Social Geo Dating: StreetSpark

I've heard of smartphone dating applications that alert its users if they happen to be in close proximity to one another but StreetSpark's unique approach to geo dating lies not only in its geolocation platform, but in its social matching capabilites. It draws on your social behavior on social networks like Facebook to match you to other users. If a match is found to be in close proximity, you can either "ignite" or "extinguish" the spark to get meet up information. Drawing on one's social graph is a great idea. No more 400 "scientifically" designed questionairs or proprietary matching services.

One concern comes to mind with an application like StreetSpark. By making your services a smartphone-based platform, you really close the market for your product. There are only a certain number of people in any given area, but by filtering those results with people who have a smartphone (iPhone specifically) AND are using your application can greatly reduce user inventory. Nonetheless, the idea of using the social graph to find matches is a great idea. I think StreetSpark would do better focusing on a web based platform with geo-dating as a supplemental feature.

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On Mashable

The Copenhagen Wheel

A post on Make's blog features a wheel that, when attached to your bicycle, can generate and store braking energy. What caught my eye was its integration with the iPhone. The "Copenhagen Wheel" can lock and unlock your bicycle via iPhone, but thats just the beginning. It also utilizes the iPhone's location aware technology to assess upcoming traffic, distance traveled and even pollution levels! By generating "green miles," it reminds the cyclist just how many mother nature karma points they've racked up.

A couple of years ago "The Copenhagen Wheel" would have simply been a product aimed to enhance an already green activity. Now, with the integration of the iPhone, it becomes your "personal trainer" and "a natural extension of your everyday life." By integrating smartphone technology and social networking into the product, "The Copenhagen Wheel" is able to have a far more robust and appealing marketing campaign; whether or not it sells more units is another question. Speaking of questions - what happens if at the end of the day your phone dies and you need to get home?

Snacksquare Brand Management Done Right

Snacksquare is a new business directory Website that incorporates Foursquare venue data onto a single Google map. This makes for a much friendlier user experience when searching for Foursquare deals. Instead of retrieving a list of nearby deals, you can now get a visual look at where deals are being offered.

In TechCrunch's article describing the company, Snacksquare CEO James Gillmore demonstrates great brand managment by directly responding to the article and its negative comments in the "comments" section. Gillmore successfully controls the conversation and is able to portray his company in a positive light. I highly recommend reading through the comments and see a true pro at work.