Swarm Launches a Mobile Social Network Aimed at College Students

Monika Jansen October 21, 2011 Tweet

It is true that some things – shopping or bar hopping, for instance – are better with friends.  In college, almost everything is done with friends, even the mundane and necessary thins, like laundry, running errands, and studying.

Bloomington, IN-based Swarm is leveraging that group mentality of 20 somethings with their mobile social network that is based around social experiences.  Swarm is not just about checking out new people, places, and experiences, though; there is gaming, checking-in and social buying too.  So yes, they are taking on Groupon, LivingSocial, and Foursquare.

The company has organized Swarms into 3 main categories:

1. The Duration Swarm is the gaming element.  Users compete for domination of their school’s social scene or strive to make the biggest difference in their community while vying for pride and prizes. Just take photos and share with Facebook and Twitter friends to earn bonus check-ins.
2. Group Goal Swarms lets you walk away with a deal that is dependent upon participation.
3. An Instant Swarm is your standard deal-a-day fare, but with a few twists.  Share with friends and earn additional discounts; once the specified number of Swarms is sold, points are added to your account for use on future purchases.

To entice merchants to participate, Swarm has bundled a few daily deal elements that should help, not hurt, businesses.  Businesses that offer daily deals through Swarm are only charged for people that purchase or check-in, while the competitive element of check-ins should drive traffic.  Merchants can also create deals that drive traffic to their establishments during downtime, or during busy times to increase profits.

Swarm was a featured startup at our Tech Cocktail Bloomington mixer last night.  You can submit your email on their website to find out when Swarm launches in your area.