What if your business could offer a special deal to potential customers who just walked by your storefront? What if, as a consumer, you were instantly rewarded for frequent visits, recommending a business to friends or providing feedback on products and services? That’s called location-based marketing, and it’s the next big thing in social media.

Services like Foursquare, Gowalla, Brightkite and Loopt are free smart phone applications enabling users to “check in” anywhere from a grocery store to a coffee shop to a restaurant. Foursquare, the current darling that is catching on fast in Charleston and across the country, lets users earn points for checking in and, if you’re the latte lover who checked in the most at the local coffee shop this week, you’re deemed the “mayor.” You can post tips, suggesting friends try a particular sandwich or stay for Friday night happy hour, see where your friends are, earn badges for your activities and share what you’re doing through Facebook and Twitter.

Businesses and organizations that have accounts on Foursquare can target users with specials, discounts or other useful information. They can reward the “mayor” with free French fries or 10% off a pair of jeans, and follow them on Twitter.

How is this any different from sending customers e-mail coupons or handing out punch cards for a free sandwich with 10 purchases? Because you’re reaching people you know like to patronize your business. This gives you a way to learn about and connect with your customers. Plus, when others see people “checking in” at your location, it’s like a free recommendation.

By monitoring these location-based tools, you can know the moment a customer walks in the door. You know if someone is eating next door at the competition, and you can offer up a special deal to entice that person to visit your restaurant next time. Foursquare is working closely with businesses and will soon be offering up demographic details about your customers and when they visit your business – information which could prove to be incredibly valuable in better serving your customer base.

If you want to get up to speed on all that is Foursquare, join us for a “square up” on Foursquare Day, April 16 (4 squared = 16). Foursquare Day is a national initiative to promote the use of Foursquare. From 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., join us at our office, located at the Charleston Digital Corridor Flagship, 475-A East Bay St., to learn more about Foursquare, get signed up, mingle with fellow Foursquare users, enjoy free drinks and food — and be entered into a drawing for an iPod touch. For more details on the event, visithttp://www.StepAheadInc.com. Be there or be square!

Lyn Mettler is the founder of Step Ahead Inc., which combines the best of traditional public relations with social media and Internet marketing to help maximize visibility for clients both online and off. The company recently added Foursquare management to its line-up of services.

http://www.charlestoncurrents.com/#focus

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35149665/ns/travel-tips/

Got a travel problem?

Just tweet about your troubles, and the airline, car rental company or hotel will fix it. At least that’s the conventional wisdom. And while it’s true that travel companies are spending a lot of time online listening to their customers, they’re not necessarily paying attention to all of us.

“Travel companies pick and choose who to respond to in social media,” says social media expert Ryan Goff of the advertising firm MGH, Inc. “You better believe that a Web celebrity with 100,000 Twitter followers is going to catch a company’s attention over the casual Tweeter with only 10 friends.”

Even online, some travelers are more equal than others. Question is, how to become a somebody?

You should care, because even today, as social networking applications like Twitter and Facebook have come of age, being online can be the most effective shortcut to getting great customer service.

I see it every day on Twitter, as customers with questions are sent to the front of the line (sometimes literally) because they had a respectable social-media profile. Online travel agencies such as Orbitz have an entire team of employees dedicated to monitoring online chatter and helping customers.

I asked several social media experts about how to boost your online profile. Here’s what they told me:

1. Be interesting
Boring people don’t get a lot of followers. “Be engaging,” says Lyn Mettler, the founder of Step Ahead, Inc., which manages social media campaigns. “Don’t just talk, talk, talk about yourself all day long. Read what other people are posting and respond to them. Ask questions, answer questions. Truly interacting with people will help build your followers.”

2. Get a blog
One of the fastest ways to raise your online profile is to start blogging. “If you blog, that helps tremendously,” says Tim Massie, an adjunct professor of communication at Marist College. It helps if the subject matter is travel-related, but anyone with access to a credible blog is likely to come to the attention of a travel company faster than someone who doesn’t have one. Massie says being an active participant in online forums can help, too. “If you go the extra mile, posting photos, helping others understand the amenities of hotels, and providing insider information that a typical tourist would overlook, you will earn your reputation and be an influencer in the travel industry,” he says.

3. Join the conversation
“Post and tweet frequently about your experiences,” says Rick Gardinier, the chief digital officer for the advertising agency Brunner. “This will increase your relevancy and authoritativeness which in turn will boost your following.” How often? I try to tweet and post a few times a day, but you should be able to keep a respectable profile by publishing something a few times a week.

