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I know that I keep banging on about Foursquare, but it offers such potential for policing that I really feel I have no choice!
Foursquare has just added a ‘layers’ feature to it’s basic operating premise ( just to recap in case you missed it, Foursquare is a ‘game’ that uses your phone’s location to allow you to ‘check in’ to various locations in your area. The greater the number of check ins, the greater status you achieve and the more badges you get (think boy scout patches!). Smart companies and organisations are seeing the benefit of this and are offering perks, the more check ins, the greater the number and the value of the perks. Check out this article from the Brighton Evening Argus newspaper about how local businesses are using it.
I have blogged before about how I think that police forces and police authorities could use Foursquare to stimulate engagement, provide information and develop service shaping mechanisms.
Foursquare have just upped their game and made all of this, potentially, even easier. They have added a ‘layers’ feature. What this means is that organisations can create layers in an area that people opt in to.
Two partners, the Independent Film Channel (IFC) and the Huffington Post, announced the release of Foursquare location layers this week. If you follow IFC or the Huffington Post you’ll be given notifications when you use Foursquare to check in to any location near one of their favorites. Follow the IFC, and you could be told when you’re near a famous film location or a theater. Follow the Huffington Post and you could be told when you’re near a protest or some other real time news event.
The possibilities of Foursquare layering are immense for policing.
Imagine a layer that told people when they were near an incident or crime that you were seeking witnesses for, that showed them where their Neighbourhood Policing Team were located, that told them about great work done by volunteers near them and encouraged them to ‘check in’ and get involved, that warned them of the dangers of driving dangerous vehicles and encouraged them to ‘check in’ to an approved garage for a safety check, that warned of the dangers of a particular crime in an area and allowed them to ‘check in’ with the crime prevention officer for personal safety or property security advice.
How about rewarding people for checking in to a location, maybe a neighbourhood team surgery, and providing feedback on the service they’ve received, or rewarding people for checking in and suggesting ways in which the service could be made better. The rewards could be tailored to appropriate segmentations. Want to know what kids think of the way that they access your website, or the way that mums feel about your front office systems, procedures and facilities? Create a range of ‘rewards’ appropriate to the demographic.
In my view, the possibilities are endless and are probably only limited by our imaginations.
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