insights.
Mobile web usage grew 110% last year (Quantcast). QR Code technology is helping direct marketers bridge the gap between traditional channels and the increasing number of smartphone users.
What’s black, white and read all over? It’s not the newspaper anymore; it’s the square 2D barcodes called “QR Codes” that have already taken over Asia and Europe, and are making strong inroads in the U.S.
Unless you’re looking for them, there’s a chance that you may have overlooked these small squares filled with seemingly-random black and white pixels. However, QR codes represent a lifeline for direct marketers looking to connect with an increasingly mobile, online audience.
In short, a QR code is a two-dimensional (2D) or “matrix” barcode containing data that can be read by scanners and mobile “smart” phones with cameras.
Standard structure of a QR Code. Attribution: Richard Wheeler (Zephyris) on Wikipedia.
While initially developed by a Toyota subsidiary to track car parts, direct marketers overseas, and then in the U.S., have quickly learned to use QR codes to add depth to their marketing communications.
QR Codes can be easily generated, and then printed or embedded on direct mail, email, landing pages, catalogs, postcards and more. Here are some of the many ways you can use QR Codes in your direct marketing:
QR Codes can contain more than 4,000 characters or 2,900 bytes, giving you plenty of room to embed information for use on your target’s mobile device, such as:
One of the most common data contained in a QR Code are web URLs, which serve as conduit between a static piece and an online, interactive asset, such as:
QR Codes can be used to provide immediate shopping and purchasing. For example, when someone is viewing your catalog, postcard, print ad, including a QR Code can link them directly to:
Generating and tracking responses is crucial for direct marketers, and is often done by using unique response pages and phone numbers for each marketing campaign. Similarly, actions such as a webpage visit and online purchase can be easy traced back to an individual QR code, allowing marketers to compare the effectiveness of different ads and channels.
Got your mobile phone handy? Scan the image above with your QR Code reader to be directed to www.mailprint.com.
Since QR Code technology is in the Public Domain, there are many different QR Code readers and generators. While some smart phones now come equipped with QR code readers, users can also easily install QR Code apps on their phone.
Please join in the conversation by adding a comment to this post.
There are some great insights in the “Comments” section of this post about the issues involved with QR Codes. I highly recommend checking them out and adding your own thoughts!
about 14 hours ago - No comments
Who says an old dog can’t learn new tricks. Zig Ziglar, 82-year old motivational maverick, salesperson, and author just published his 12th book, Find Your Success Code: Born to Win, which features a QR Code® that takes up one third of the front cover. Ziglar is no doubt pulling out all the stops to hit More >
about 2 days ago - No comments
Sending prospects or customers emails is relatively cheap, easy, and speedy. So it’s no wonder more than 89.2% of marketing managers say email remains as important or more important in their overall marketing strategy compared to two years ago, according to an EmailVision study. What’s surprising though is most marketers are not personalizing their email More >
about 1 week ago - No comments
If you’ve waited in line at Panera Bread for a hot Panini lately, chances are you’ve seen the banners with QR Codes® that say, “ My job is to make your Panini perfect.” Scan the code with your QR reader enabled smart phone and you’ll be taken to a non-mobile enabled You Tube channel showcasing More >
about 1 week ago - No comments
To err is human. For the Federal Reserve to err when printing 1.1 billion in redesigned $100 bills led to $110 billion in unusable dollars, which is the equivalent to a tenth of the worldwide U.S. currency. Of course these botch bills can be destroyed over the course of many years, but they still cost More >
about 3 weeks ago - No comments
Airport security guards are warned not to violate civil rights by profiling passengers. Human Resource recruiters are under watch by the EEOC so they don’t racially profile candidates. And police officers are under constant watchdog scrutiny to prevent future criminal, predictive, or racial profiling. However, Chief Marketing Officers are one of the few professionals who More >
about 4 weeks ago - No comments
Nonprofits don’t have the budget of Nike so they can’t spend $300 million pushing a campaign centered on a swoosh or statement like Just Do It. So the nonprofits that are continuing to ask, “How can we squeeze out more results and the same budget,” are turning to technology, multi-channel campaigns, and QR Codes® for More >
about 1 month ago - No comments
