Marketing QR Codes

There has been significant chatter over the past year about the impact, potential and pit falls of using QR [Quick Response] Codes as a marketing tool. This is one tool set that I have personally seen both work and fail on monumental scale.

With very little effort you can find hundreds of case studies, promotional pieces and informatics about QR Codes. But after having read and reviewed most of these I have seen a definite pattern that has developed and there is much that can be learned from both the successes and failures in their applications.

The first thing that needs to be taken into consideration is that this is a unique type of marketing vehicle unlike any other. It can only be applied through the use of a QR Code reader on a smart phone. This is where most marketers tend to lose their way. By the very nature of the ‘beast’ this is a mobile marketing tool, it is limited in adoption and a very small portion of the market is fully aware of what QR Codes are and how they can be ‘scanned’ or what they are for. In the broad market, they still have a very low value perception.

A bit of background

QR Codes have struggled for recognition and adoption within U.S. consumers since its development. The code was originally developed in 1994 as a two-dimensional bar code by Denso Wave Company for use in tracking automotive parts in manufacturing.

The code held a number of unique properties compared to the traditional bar coding of that era. First, it was not limited to a single position scan, meaning that it could be read from a variety of angles – high speed reading was now an option. It could also carry up to four-times the data as traditional bar codes.

What caught the attention of early adoption marketers was the capability of this code to encode and carry alphanumeric information, you know like web addresses, v-card information, and map locations. In fact anything that could be packed into 4,296 characters [letters and numbers].

How’s that working for you?

Today the global market for mobile marketing and advertising is booming, with QR codes experiences bringing brand messaging to a level of direct consumer interaction and (dare we say) fun and immediacy not experienced before. But what are the best practices that are emerging — and how are they clicking with consumers?

QR Codes seem to be popping up everywhere in advertising and marketing, but there is little evidence that the general public — even in the most likely demographics — is using them. Recently CNN reported about the codes that take users to websites without having to bother with typing in long Web addresses.

The story cites a recent study of how college students view QR codes. The study found that while 81 percent of college students surveyed owned a smartphone and 80 percent said they had seen a QR code, only 21 percent said they had successfully scanned one. About 75 percent said they weren't likely to scan a QR code in the future, either.

In a recent interview by Sheila Shayon, for Brand Channel magazine, SpyderLynk CMO Jane McPherson noted, the challenge is getting consumers to use them, and benefit from the experience: "If everyone throws QR codes on everything without offering consumers value beyond a web connection, will it turn consumers off? Right now there’s still a novelty factor, but marketers are going to have think more carefully about the best times, places and ways to use mobile activation codes.”

In addition, according to an article on Bizjournals.com by Cromwell Schubarth, ComScore      reported this past summer that only 6.2 percent of the total mobile audience scanned QR or bar codes on their mobile phones. Of those most were young, upper-income men.

"Why the discrepancy?" wrote DonAguirre, brand manager at Archrival, which did the original study. "Students simply struggled with the process. Some didn't know a third-party app was needed [to scan the QR code]. Many mistakenly assumed it could be activated with their camera. And others just lost interest, saying the activity took too long."

CNN reported that for many, QR codes "seem like a crude hack that just replaces one mobile hassle with another." It also cites uncertainty about whether the code will truly take a user to a site that would interest them. For some there are also concerns about some code found in the public taking users to phishing sites or exposing their devices to malware.

But the creative innovation never ends – Application Examples

The squares of bar code are showing up in advertisements and promotional materials for businesses in almost every type of print media and unique application.

• One Seattle company even offers codes affixed to gravestones that can be scanned with a smartphone to give more information about the deceased
• One Real Estate company posts virtual home tour codes on the posted for sale sign in the front yard
• A non-profit shop selling donated celebraty clothes, located in London, England used QR Codes on garment hang-tags that directed scanners to brief video spost by the celebrities who had donated the specific piece of clothing being sold

So what should we take from this?
There are a number of lessons that marketing can take from the success and failures of QR Codes to date. This may seem a bit simplistic, however . . .

First: Know your audience.
Does your target audience use the technology and have it in hand? Do they know how to use it or do they need supplemental ‘education’ in order for your promotion to work? Remember this is inherently a mobile experience – adjust accordingly.

Second: Know the value.
It is no longer sufficient to simply provide a static link to a website or only provide “more information”. You need to provide a unique virtual experience in order to fully engage members of your target.

Third: Does the brand message get lost?
Does the medium match your brand message and does the application of the technology enhance your brand experience? Does it fit for you?