I had to stop at the bank on the way to work this morning. I needed cash for my morning coffee and for my after-work drinks. I was running late -- I had an 8:30 conference call I had to make -- but I took the time at the cash machine to complete the ritual I enact with just about every location I visit these days: I checked into Foursquare. And hot damn, I'm now the mayor of my credit union.

I'm also the mayor of my gym, the coffee shop and grocery store I frequent, and -- until my supervisor ousts me -- of my office. I'm particularly proud of the latter, and even though I block most applications from posting to my Facebook stream, made sure everyone knew when I was crowned the mayor of ISTE. Hey, I have very little power in my day-to-day world. I have to compensate somehow.

I've been a fan of mobile location "games" since shortly after getting my iPhone. The first one I tried was Gowalla, and admittedly, I'm one of those folks -- much like the person in this cartoon -- who "check in" with multiple apps (Foursquare, Gowalla, Yelp). I was quickly drawn into the "look" of the Gowalla application and the fun of founding new sites and collecting the stamps. At the time, Foursquare was only available in major cities, and as Gowalla had no such restriction, it was my app of choice.

In January, however, Foursquare made its application available for check-ins from any location. (The next day, I became the mayor of ISTE.) Since then, I've found myself much more interested in Foursquare than Gowalla. While I will concede that Gowalla is aesthetically superior, Foursquare rewards me for repeat check-ins and for check-ins at specific locations ("rewards" being badges -- I have the Gym Rat badge for being so obsessive about working out -- and mayorships). And Foursquare also allows one's friends to leave tips for locations -- "Avoid the elevator" is the message I've left for those who visit our building.

But beyond the pride and power associated with being a mayor of a particular spot (or getting the coveted "douchebag" badge), what's the appeal of mobile location "games" like Foursquare? Why play? Why encourage others to play? What opportunities in particular are there for educators and event planners (my two interests, admittedly) in participating?

Foursquare and other mobile location apps are interesting as they bridge the virtual and the physical worlds, providing a way for social networking to meld its online and offline components. Foursquare describes itself as "a cross between a friend-finder, a social city-guide and a game that rewards you for doing interesting things. We aim to build things to not only help you keep up with the places your friends go, but that encourage you to discover new places and challenge you to explore your neighborhood in new ways." Right now, I only have a few friends who I'm linked to via Foursquare; and while I'd be cautious about adding strangers to "hey! stalk me here" application, I'd love to be able to see where my buddies are and where they recommend I go. And as I've "bought in" to the whole geosocial networking thing, I'm a ripe customer for targeted ads from businesses who can see that I am a frequent visitor.

Education: In January, Harvard University became the first university to use Foursquare, creating a special Harvard Yard badge for check-ins in and around the campus community -- a great way for new students to learn the area (and for regular visitors to campus, of course, to leave tips and messages and become Mayors -- because really, who wouldn't want to be the mayor of Harvard?!).

Eats: Just last week, Foursquare joined with the restaurant guide service Zagat to link check-ins with food reviews and recommendations (http://foursquare.com/zagat). Indeed, many businesses are likely to take advantage of the knowledge of who's checking-in regularly by offering discounts and coupons. (For a list of businesses that offer special freebies to their mayors, visit http://foursquare.com/businesses/)

At work, we've been brainstorming ways to incorporate Foursquare and Gowalla into our plans for the ISTE 2010 conference in Denver. After all, conferences provide a great opportunity for attendees to indicate "where am I now?" and for exhibitors and local businesses to suggest "you should be here!"

(And having grown up in the Rockies, there are a couple of places from my childhood that, if I can't become the mayor of, I at least want to check-in at).