QR Codes – Scanning the Globe
With roughly one third of American cell phone users now toting smartphones in their palms, pockets, and purses, your marketing content is accessible to them everywhere they go, any time of day. It seems like an advantage worth exploiting, but how? How can your message make it through all the filters, all the applications, all the text messages, and reach today’s tech-savvy consumer? One way that is sure to gain momentum and is considered trendy is the QR Code.
Short for “Quick Response Code,” it is a small, two-dimensional barcode that prompts the user’s mobile device to display whatever text or URL has been programmed into it. It began in Japan as a way to track auto parts for vehicle manufacturing; now the use is broadening.
Think of it like a UPC tag that can be placed anywhere in the world. Just like cashiers at the grocery store scan your items for price and inventory tracking, scanned QR Codes immediately display the desired information, and the interaction is documented for tracking purposes.
Any camera phone equipped with a barcode scanning application can utilize QR Codes. Most smartphones are equipped with barcode scanning capability right out of the box. With the technology in place to literally scan the world with a cell phone, the possibilities are plentiful.
Mailing out flyers? Print a QR code on them and direct prospects straight to your website. Paying for advertising at a bus stop? Slap a QR Code on your ad and catapult the consumer straight to your marketing content while they wait for their ride.
Because of their small size and simple nature, QR Codes can be placed almost anywhere: business cards, emails, billboards, posters, menus, etc. Already, QR Codes are being printed on merchandise such as t-shirts, hats, and travel mugs – creating a society of mobile marketers in the truest sense of the term.
As for your business, QR Codes can bridge the gap between consumers’ smartphones and your marketing message. The simplicity of the QR Code is perhaps its most appealing feature: point a mobile device at the code, scan the image and you are immediately brought to the desired content.
When you verify your business listing on Google Places, they supply you with a QR Code that directs users to your online listing.
Another perk is the ease with which QR Codes can be tracked. As soon as someone scans your QR Code and zips to your content, it is logged for your monitoring purposes. Any marketing campaign must be tracked to determine whether it is worth continuing or repeating; the QR Code makes that easy to do.
As smartphones become less of a status symbol and more of a standard, comprehensive marketing strategies will undoubtedly include QR Codes to utilize the advanced technology. Don’t get left behind; contact Orthopreneur Internet Marketing Solutions for a free consultation to find out how we can help you stand out from the crowd with your internet marketing efforts.
Do you have a creative idea on how to use QR Code? Leave a comment below.