Foursquare Prepares For Mainstream, Real-World Growth

As Foursquare just crossed 10 Million users and raises an additional $50 Million in financing from their backers, it appears that the popular location-based service may be beginning to hit the ‘mainstream’ status, and the level of capital it will need in order to cater to it. A recent interview with CNN broadly discussed some of the potential evolutions and approaches that Foursquare is considering to fuel its expansion — the only clear and direct of which is enabling real-world transactions.

With a recent national expansion of its partnership with American Express launched this week, Foursquare has made one of the first of many partnerships that will afford it a deeper entry into the world of retailers, brands and payments services. This particular partnership seems to afford Foursquare a globally-recognized brand with significant reach and penetration, while affording AmEx access to a young, technologically-proficient consumer audience.

That said, we also wonder what types of partnerships may make the most sense for Foursquare to deepen its reach and impact in the ‘real’ and transaction-oriented world. Specifically:

• Will Foursquare consider a more transactional approach itself (vs. leaving the ‘transaction’ up to its partners and merchants?)
• With mobile payments heating up, will Foursquare ever try to facilitate those itself by integrating that functionality directly into its platform?
• How can Foursquare (and its partners) make it easier for consumers to redeem some of the offers extended to them? We’re guessing we’re not the only ones that have been greeted by a blank stare after telling a member of a restaurant or bar’s staff that we want to redeem our Foursquare offer

These are just some of the questions on our minds. We’re certain there’s many more – we’d love to hear yours.

Via CNN: Foursquare Shifts Its Focus Into the Real World