3 great sites you may not know a lot about

Staying on top of digital trends is difficult. That’s why we’ve started the BR Digital Roundup where you can find out about great websites and applications. This week’s focus is on how to save money, claim your business and easily share photos. Learn all about Groupon, Facebook Places and Yogile.

 
GROUPON is a group coupon offer distributed daily. Heavily discounted items are available to a group of subscribers. If enough people purchase the item, the entire group gets the discount. 

In the past, Groupon offers have focused on local services like food, massage or maintenance. This week, the Chicago-based company grabbed the spotlight when news of its Aug. 19 Gap Groupon spread.

Nearly half a million people bought $50 worth of Gap merchandise for only $25. “Superbliz,” is how Reuters coined this experiment. What’s more, Groupon is already worth $1 billion and the impact on small businesses has been tremendous.

What’s the next step? Use it to build a loyal customer base. First, be prepared to manage your response rate and still offer each customer an enjoyable experience (this video shows you what happens if you don’t).

Then, the onus is on the business to engage and retain newfound customers. Social media is a great way to start. Reach out and offer additional incentives via Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare etc.

You can receive Groupons via e-mail or you can download the mobile applications on the iPhone or Android devices.

FACEBOOK PLACES launched this week virtually blowing the doors off of location-based services. The social media giant is now offering mobile users the chance to check-in virtually at locations around town based on their geographic location.

There are a lot of questions about Place but three biggies include:

1. How do you participate?

Use Facebook’s latest iPhone app – or – touch.facebook.com (must have a mobile browser that supports HTML 5 and geolocation).

Once you are in, click on the Places icon or tab. You’ll be given the option to check in and then find a location in your area. If you are a business owner and do not see your location look to question No. 3.

PCWorld’s How To Use Facebook Places offers load of additional tips (and photos).

2. How do you opt out of participating?

You can start by going to your Facebook account privacy settings (Account —> Privacy —> Settings) and then hit customize.

Check out this Facebook video for the next steps. It makes the process somewhat easy to understand.

3. What should businesses be doing?

First, you must claim your business location. If you don’t someone else will and your brand may not be represented the way you had hoped.

Once you’ve found Places, click on the Checkin icon on the upper right corner. If your location does not appear, try typing it into the search bar.

If you are still unable to find the location, it has not been added to Facebook Places yet. Click Add a Place and follow the appropriate steps.

While adding a location is relatively simple, claiming the location is a bit more involved. 

Once you’ve added the location name and description you need check in to the location and click on the Is this your business link. 

Certify you are the official representative and then be prepared to offer verification with a scan or pdf of one of the following documents:

- Articles of Certificate of incorporation (for a corporation)
- Certificate of Formation (for a partnership)
- Local Business license (issued by your city, county, or state)
- Better Business Bureau (BBB) Accreditation.

You’ll receive notification from the Facebook team with additional information.
 

Finally, have you heard of YOGILE? It’s an easy-to-use photo sharing site that allows you to share pictures publicly or privately with little effort.

- Multiple people can share photos
- Photos can be shared on the site, via e-mail or MMS
- URL of hosting site can be customized and shared freely or made private
- Users do not need to register

There are hundreds of ways to take advantage of this technology, but perhaps the most practical for our readers is tradeshows. Use the site as an easy way for attendees to share their photos freely and without hassle. The content gathering could prove to be very beneficial.

What are some of your favorite new websites and applications?