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If you already know about Foursquare and Gowalla, chances are that you have heard about Facebook Places. This newly launched feature of Facebook will help users of the social network disclose their own location and find friends who are nearby. However, it can also be a powerful tool for local businesses that can up a set up a Places page for their location. Though anyone can create a page for a place, businesses need to either "claim" their page by responding to a Facebook representative’s phone call or by uploading some official documentation that prove their rights to a said location.

If you're wondering how Facebook Places can help you to connect to your fans, here are a few pointers:

• Getting frequent users hooked to Special Offers: For those users who have used Facebook Places during their current visit, try giving promotional items or special discounts coupons to encourage them to check back on Facebook Places at regular intervals. Using lucrative signs within the store or setting up a special counter at the cash register can also generate interest of the shoppers. Such promotional offers can also be publicized on Twitter and Facebook to make more people aware of the same.
• Getting the customers involved: Making the customers feel important and cared for will help the businesses go a long way. So, apart from offering promotional items or special discount coupons, encouraging the customers to get involved in giving feedback, reviews etc, participating in photo shoots and publishing the images on your website, sharing business updates with fans are some other ways of keeping them engrossed. Such activities will also help in viral marketing of your business by word-of-the-mouth publicity.
• Rewarding loyal customers: The foundation of a successful business lies in the art of getting loyal repeat customers. You can give some special gifts to the most active member of your Facebook Places based on the frequency of check-ins. This will bring the competitiveness of your customers to the fore, thus driving them to come and pay return visits to your Facebook Places.

If all these sound enticing enough, create or claim your Place and then merge your Facebook Page and the Place after you have completed the verification process.