Fun with QR Codes

Are you using QR Codes in your communications? If you know what a QR code is, you can jump to the next section now. QR or Quick Reference codes you see as strange checkerboard designs on brochures, in the newspaper and on political signs have actually been around since the 80's and were developed by Toyota as a method of parts and product identification for manufacturing. With the advent of smartphones with cameras, and free QR reader apps - they've become the latest cool marketing tool.

Fun with QR codes

This year a number of our clients have had some fun with QR codes in their marketing communication. See if any of these tactics might work for you.

An outfitter in Jackson Hole put QR codes on their rack brochures in town. Scanning the code sent users to a special web page that is formatted to look like a coupon. The user can click a button on their phone to make a reservation online, applying the discount. Or they can come into the outfitter's shop and just show their "coupon". Since there's no other explanation on the brochure itself - the outfitter can change the offer daily depending on how badly they need business - allowing them to outprice their competition (there are many choices in Jackson), but only when necessary. Since the start of the season, this page - only accessible via the QR reader - has been viewed 265 times, with a few months to go.

A hip little restaurant in a beach hotel promotes their happy hour menu throughout the surrounding town by showing QR code art that has been stylized, but still looks enough like the familiar code so that viewers know what to do (more on that later). Scanning their codes revealed an ever-changing menu and topical messages that related to news and events that day or week - with of course specials good for that day. Needless to say that the restaurant has gained a much larger share of day-visitors, customers that would have otherwise overlooked their ads or offers.

Keepin' it cool.

For the time being I think it pays to keep your use of QR codes "cool" by simply incorporating them into your overall message. They can be tagged on the bottom of a brochure, modified into a design (Macy's did a great job making their star logo a QR pattern this past spring), or even added on as a sticker. But for now, what makes it cool is the lack of explanation.

If you feel compelled to add a line on how to download a QR reader or instructions on how to read the code, you not only have killed the cool-factor, but you're likely to generate an eye-roll from those smartphone users (your target audience here) that already get it. Trust me, eye rolls from this group is not a good brand builder - assuming they're your audience. In the cases above; the outfitter and the beach restaurant the audiences couldn't be more perfect for QR messaging.

Extend the message.
Learn from my experience in the nursery at Home Depot. Their plant supplier affixes tags to the plants they sell. The tags have boilerplate planting instructions (like; dig a hole or remove plastic container) and then they show a QR code. Cool! Surely there is information about this plant that I'm not getting on this little tag. So you whip out the iPhone and scan the tag. Guess what; dig a hole, remove plastic container. That's it! No plant name in Latin. No care instructions or details about whether this plant can survive Arizona's brutal summer or how much sunlight it needs to grow. Just the same information that was on the little tag. Seriously? The plant company can't even give me a link to the Wikipedia page for this little bit of foliage I'm about to purchase?

The recommendation here is obvious; if you're going to take the time to create the QR code and add it to your message - make sure you're providing a value to the person that takes the time to interact with it. Consider it their gift to you as a potential customer. Make sure you've earned their time by providing something valuable.

Make sure it works.

The other day I was at the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport waiting for luggage. In the center of the big spinning bag crusher was a beautiful lighted sign with an ad for a travel company. Lovely message. A hella-long domain of a website. And a cute little QR code incorporated right into the bottom corner of the graphics. Now not that I felt all that compelled to scan this code - not much of a call to action or promise of value in exchange for digging through my pocket for the phone. But I'd have had to crawl over the carousel to get close enough to actually focus the scanner on this ad. Trust me, I wasn't that motivated and airport security looked less tired than I did at that point.

So just like we learned in the ad agency days when you tested the phone number before you printed a million brochures or placed that Times ad, make sure you test the QR code in the environment where it is displayed. Glass front display cases reflect lights and may not let you get close enough to scan the graphic (Hard Rock in Vegas take heed). QR on billboards on the freeway may work in theory, but you've got to ask yourself; are you trying to hard? Same goes for political signs - this is not really the place for cool messaging. Stick with a donkey or elephant and find a short domain.

Now it's your turn. Let's here some ideas (good or bad) on QR marketing. Scott.