Today reality isn’t always wysiwyg (what you see is what you get). We have reality, virtual reality, alternate reality, digital reality and now augmented reality. This great new tool may be on the way to helping marketers get their clients to experience a new level of reality and help drive engagement and hopefully revenue Augmented More >
about 1 month ago - No comments
The Da Vinci Code took the world by storm in 2003 grossing $758 million worldwide at the box office. Also seeking higher numbers, churches are turning to QR Codes® in an effort to increase donations and tithing. Do you see the irony in the movie’s star character Robert Langdon being a symbologist and the possible More >
about 1 month ago - 3 comments
Like a dedicated Olympian, we trained, we performed, and we took home two Gold and one Silver awards this March in the Kansas City Direct Marketing Association’s equivalent to the Olympics – The Ambit Awards. (Ambit stands for AMBITious Achievement.) Our fingers are sore from constantly pushing the envelope and tabulating campaign measurement metrics, but More >
about 1 month ago - No comments
**This is a re-post from Mail Print’s early days of blogging. Our readership has grown quite a bit since then, so I wanted to resurrect an early post. Enjoy! Using the recipient’s name is an easy way to make your direct mail and email marketing relevant to the recipient, but I am often asked, “How do I More >
about 1 year ago
A QR Tag (or 2D code, technically different, same process) do a couple of things well:
1. They save typing in a URL to a mobile browser. But, with URL shorteners, is that such a big deal?
2. They can launch an SMS or MMS exchange, so they replace a Keyword and a Short Code. But, in the time it takes to Read a QR scan and resolve it, again, is this such a big deal?
3. They can provide some immediate text-data, longer than an SMS (such as business card info, etc.). But, in the process of replacing paper with digital, you’ve used up your immediacy and visual design/emotional value for an abstract code…so, again is it worth it and so mind blowingly wonderful we all must jump aboard?
Those are the logical arguments against, or considerations for, that any QR campaign should address up front. Is it worth it? Is there a better way?
Now, what and when do QR Tags make sense? When are they faster or more intuitive than using another media or method?
I like to think it’s when there is some mystery and anticipation (which means there is a reward, practical or emotional) waiting at the other end of the QR Tag. That by going through the process of Scanning/Resolving, you are transported to a new experience.
If you make someone go through the effort and time to move from print to mobile, the payoff had better be worth it. If it is, you win. If not, well…
about 1 year ago
Thank you Sam for your valuable additions.
Looking back at the post, I just realized I never addressed the challenges and shortcomings of QR Codes, and there definitely are a few. I’d like to add a few more to your list:
4. Right now, most consumers, even the ones with smartphones, are not familiar with QR Codes. While this definitely adds to the “Mystery,” it also means you have to take up valuable room on your marketing piece explaining what a QR Code is and how they should interact with it.
5. The number of smartphone users — and the default installation of QR Code readers — is rapidly increasing. However, today, the first time a viewer tries to respond using a QR Code, the majority of them must first go through the process of downloading a reader. This can dampen response.
6. A creative response technology, such as QR Codes or PURLs, is not enough to carry a marketing campaign. There has to be a real, compelling reason to use a QR Code instead of a url, sms, or business card.
7. This is a small one, but visually QR Codes can cause challenges for designers. Because QR Codes are relatively unknown, pieces often A: Are focused completely on the QR Code, or B: Seem disconnected from the QR Code, and look like the code was just slapped on the piece.
Looking forward to hearing some additional challenges/benefits of QR Code…
about 1 year ago
What an interesting topic. I have to admit, I had never heard of QR Codes before. Thanks for always being so forward-thinking in regard to direct mail!
about 1 year ago
Thanks for stopping by Karen!
about 1 year ago
Hi David,
I wanted to say thank you very much for posting this article… This will only help to increase awareness of QR Codes.
Full disclosure — I work for a company that provides QR Code software. But, you did ask for how people are using them… Here’s one way:
We are exhibiting at the Graph Expo show in October. One way that we are using QR Codes is to drive people to videos from our brochures. So, if someone doesn’t want to wait around our booth to see a demo, they can grab the brochure, scan the QR Code, and then see a video demonstration of our tools at their convenience.
