Foursquare Stops Automatic Posting; Focus is Local Search

Foursquare’s latest update wasn’t anything fancy with the functionality or the design, rather it was something that most people may not even notice and it may improve the overall perception of the platform without anyone even realizing it happened.

Plus, it also signifies a major shift in the positioning of the platform and how the company wants to be perceived by it’s users.

Foursquare has stopped automatic tweeting and Facebook posting of badges and mayorships. The app will still allow sharing of check-ins, lists, tips and tips to twitter and facebook.

Dennis Crowley, Foursquare’s founder, built one of the most successful check-in gamification activities for the simple purpose of onboarding new users. The user base was needed in order for the platform to built a massive check-in database that has since grown into one of the most significant location based API available on the Internet.

It’s depth can be traced back to some of the largest and most active applications. (Think about how location data attaches itself to your other app activities – Foursquare’s API powers that)

Yes, badges and Mayorships are still a core element of the app experience, the act of sharing that information simply isn’t as relevant – and important – as it once was. The initial posts created curiosity and desire; now they have become commonplace and annoying.

 We are working on giving people ways to share the moments that really matter to them, rather than automatically sharing everything.

Why the shift? It’s all about local search and discovery. Social behavior and the content we consume is experiencing another major change. We are becoming picky about what we see. Content needs to be valuable not repetitive. This doesn’t mean that badges and Mayorships aren’t important, they just don’t need to be as visibale within autmated tweets and posts.

I like this shift as it puts more emphasis on the experience with regards to the tips, ratings and reviews. Users still want to become the Mayor or unlock a badge, but they don’t want to worry about that action being shared everywhere as well. Plus, our social connections don’t want to see it.

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