Foursquare Launches Tap to Tweet Check-in Ads

FoursquareFoursquare is launching an advertising product next month that aims to get users to tweet a marketing message when they check into a business via the platform.

According to an email seen by Adweek, after a pilot with Mastercard, the company is now asking potential partners for a $100,000 commitment to take part in the beta test. “Weve worked to create a seamless, native experience through which brands can drive social amplification in a targeted moment based on location,” the email says.

The Mastercard ads prompted users to tweet #pricelesssurprises, with a link to the campaign’s website, which offered cardholders a special offer. Its not clear how successful the ads were, but demonstrates that value-exchange might be the way to go.

Foursquare has languished in recent years, with 45m registered users compared to the likes of Pinterest with 70m and Twitter with 280m. Having gathered a great deal of user-generated reviews in its time, the company now emphasises its role as a tool to help you find the perfect places, including, apparently, Weatherspoons in Berkhamstead (see picture).

Foursquare has received a total of $121m in funding since it was founded in 2009, including a $35m Series D round in December, plus a $15m contribution from Microsoft in February in exchange for a licence to power location for Windows and its mobile products.