My first job out of college was working for a company called ADP (no, not the security company). ADP produces paychecks for millions of Americans every day so even if you haven’t heard of them, you love what they do!
One of the most vivid memories I have is of a conversation I had with an older banker at a networking event. He presented me with his business card which contained a weird series of letters and symbols that looked like Greek to me. He told me they were something called an “email address”. He predicted that “someday everyone will have an email address and it will be printed on their business cards.” At the time it seemed like a foreign concept.
I recall this story when I think of QR codes. QR Codes are square barcode-looking stamps placed on advertisements or products which may be read by a free QR code app available on most smartphones. QR codes are starting to pop up everywhere in the U.S. in places like print ads, billboards and yes, even business cards. Google has started to create QR codes for businesses that link directly to their Google Places listing. QR codes are used regularly in places like Japan and are quickly becoming commonplace in the U.S., with a 1200% increase in the number of QR codes scanned at the end of 2010. Once you become aware of QR Codes, you don’t have to go far to find one.
The “QR” in “QR Code” stands for “Quick Response”. They were first developed by a subsidiary of Toyota called Denso-Wave as a quick way to decode content via a scanner. QR codes have an advantage over the traditional UPC codes we are all familiar with because they store much more information which allows them to initiate actions. When scanned with your mobile device, these codes instantly connect you with online content such as a YouTube video, online photos or mobile optimized web site. They can even transfer your contact information directly to someone else’s device like a digital business card.
With the proliferation of mobile smartphones, every handheld device can act like a scanner. Smartphones are predicted to represent 50% of all phones sold in the U.S. and QR code applications are becoming standard features on most new smartphones. It won’t be long before almost every “phone” in America is “smart” with the capability to scan QR Codes. As a result, consumers are now able to obtain a wealth of information and content anywhere, at any time.
At Inflexion Interactive, we are working to help our clients stay ahead of the curve by thinking of ways to leverage QR codes in customer acquisition and retention efforts. For example, we are advising clients to include QR codes on print ads, displays, billboards and even product packaging. These codes are used to provide additional product information such as instructive videos, special offers and encourage connecting via Facebook, Twitter, SMS or email. Codes can even be used to facilitate the purchase of an item right from your mobile device. Other innovative uses of codes include incorporating them inside product packaging for post-sale customer retention and cross-sell/upsell initiatives. These codes may offer instructions on how to assemble the product, contact customer service or access online help. The codes may be used to facilitate registration for warranties, obtain product reviews or share information via social networks. The opportunities are endless.
No marketing effort is complete without the proper tracking of results. The beauty of QR codes is that there is a wealth of analytics data available to quantify the ROI of these marketing efforts. We are able to track every time a QR code is scanned and control where the QR code goes much like the way we control paid search engine ads and the landing pages they re-direct to. This allows us to optimize the experience for the consumer and obtain the highest ROI for our clients by testing various landing pages.
To be clear, I don’t think QR codes are going to revolutionize the way people communicate like email did, but I do believe they are a great tool in the marketer’s toolkit to help meet customer needs and increase sales. Who knows…in the very near future you too might have a QR code on your business card…right next to your email address.
by Scott Delea, Managing Partner, Inflexion Interactive
