I love pesto.

Like, seriously, I should probably be psychologically evaluated for my obsession with this condiment (is it a condiment? I assume it is. I mean, it’s usually USED that way…)  If I see it listed as part of a recipe for an item at a restaurant, regardless of the other ingredients, that particular item just shot up to Top 3 picks for me. 

And then I love cheese.  But really…who doesn’t love cheese?

And finally I love toasty bread.  Sure, a regular store-bought loaf of Country Kitchen will do all right, but I’m talking rough-cut multi-grain yummy homemade loaf of bread. 

Do you see what all these things have in common? 

Yeah, I didn’t either til my colleague and I were faced with a dilemma while wandering around Portland Arts District during a lunch break at a conference.  And that dilemma was simply…where should we go to eat?  We decided on a Thai place at the intersection of Congress and State Street, which was closed even though their hours said they were open.  

I’ll admit, I was bitter. 

But we trudged back towards the Eastland Park Hotel, peering in windows to see what might be open.  It was during this new quest for sustenance that we stumbled on Local Sprouts Cafe, which is quite possibly the coolest little place I’ve found in Portland in awhile.  For real.  Like, when the Way Below Status Quo roadtrip came to Portland I lured them with talk of the wonderful meal I had there. 

As I stared at their handwritten chalkboard of delicious locally-grown organic yumminess I was overwhelmed by possibilities.  But like any good social media passionista would, I was scouring the menu while duly loading my Foursquare app to “check-in.”  And as I pulled up the venue I noticed 2 or 3 tips, all about the same thing. 

Try the grilled cheese and pesto sandwich

Friends, I tell you.  If you are visiting Portland, Maine and want something to eat then please run DO NOT WALK to Local Sprouts Cafe for this amazingness to thrill your tastebuds.  And while it intrigued me on the chalkboard menu I had *no idea* of the deliciousness I would experience.

I heard once in a marketing/sales class that a satisfied/happy customer will tell four of their friends about a good experience but a dissatisfied/unhappy customer will tell eleven.  When I meet small businesses to talk to them about their social media strategy, they are certainly worried about the unhappy customers and their eleven (or, thanks to Facebook and Twitter and MySpace and LinkedIn and and AND it is more like their eleven HUNDRED) friends.  But they don’t always realize the power that lies in happy customers.  They are willing to share with their friends, but instead of four by using social media they are reaching ELEVEN HUNDRED people in their networks alone.

With programs like Foursquare, and folks like me (there are more coming…I’m what you might call a “Mid-Adopter” or “Cool Before Cool Was COOL Adopter”) then your venue can reach ANYONE trying to determine why they should go to your establishment over someone else’s.  Or looking for the best deals and best meals.   Giving them a reason to sing your praises and appreciating those who do. 

And if you are a business or know a business staring at the computer screen at that little cartoony figure bounce a playground ball and scratching their heads I highly suggest they check out Foursquare Perspectives (from Awareness, Inc.)  It’s a little marketing hubpage that not only has some great E-Books on The State of Foursquare and leveraging Foursqaure, but it will also let you search through Fourquare’s extensive information store to find out the critical details needed to determine ROI for the site.  In it’s simplest terms, it proves the value of this medium for the future of geolocation based social media.

But most importantly you should all know once I move to my workspace in the West End only two blocks from this cafe in September, I’m going to start working on mayorship of Local Sprouts.  So be on the lookout. 

Yeah, I’m talking to you @FranklinMcMahon. 

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