Thanks again for posting this article. I recently discovered your blog, and I am definitely enjoying it.
Thanks,
Jason
about 1 year ago
Thanks for your example Jason, I noticed you have some other great examples on your site: http://qreateandtrack.com/features/qr-codes-in-action/qr-code-examples-and-ideas/.
Thanks for the disclosure; I didn’t list your company in the post because it appears to be a paid tool, but could you share info on:
1) the benefits and additional features of your system versus some of the free options
2) if you have a free trial, and how that works.
Full Disclosure on my part: Mail Print is not a QR Code provider, but we offer complementary services (database marketing, variable data printing, PURLs, etc).
about 1 year ago
As a sales rep for Mail Print, the QR code enables me to offer yet another value added component to my clients marketing efforts. I’m in discussions now with a casino to create a QR code Treasure Hunt promotion. We’re looking to post QR codes at various retail outlets to drive higher traffic and create buzz throughout the property. We’ll be offering discounted rates and offers at the retail locations. The property is very excited to utilize the technology offered by mobile devices and incorporating this tool in their marketing plan. Good sales !! Stephen
about 1 year ago
I was thinking QR codes could be an easy way for our independent dealerships to track service coupon responders without having a special bar code reader-just using a smart phone. The cashier could scan the QR code on the coupons and the dealership could learn which coupons and price points are working best for them. And since corporate “scrapes” the dealer database, we could get this information as well.
Anybody heard of QR codes being used to track coupon responders?
about 1 year ago
Thanks for the comment Ginny,
QR Codes and other 2-dimensional codes are used for tracking coupon redemption (they’re great because you can pack so much more tracking info into them). However, most companies use a 1-dimensional code for their coupons, which could be a simpler option for you.
With the QR Code option, I imagine that using smart phones for tracking redemption could become problematic for your dealerships though, since it would require additional manual steps to scan the code and pass the data to the dealership’s database. You could consider adjustments to your Point-of-sale (POS) system to read QR Codes and feed the information directly into the databases and apply the coupon value to the purchase. There are some options out there; let me know if want more information.
The other piece to the puzzle is how you help your dealerships add QR codes to the coupons they distribute throughout their local market. I’m assuming you may be using a local marketing management solution like ours to help your locations create and deploy Subaru-approved print ads, direct mail, emails and other marketing pieces; I would recommend integrating a QR code or bar code generator into the system. This would automatically generate the code with all the tracking you need and populate the code on the coupon, without requiring manual intervention by your users at the dealership level.
As always, please feel free to reach out to us (Mail Print) to discuss this in more depth.
about 8 months ago
David…what type of adjustments have to be made to a POS System to read both barcodes that there were designed to do AND QR codes??? Would it be possible for a grocery story that has a POS system that they use to scan all the barcodes of the products customers purchase, can that same system scan and read a QR code with the same ease as a barcode??
I am just wondering if a store would have to do a lot of adjustments for a POS system to read a QR Code just as it reads a barcode. Thanks so much
about 1 year ago
Hello,
we believe that QR codes will make the connection between offline and online worlds easier. That’s why we created our QR code generator with social features – YouScan.me – http://www.youscan.me. You can add all your info like Facebook profile or fan page, twitter, youtube, etc. and connect with others.
Cheers
about 6 months ago
Yep! QR Code is getting popular in recent years,cuz we see it just about everywhere. And it’s indeed easy to use. In fact I often generate QR code free on line to encode a website when printing the page. Save the trouble of typing later! You should try it someday:)
“http://www.onbarcode.com/products/java_barcode/barcodes/qrcode.html”
about 1 month ago
Hello,
I am looking for some recommendations.
We have added a QR code to our newsletter with an additional link to our website. The space is small; however, some people on our team will like to add a blurb about where the users can download QR readers whereas the others feel that smartphone users already know where to get the QR code. I like the idea of adding direction abt getting the QR code reader; however the space in the mail piece is really restricted. I will welcome any suggestion.
Thanks.
about 1 month ago
QR codes are great for linking offline with online marketing. We are happy with increased customers using codes to check out products our client’s services.
However I have yet to find an effective way/platform of linking QR Code coupons or discounts with POS at retails shops. Does anyone have any success in this area?