We’ve wondered before if concert fans and venue owners are using Foursquare and if social media is changing live music. And as those two experiments roll on, the answer continues to be a resounding “Yes!”
Here’s why.
My Love Of Live Music Confirmed: Unlocking The VH1 Fanatic Foursquare Badge
While Grace Potter & The Nocturnals, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros and other bands were soaring towards sensual epiphany at the Chicago Bluegrass and Blues Festival, to my surprise, I unlocked the VH1 Fanatic badge.
Take a look at the image above and you’ll see the badge and the special note of encouragement “to rock on and make ’em proud.”
I’ve been following VH1 on Foursquare since they launched their concert venue promotion and contest earlier this summer, and it was somewhat of surprise when I got the notice on my Droid that I had unlocked the badge, because I had expected to unlock the badge while at the Rock N Roll Fantasy Camp at the House of Blues, not at the CBB Festival.
Apparently, what did unlock the VH1 Fanatic badge was that I had checked-in to three venues within a certain period of time.
Now, this is interesting because I have checked-in to well more than three concert venues since I started using Foursquare last year.
But what I think happened was that, as a Foursquare business partner, Vh1 has apparently set it up so only check-ins at specific concert venues allow you to unlock their special Fanatic badge.
Now this is just a theory as I learn more about how Foursquare works.
But as I’ve been testing out and experimenting with Foursquare at different music venues, I think this is a pretty good assumption of why and how I unlocked the VH1 badge.
If you have any suggestions or tips from your Foursquare venues experiences, I’d love to hear about them too.
Why Should Music Venues and Brands Use Foursquare?
Whenever someone asks me why I play Foursquare or why brands should invest in it, my “unlocking the Vh1 Fanatic badge” experience is the kind of thing that I explain to curious newbies and questioning skeptics.
I also tell them that Foursquare has great potential for brands, especially music venues, who know how to creatively capitalize on the fun social location-based gaming aspect of Foursquare.
I say this because when used right, and as it continues to develop and become more mainstream, Foursquare presents a great opportunity to reward concert fans (or other customers) for their loyalty to specific venues (or brands) with Check-in Specials and Mayor Specials.
And when it comes to music venues those virtual rewards can transform into meaningful connection because you can reward fans with discounts on drinks, free tickets, or concert merch.
And as far as other Foursquare badges and brands go, and considering the haunted back story of the Congress Theater and other Chicago music venues, I think it would be fun to create special badges, promotions and deals for concert fans who check-in at venues where there have been reported ghost sitings.
That said, I think there’s potential for more creative collaborations between Ghost Hunter shows, local ghost tours, concert venues and Foursquare check-ins.
We’ll keep you updated on more Foursquare discoveries as we uncover them and as we continue to experiment with live music and social gaming.
And stay tuned as we share a special post about a very creative and homemade instrument discovery from the Chicago Bluegrass and Blues Festival.
Does Foursquare Matter To You?
What have you discovered with your social gaming adventures at shows this year? Have you unlocked a special Foursquare venue badge? Are you unsure about how to use Foursquare to enhance your live music adventures? Tell us all about it — the comments are yours!