Foursquare Expands Its Badge Offering

Badges are a fantastic way of incentivizing people to complete certain activities. Whether it be checking in to a restaurant or going for a run, users are more likely to complete a task if there is a reward.

Foursquare was the first major startup to gracefully master this process. It now looks like they are attempting to branch out and become the de facto badge collecting website.

From Foursquare’s blog:

We love when people tweet about dragging themselves to the gym to earn the Gym Rat badge, or about trying a new restaurant hoping to unlock the Pizzaiolo badge. Encouraging real-world actions is a big part of the mission behind foursquare. We’re also aware that some of those behaviors don’t necessarily involve a check-in, which is why today we’re excited to introduce the first badge you unlock by doing something, not just checking in. Say hello to our first badge partner: a little company called RunKeeper.

Here’s how it’ll work: users of RunKeeper, an application that helps you track your fitness routines, can now earn RunKeeper-exclusive badges on foursquare by achieving different milestones within their app. For instance, if you run a marathon using RunKeeper, you’ll unlock their Marathon badge. Once you unlock a badge, it will show up on both your RunKeeper profile and with your other badges in foursquare.