The Ritz-Carlton's Foursquare profile now includes dozens of tips about local destinations and landmarks from concierges at its 75 hotels -- extending advice previously available only to patrons to anyone with a Foursquare account.
For instance, guests checking in at the Massachusetts State House might come across a suggestion to stroll around Beacon Hill, one of the oldest neighborhoods in Boston. "Robert Frost, Sylvia Plath and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow once lived here," the tip reads. (Those who follow the Ritz-Carlton's Foursquare account will see tips as notifications; those who do not will see it in the general "Tips" section on their app.)
Although the tips are intended in part to give the public a taste of the concierges' range of knowledge, the service is intended primarily for Ritz-Carlton customers, Chris Gabaldon, chief marketing officer of the Ritz-Carlton, says.
"It's part of our greater work to make sure we're connecting with all of our customers in all of the ways they want to interact with the brand," he says. "The affluent customer today is moving beyond online and into mobile and because they have that capability, they expect brands they know and trust to be available wherever they might look for them."
Gabaldon dismissed the suggestion that making the tips publicly available lessened the value of the Ritz-Carlton's concierge service. "There's no way that you can ever fully tap into the wealth of knowledge of a concierge, their experience. [Foursquare] heightens awareness of the richness of the information they have, making it more attractive and making customers want to communicate and spend time with them," he says.
The brand is also embracing the opportunity of connecting with a younger, more digitally savvy consumer, he says, noting that the typical Ritz-Carlton customer is "very diverse."
Further tips will be added over time. At present, the Ritz-Carlton has no intention of rolling out the program on similar networks such as Gowalla.