Can visual QR codes help print cross over into the digital world? Nevo Alva thinks so. He’s co-founder and CEO of Visualead, which aims to aid engagement between the offline consumer and the online brand via this latest QR development.
When the barcode, developed in 1952, was first used as a solution to standardise grocery shopping, label military supplies, and track packages and shipments, it was considered sophisticated technology. But it quite quickly came to be perceived as incredibly mundane and out-dated. Enter the QR code.
Invented by the Denso Corporation in 1994 as an enhanced version of the average barcode, the QR code was developed as an efficient solution to track Japanese vehicle manufacturing processes. Today the average QR codeholds roughly 350 times the amount of information that can be stored on a traditional barcode, making them what should be a highly attractive option for marketers and advertisers. But as with barcodes, there’s an assumption that their time is pretty much up. That might be an assumption worth challenging.
Though many naysayers proclaimed them dead relatively soon after their invention, QR codes have seen a resurgence in popularity. Advertisers and marketers have been capitalising on QR codes as a way to bridge the gap between print and/or online advertising and mobile users.
As the world becomes increasingly more mobile, connecting the physical world to the digital has become a necessity and QR codes seamlessly connect these two realms, facilitating this global transition, and creating endless opportunities.
Whether considered clunky and ugly or innovative and fresh, QR codes undoubtedly increase consumer engage
ment, and more small businesses and large retailers are taking note. Creative marketing campaigns have increasingly been adopting QR codes as an innovative way to engage customers and increase sales. While the applications are endless, there are a few key ways marketers have been capitalising upon this technology.
- Contests: entering a giveaway or contest can be tedious and time-consuming for participants, but QR codes substantially simplify the process. Instead of consumers opting out due to lengthy URLs or difficult forms, with QR codes it’s as simple as a scan.
- Additional Information: when space is limited, as on a business card or product advertisement, crucial information often falls by the wayside. QR codes give you the opportunity to impart important information when you may not have the space or time to do so.
- Videos: Print media is limited to images and text, but QR codes straddle the print and digital worlds. Marketers can use QR codes to incorporate video to ramp up a marketing campaign when it would be otherwise impossible.
- Coupons: People love saving money, but cutting out coupons can be a drag. Businesses and retailers can establish and maintain customer loyalty by rewarding those who scan with discount coupons and special offers.
Just as the simplistic barcode gave way to the QR code, QR codes have now evolved one step further with ‘visual QR codes’.
QR codes have been hurt by the notion they are ugly and unappealing. Visual QR codes remedy this problem by converting any image or graphic into fully functioning, aesthetically appealing codes that are proving to enhance consumer engagement.
Technology now allows the creation of QR codes that can be seamlessly incorporated within an advertiser’s artwork
without losing a single byte of the code’s operational qualities and scan-ability. Consumers are able to connect and interact with brands and images on a more emotional level, increasing the likelihood that they’ll scan an item with a visual QR code compared to traditional, black-and-white QR code.
Visual QR codes are helping enhance brand recognition, boost sales, and reach target audiences, while moving consumers from the offline to online world. And savvy marketers are taking notice. So should you? This latest development could prove a real boost to the continued relevance of the QR codes and the marketing solutions you provide your customers. So is it a development worth checking out to help you cash in?