Perhaps you should be.

In recent weeks, I’ve noticed a lot of local (and national) businesses jumping on the somewhat controversial Foursquare bandwagon. Not a Foursquare user myself, I’ve found myself wondering if I’ve been missing out.

For those of you who are thoroughly confused, Foursquare is a location-based social networking website that allows users to announce their location via other networks such as Facebook and Twitter. Users sign into the service and tweet or message their friends about where they are to unlock different badges and earn points.

Why do I think your business could benefit from such a thing?

This gives businesses, like yours, great insight directly into your customer base by fostering an online community. Better yet, it’s also a great way to offer specials and incentives to your frequent guests. By becoming a part of this little social network game, you’ll drive customer traffic and keep people coming back.

I recently checked out some Foursquare specials in our area and found some sweet deals. For example, the Starbucks down the street offers $1 off the new Frappuccino for anyone who becomes “mayor” of that store. I don’t know about you, but that would definitely get me to Starbucks a lot more often instead of getting my usual blended beverage at another place. What’s even better for Starbucks is the fact that it’s going to take me quite a while build up mayor status. Do you know how many visits (a.k.a. dinero) that means for Starbucks?

As a business owner or manager, you gain a lot of other useful information from this service too. I just think it’s a great way to market your business as well as showcase your awesome social networking prowess.