With the proliferation of social networking and smartphones (many with GPS), ‘location networking’ has become a hot topic.

For the uninitiated, location networking is the use of smartphone apps to ‘check-in’ at the locations you visit. You then share this information with other social media outlets such as Twitter and Facebook, or with ‘friends’ in the app. The current leaders in this arena are Foursquare and Gowalla. Google Buzz has some location-based features, but I won’t be discussing that one here.

In general they work like this…

• After you register with the service, you download and launch the app. NOTE: Your phone will need GPS capabilities such as the iPhone or Droid.
• After GPS pinpoints your location, you’ll be presented with a list of possible places to ‘check in’ at. If your location doesn’t exist yet, you can create a new one.
• When checking-in, you’ll be given the option to include a message and to send it out via Twitter and/or Facebook. NOTE: You’ll need to setup this integration first on their websites.

Beyond that, the apps will differ. For example, in Foursquare, activities such as creating new spots and checking in will garner you points. If you are the point leader at a particular location, you get the ‘Mayor’ badge.

I won’t go into the full details of each, since I recommend trying out both. I’m leaning more towards using Gowalla exclusively, but I still like a few features better on Foursquare.

Many people wonder, ‘what’s the point?’ of using this kind of app. Well, they said the same thing about Twitter and Facebook my friends.

Here are a couple potential uses…

• A business can offer $$$ discounts for those checking in at their establishment, or maybe for the ‘mayor’ of a location.
• Gowalla has a ‘Trips’ feature where you can create a collection of places for you to check in at. Maybe a tour of historic Churches? [H/T Fr. Nels Gjengdahl]
• Foursquare has a ‘Tips’ feature so you can leave notes for other visitors of a location. Maybe you really liked a particular dish at a restaurant (or not so much).

It’s still in it’s infancy, so it’ll be interesting to see where this goes. How about you…have you used any of these apps? Have you discovered any special uses not mentioned?