It amazes me that in a world where everyone is on the go all the time, technology continues to make it so simple to stay connected and even meet new people and find new businesses or restaurants along the way. CNN reported on some services that are paving the way for the ability to connect individuals via their GPS enabled mobile phones.

One use of this technology includes allowing dating services to send text messages to subscribers informing them of potential matches in the area. While this might be convenient if you’re looking to meet someone, I’m not so sure I would want potential matches to know I’m out and about and close by – what if I’m having a bad hair day? All joking aside, that aspect makes me somewhat uncomfortable. However, I don’t have to subscribe to the service if I’m not interested.

Another GPS enabled service mentioned in the article, which does appeal to me, is called Socialight. Though it’s still under development, they’ve certainly been in the spotlight. When I first heard about the site, I was a little uneasy about my cell phone allowing others to figure out where I am, but after watching their feature on The Discovery Channel I was sold. I’ve lived in Atlanta for a year and a half, and still look for new places to try out every weekend. With Socialight, I could login to my account, allow it to find my location, and it would present user-tagged locations nearby my current position. And if I happen to find a restaurant worth sharing, who am I to keep it to myself? I can create a sticky note, along with a picture, describing the menu and service.

Word of mouth has proven a valuable tool for up and coming businesses and restaurants; we’ve all taken suggestions from friends, family, and co-workers when looking for anything. This being the case, I wonder if services such as Socialight will be used by companies in the future as a semi-viral method of introducing themselves to potential customers, along with YouTube, MySpace, and other user generated sites.