QR Codes 101

<a href="http://bit.ly/lWdDv2.qrcode" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://bit.ly/lWdDv2.qrcode" height="200" width="200" /></a><i>The following is a guest post from Nick Jerome.</i><br /> <br /> QR codes, a.k.a. <b>Q</b>uick <b>R</b>esponse codes, are a useful way to encourage individuals to interact with a product or service. They can be used for a variety of engagement tactics including driving consumers to an ecommerce landing page, providing a coupon or giving in-depth product information. <br /> <br /> <a href="http://mghus.com/">Marketing firm MGH</a> conducted very helpful <a href="http://www.emarketer.com/Report.aspx?code=emarketer_2000783">QR code user research</a> in February 2011:<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qmhWjng-q9s/Tc2NuTN5WWI/AAAAAAAACLs/HqlMv-bhDME/s1600/QRCodes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qmhWjng-q9s/Tc2NuTN5WWI/AAAAAAAACLs/HqlMv-bhDME/s400/QRCodes.jpg" height="400" width="345" /></a></div> <br /> <br /> As you can see, getting a coupon or accessing additional information are the two main uses for QR codes. The study also showed one-third of all smartphone users have scanned a QR code and two-thirds have seen one. Users who were aware of QR codes tended to be more educated and affluent and the largest majority of users were ages 35-54. As QR codes become more common, awareness is certain to grow in most demographics. <br /> <br /> Before employing a QR code in any campaign, make sure you have covered all the basics:<br /> <br /> <ul> <li>Not all users already have a code reader downloaded on their phone. Any time you place a QR code, provide a website URL like www.FSQR.org so they can download a reader to scan the code.</li> <li>This may seem obvious, but many companies have gotten it wrong: make sure the QR code goes to a site designed specifically for mobile.</li> <li>Think through the placement of the code in the real world. Putting a QR code anywhere with bad cell reception such as a subway makes it useless.</li> <li>As with any marketing initiative, measurement is key. Follow the success of a QR code with a trackable URL, which will provide stats on the number of QR code scans per hour as well as the devices used.</li> </ul> <br /> <i>About the Author</i><br /> Nick Jerome is a marketing services manager at <a href="http://www.fastsigns.com/">FASTSIGNS®</a>, a visual communications services provider with more than 550 locations around the world.<br /> --

QR Codes 101

The following is a guest post from Nick Jerome. QR codes, a.k.a. Q uick R esponse codes, are a useful way to encourage individuals to inte...

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