4. Offer good information
Building trust — and followers — takes time and work, according to experts. “Travelers can increase their social media influence by creating good content, consistently, for an extended amount of time,” says Chris Harrington, the technology director for the communications firm Luquire George Andrews. He says he’s likely to follow users who have positive things to say about the subject matter. “Negative comments can hurt the traveler’s social capital as much or more than the company in question,” he adds. That way, when you go negative — when something happens to you while you’re traveling that you need resolved — your followers will pay attention.

5. Check your motives
It matters where you’re coming from, say the pros. “Motivation behind using social media extensively will drive the behavior of travelers,” says Philippe Duverger, an assistant professor of marketing at Towson University. For example, if people think you’re trying to sell something, they may be less likely to include you in the network. Also, if you’re branded a “complainer” then that can be a turn-off. Being in it for all the right reasons is one way of attracting lots of followers and building your online credibility.

6. Speak up
The best way to get noticed by any company is to openly discuss your experiences. “If the company has an interest in social media as a marketing outlet, then they will be monitoring all conversation about them, both positive and negative,” says social media guru Dan Healy of Mason, Inc., in New Haven, Conn. Acknowledging an experience that you had on an airline, for example, on a public forum is important to the airline because it gives them insight about their customers, and the public’s opinion. Be sure to use proper shout-out etiquette by linking to the travel company’s blog (which is monitored by the company) or using their Twitter handle — @Jetblue or @Marriottintl — when you tweet about them.

7. Make a personal connection
Travelers tend to follow people they can relate to. “People trust contents from somebody they can identify with personally,” says Iis Tussyadiah, an assistant professor at Temple University’s school of tourism and hospitality management. Often, it’s as simple as posting a picture and a brief biography on your blog or Facebook profile. People are likely to read your tweets and posts when they feel they know you than when you’re a faceless, anonymous voice on the Internet.

Even if you only have a small number of followers, you can still make a difference. “The squeaky Twitterer still gets the grease,” says Dallas Lawrence, the chair of the digital and social media practice group at Levick Strategic Communications. “Like most travel related stories in the online space, companies have focused their efforts towards addressing critical commentary posted by dissatisfied customers who have posted damaging comment to the online space about a particular airline, hotel or travel provider.”

You’re probably wondering if these strategies can really work for you. They can. I’ve used them myself. (You can follow me on Twitter at @elliottdotorg, Facebook or on my blog.

Along the way, I’ve made some terrific friends – people I’ve never actually met, but that’s beside the point — and had lots of interesting conversations.

Next time you have a travel problem, you’ll be glad you did.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35149665/ns/travel-tips/

MT. PLEASANT, S.C.—Being a mom and working in social media are two of Lyn Mettler’s biggest passions, so her recent selection as a featured contributor to TwitterMoms.com, a social network of highly influential and “networked” moms who are very active bloggers and Twitterers, is a perfect match. Mettler, who is president of Step Ahead, Inc., a Mt Pleasant-based company that combines the best of traditional public relations with social media campaigns to maximize visibility for clients, was one of 15 featured contributors chosen from some 250 applicants. She will blog weekly about social media marketing within the community that currently boasts 5800 members.

Her first post discusses the much-talked about “phishing” and spamming episode on Twitter, which happened earlier in the week affecting many users, including some celebrity Twitterers. She offers tips for how to avoid such scams and what to do if you were affected. Twitter is an online service that allows individuals to converse socially within the confines of 140 characters per comment.

“I hope that I can create some interesting content that will engage this group of very Internet savvy moms,” says Mettler. “I know I’m in great company and I look forward to further sharing my love for all things social media.”

Step Ahead, Inc. is a Mt Pleasant-based company that combines the best of traditional public relations with social media campaigns that engage blogs, social networks, online video, Podcasting and more to help maximize visibility for companies and their products both online and off. To date, the company has worked with the Charleston Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, Charming Inns of Charleston, ClassifiedFlyerAds.com, Tiger Lily florist, Charleston Parks Conservancy, Golf Island, Myrtle Beach National, Coco’s Café, POSITUS consulting and others.

Step Ahead executives regularly speak about social media across the state, including events and luncheons for the South Carolina Public Relations Society of America state conference, Columbia chapter and Lowcountry chapter; Center for Women; Charleston Digital Corridor; Charleston Trident Association of Realtors and more. The company has also been featured in the Wall Street Journal, on MSNBC.com and in numerous local publications. Visit www.stepaheadwebstrategies.com or call (843) 388-8376 for more information.