For those unfamiliar with QR codes, they are a type of a barcode which users can scan with their smart phone, to access digital content. They are often added to marketing material such as magazine adverts or billboards, but they can also be found on clothing and product packaging.
The reason for their use may not be immediately obvious; however they have many commercial benefits. In the case of promotional products, adding a QR code means that customers can scan a product and be taken directly to your website or special offer page. There is no need to manually enter the URL since the data is stored in the QR code. So no more typos! Often, curiosity and spur of the moment decisions are the natural result of seeing these codes, and can increase website traffic vastly.
A QR code is inexpensive to create, and adding it to a promotional item often costs no more than any other branding. For such a small outlay in expenditure, the results can be overwhelming. When placed on the right promotional product, QR codes can be of value for both B2B and B2C. The only constraints are those of the product itself. The print area needs to be flat and large enough to allow a readable code to be printed. Even allowing for this, there are hundreds of suitable products – mugs, keyrings, rulers, calculators – to name but a few.
The other advantage to using QR codes within your advertising is the ease with which they can be tracked. It is possible to tailor the codes on promotional items to trace the origin of visitors to a website, which is especially useful for determining ROI. For example, if you distribute promotional products via tradefairs, conferences and direct mail, you can add a code that captures the channel distribution. Without this, you would need to add unsightly URL’s to the product (such as yourdomain.com/tradefair) to identify the source. Often, users won’t bother typing the full URL, so a QR code offers an extra convenient way to accurately capture tracking information.
Beyond a facility to take users to your website, QR codes can be used to direct customers to a Facebook or Twitter page, a discount coupon, or a competition. By allowing customers to interact using these links, your brand is reinforced – helping to put your business front of mind! Indeed, if your advertising aims are to engage with your audience way in an innovative way, consider QR codes as part of your next campaign.