communicate nutrition: Is Foursquare 4 YOU?

Special thanks to Ashley Chrisinger, University of Maryland-College Park Dietetic Intern, for the following blog post!

Foursquare is a free location-based social networking tool available on the web, or via a smart phone app, that has evolved over the past couple of years into a versatile tool for both customers and businesses. Recently, it announced a user base of 15 million!

Foursquare started out as a mobile app and was available to cell phone users only.? Its original purpose was to benefit small businesses.? When users wanted to know what was nearby, for example, a restaurant or bank, they could discover these small businesses and ?check-in,? meaning they would physically visit the business and then post an announcement of their presence for other Foursquare users to see.? Other original benefits included the ability to see your friends? locations, and, in turn, let them know where you were.? Soon businesses began realizing the potential to market themselves to Foursquare users by offering deals and specials to draw in business.? Recently, Foursquare expanded from ?just a mobile app? to a website.? The option to claim your business?s location and advertise on Foursquare could be a good option for a nutrition professional with his or her own business.? In fact, if you are a nutrition professional working in any physical location, you could claim your space on Foursquare.

Foursquare is for you if you:?

• Enjoy social networking,
• Like finding things to do based on others' experiences and recommendations,
• Frequently take advantage of deals, or
• Are a business looking to make your location known in hopes of attracting new customers.

One of Foursquare?s newer features is the ability to leave ?tips,? or comments, for places you?ve been.? Many of us value our peers? reviews; this feature allows us to make more informed decisions based on our peers? experiences before trying something new.? Another useful aspect is the ability for users to generate themed ?lists,? for example, ?Best Burgers in D.C.? ?These lists are visible to all Foursquare users so that anyone can view the list ? and try out the ?Best Burgers in D.C.!"? As a nutrition professional, these tools allow you the opportunity to make health or nutrition-based lists, leave healthy tips, and share your informed opinion of restaurants, grocery stores, health clubs, and more.

Source: http://snecommunicationsdivision.blogspot.com/2012/02/is-foursquare-4-you.html

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