Mobile marketing via a Quick Response Code (QR Code) may have had a slow start in the US, but in the last two years they’ve gone gangbusters. A recent study by comScore reported that, in June alone, 14 million mobile device users in the U.S. scanned a QR code. Packaging came in as the second highest scanned medium, while newspapers and magazines were first. There is no doubt that these funny looking little codes are an incredible marketing tool.
Curious about how to make phone lovers love your brand? If Lady Gaga and Starbucks can team up for a QR Code scavenger hunt, well then…we could say the opportunities for you are boundless! A QR code on your package or POS display is a visual hyper-link that engages your customer and instantly directs them wherever you want.
The key to success here is content. Make it worthwhile for the consumer–if you want to build brand loyalty, drive them to a loyalty program or discounts that will promote repeat purchase. If you want to show transparency, drive them to information that shows where your ingredients are sourced or farmed, or information that shows how your company is meeting sustainability goals. If you want the consumer to see how fresh your produce is, let them track when and where it was harvested and how many days it took to arrive at the store.
In addition to its promotional and brand-building aspects, QR Code technology can provide valuable analytics and tracking offline sources, along with capturing sales leads.
You can easily generate a free QR code online or use one of the many other vendors that provide alternatives to the typical QR code–YottaMark provides a more complex tracking system, and SpyderLynk, provides a code called a SnapTag that can utilize your brand logo as the code centerpiece, and can also be scanned with a simple camera phone.
Use a QR code to make that special consumer connection, and let the brand-lovin’ begin!