Listen Foursquare, I know you've been keeping an eye on the launch of Facebook Places and you probably haven't liked the headlines you've seen, with everyone out there is saying your days are numbered. But you need to take a deep breath...and exhale. Good, now let's talk this out.
First off, remember that you're top dog in the location-based arena, and it's because of your success that Facebook is taking location-based sharing seriously as a social networking medium (and even paying homage to you with their Facebook Places logo). So my advice? Stay positive, look in the mirror, and give yourself a Jessica-style pep talk.
Sure, Facebook Places has 500 million users at their disposal. And yeah, they've done a solid job of integrating the new service into their site. I know you've tried to avoid competing directly with Facebook, but the sleeping giant has woken up and yes, it will give you some tough competition.
But you do have a few things going for you. I like how you partnered with Facebook right out of the gate. Do I think dedicated Foursquare users will use it? Probably not, but it's smart to have the option.
More importantly, even though Facebook will introduce geolocation to a wider audience, the early adopters and the truly engaged users have already established loyalty with an existing location-based network, which for most people is you.
So remember Foursquare, just because Facebook is checking in to the location-based networking doesn't necessarily mean you'll be surrendering you're mayorship on that market anytime soon.
