefer to be myself and give people that option, than to weakly walk the line and straddle the fence while offering soft and uncontroversial content 100% of the time. If we are talking about real issues, there will be disagreements and varying positions on these issues – and the value is in the point-counterpoint debate, not in all trying to straddle issues for the sake of not alienating any of your ‘fans’. That’s my 2 cents. Thanks for commenting!

I enjoyed self-respect this morning in that I had governed myself by not publicizing attendance at Forty Deuce’s Burlesque Cafe Was in West Hollywood last night. However, sometimes I slip up and Tweet without considering the implications. For example, not thinking that anyone would care what DJDiPod listens to on a Friday night, I Blipped a certain Cyndi Lauper song at midnight, hurting someone close to me without even thinking about it. Tweet deleted but damage done.

How do we meld all of this together? Do we give up our posting personalities in order to remain neutral, resulting in vanilla content (not that I don’t love a fruity, anisic Tahitian bean) and are Mommy Bloggers so abundant because they are the really the only demographic who can say stuff without fiscal concerns, having only their children and husbands to f@^*k up along the way?

Or is the solution simply to try not to say anything stupid and if this is the case then I am totally doomed.

Here’s #2 — and I’m totally serious about all of this.

Foursquare is a corporate takeover of social media at its finest. They’re watching you. They’re tracking you. They’re fooling you into thinking that it’s fun.

It’s not enough to track your credit card data and your internet surfing data. Now they’re going to track your IP address and your social media accounts and link them to algorithms to predict your consumption habits. They’ll sell that data to merchants and consumer packaged goods companies so those companies can build products, services, and marketing campaigns meant to fatten your belly and their wallets.

You’re a pod. You’re a drone. You’re nothing but a blob with limited choices. More and more, those choices are being taken away from you through insidious marketing campaigns and the illusion that the marketplace is flooded with choice.

Social media could liberate us from the shackles of consumerism. It could create independent thought and encourage democracy. Or it can turn us into slaves.

More and more, free will is a joke.

/end paranoia because I’m off to Starbucks

David – Interesting angle regarding colleges – I agree it would be more relevant and fun in that space. Good point regarding Yelp. With their robust ratings and feedback system they could be a force in this space. Same with other major players like Facebook – they are over the user adoption hurdles and can leverage pre-established, larger friend networks. IMO, the real potential may lie on the industry side, with venues being able to drive some marketing campaigns and targeted advertising based on trends established through the application. We shall see. For me, it’s just a game.

Jennifer – Thanks for stopping in! I totally hear you on stream spamming with foursquare. I am guilty and do it occasionally, but I try not to make it a habit. Of course, we are in full agreement on your last point – the Mayor aspect totally elicits a competitive response from me