If you haven’t heard, there is a new marketing phenomenon and it looks something like this:
Known as a QR code, short for Quick Response, the image seen above is a barcode that can be read by mobile devices. The codes can store a variety of information such as phone numbers and URLs. When scanned, this image will link you to the URL for the Web Ascender website.
Before your phone will be compatible with QR codes, you may need to download a barcode scanner application, but after doing so, simply hold the camera on your mobile device over the image to decode it.
You can download ‘Bakodo’ free on the iPhone and ‘Barcode Scanner’ by ZXing Team for Android.
Created in Japan in 1994, QR codes were originally used for vehicle manufacturing as a way to track parts. While today they are still used commercially as tracking devices, they have also taken on a new application.
In the marketing world, the idea of a QR code is to the ease the divide between traditional and new media. The draw of the codes is that they more or less act as real life hyperlinks.
Print advertisements that contain QR codes may store product details, coupons, or a URL for an online store while business cards with the codes might contain contact information allowing clients to scan a code to add you to their address book.
Google’s “Favorite Places” campaign puts QR codes that link to their listings in the windows of local businesses, and some fast food restaurants use QR codes on their packaging with nutrition information.
The possibilities with QR codes are endless, and not only are their benefits seen in the convenience they provide consumers, but also in their ability to make marketing more efficient and effective. Using QR codes allows advertisers to measure response rates fairly accurately, ultimately improving return on investment calculations.
Another marketing advantage that QR codes may have in the future relates to search engines. Currently, if you have a QR code on your website, Google will index it as an image, but the time is sure to come when Google will recognize the image as a QR code and index its content as well.
The benefits of integrating QR codes into your marketing campaign are evident, so if this leaves you wondering how to get started, it’s probably easier than you think. There are a number of free QR code generators available online as well as more specialized tools that will allow you to track the activity of your codes.
The rapid increase in popularity of QR codes over the past decade shows no sign of slowing down, so don’t wait to take advantage of such an innovative technology. It’s here to stay.