Community Corner

Making Sense of This Foursquare Thing

This social networking tool is a bit confusing in its simplicity, but Patch is here to reveal how it can work for you.

Have you heard of Foursquare? If you're on Facebook or Twitter, you may have seen your friends letting the world know where they are at the moment.

Perhaps you saw a status or tweet that said "Jimmy Jones just checked in @ McDonald's, 2400 Lincoln Hwy, Olympia Fields." This is Foursquare at work.

These friends of yours "check-in" at different places and recieve points and rewards for their efforts. They can become the mayor at a given location by performing the most check-ins there.

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What's the use of this?

Lets say you're at a big event and there are tons of people around, perhaps a free festival or concert. You can check-in to this event and any friends who are there or may be thinking about attending will see it. Then you can connect with people you may not otherwise have gotten the chance to.

Find out what's happening in Chicago Heightswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

So it's nothing special. You won't die if you don't get into it. But it is another way to stay connected.

It's also another way to stay informed of what Chicago Heights Patch is up to. For example, every Tuesday I check-in at the Olympia Fields Village Hall and Police Station and let everyone know I'm working on the police blotter.

I will also check-in at other places around town. If you're on Foursquare and see that The Heights Patch is checked in, feel free to seek me out so we can chat.

If you want to get started on Foursquare, take a look at the video above. It should help you get all set up.

Follow Chicago Heights Patch on Foursquare as well.

Check out Step By Step every Monday for an explanation of how a social networking tool can be useful to you.


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