Social Brands Spotted

Ok, thanks Macy’s. Someone forgot to take down the sign for five days. I wonder how many other people checked in for a mis-advertised offer?

I consider myself fairly connected and adept with technology, yet I refrained from trying Gowalla or Foursquare for quite some time. I failed to see the value in letting everyone know where I was or was not at any given time. It wasn’t until Facebook places and Facebook deals was announced that I became curious about the value in geo-social technology and marketing. So a few weeks ago I started trying the Facebook check in feature on my mobile phone and was curious how my friends would feel about receiving the notifications in their news feed.

I’m not a coupon person. I don’t clip them, and I can’t remember to use them. I do use customer loyalty cards. I use the one at my grocery store that deducts a few dollars from my bill each time and the one at Biggby Coffee that gives me a free one after every twelve I purchase religiously. But why am I trying to become the mayor of my Biggby store? What happens when I become the mayor? Will @biggbybob send me a gift card for my loyalty? Will I just get the bragging rights for my affinity?