Have you seen an outburst of square barcodes in magazines, advertisements, on billboards or even web pages recently?   QR codes were predicted to take off this year and according to JumpScan from July of 2010 QR Scans have increased by 1200%.

QR Code Defined

A QR Code is a two-dimensional code that is readable by dedicated QR barcode readers and camera phones.  QR is short for Quick Response.  They are used to take information from transitory media and put it into your cell phone.  Once you have scanned the code, it may give you details about a business, take you to a website, play a video, or give you a coupon to use at a local outlet.

Use of QR Codes

The most obvious use of QR codes is to drive real-world customers to your company’s web presence.  Remember – sending users to your company’s webpage is not always the best practice to drive business.  A better tactic would be to drive them to a specific destination.  Examples could include a mobile-friendly giveaway form that collects email addresses for future marketing messages,  your social media profiles asking them to “like” you for real time information, or an engaging webpage with a call to action.

Generating a QR Code

There are several websites that you can visit to generate QR codes including Google url shortener.  Creating a QR code is straightforward.  You simply type or paste a URL into the text box and click the shorten button.  To see the code click details,  you can then save the code and utilize it on your website or in print marketing efforts.  

Utilizing QR codes is about delivering value in content.  The mobile environment is constantly changing with unlimited possibilities.  Create and deliver content that makes sense to your users, and be creative.  To learn more about QR Codes contact us to see what we can do for you.