Have you forgotten when you bought a certain item? Can you recall the last time you hung out with a certain friend or which restaurant you ate at on a recent trip? Our lives are pretty busy, and we are being pulled in all kinds of directions. Along the way, we might forget a certain detail here or there, but we have technology to help keep us in the know!
[Disclaimer: I am very pro-foursquare, and it is partially their fault why I lucked out with what is now known as 4sqLoveStory. But, let me be clear – foursquare is a great tool, and it deserves your unbiased trial if you haven’t given it an attempt in the past.]
Recent Confusion
Most of you know that I am a big technology fanatic, and I really love fitness too. Of course, I combine the two whenever I get the chance. Going back a few weeks, my earbuds started to act up; it appeared that they had a short in them. Luckily, my earbuds came with a lifetime warranty. So, no problem, right? Well, not so fast! You see, before going on the Disney Vacation in late July, I decided to do some extra cleaning. I ended up throwing away the box and receipt that I had from the purchase, so I had no way of really proving that I when bought them . So, after thinking for a split-second, I recalled that I obviously checked in to either Sports Authority and Dick’s Sporting Goods when I was out and about looking to buy them, and I knew that foursquare had some great filters that I can use to search my history of my check-ins. You see, those filters are a relief because I check-in almost everywhere I go, so [at the time of this writing] I have amassed nearly 21,000 check-ins. These filters, however, allowed me to search all of my check-ins at sporting goods stores from the past. Since I added a shout/comment about what I was looking for when I was shopping, I was able to pinpoint the exact time that I walked into the Dick’s Sporting Goods Store to look for and buy my [yurbuds] earbuds! Without the filters, I would have been searching for this data for days!
How Can You Optimize foursquare for Historic Search?
In my case, it helps that I actually ended up adding comments to my check-in, but, in retrospect, I could have and should have added more detailed comments. For starters, it is best at least comment that you bought whatever item you just purchased. Or, even better yet, take a picture of it and add it to your check-in after the fact. Second, take a picture of your receipt. Now, where you post it is entirely up to you. Of course, many people do not want to see receipts on venue pages, and, more importantly, you might not want to see that image out there for your friends and potentially others to see. In my case, I should have taken a photo and merely let it auto-upload from my Samsung Galaxy S3 to my Dropbox. Then, I could have still used foursquare to search my check-ins and then match up the time-stamped photo.
But, What If You Don’t Want People To Know?
When you check-in using foursquare, you have full power over what others see. So, if you are out and about at a venue that you’re worried others might frown up, just check-in off grid [but still leave a comment]. The same holds true if you are trying to buy a gift for somebody who is on your [foursquare] friends list! I’ve done that before when I went to buy flowers for Elaine on a few occasions. I did not want her to see my check-in, but I also wanted to record that I was at that venue. This helped me recall a flower shop for future reference, so that just goes to show you what great flexibility foursquare provides.
Foursquare Innovation Solves Real-Life Issues
Sure, foursquare is a social app that allows you to check-in, but let’s face it – it is much more than just that. Foursquare continues to listen to its user base [and the crowd] and finds ways to conveniently solve problems . Without the help of the foursquare app and site, I might never have known what time frame I purchased these gloves, and they may not have honored the warranty [due to my lack of detailed information].
Pingback: 12 Days of Christmas… My Foursquare Gave To Me… (Edit)