QR Codes: When Do They Work?

For the past few weeks, I’ve been scratching my head about how to solve a problem. It’s a marketing problem – and it’s an age-old one. It’s the classic “How do I get people to engage with my printed marketing materials?”

Now I know some of you are falling back into your chairs and laughing at me. Print doesn’t work, Asia. Everyone knows it’s dead. (Stop trying to make it happen. It’s not going to happen.)

I tend to agree, but I do know that printed materials have its uses. It does have a niche. The challenges that organizations face is finding the niche and then finding out how to add a metric to it to measure its effectiveness. That’s where we come to QR codes: both the bane of my existence, and one of the few glimmers of hope for brands and myself.

It’s easy to create a link with special campaign queries in it to track how people are accessing your digital properties. For example, you can track exactly how many people are scanning by using Google Analytics and the URL Builder. The problem is – how to get people to scan?

QR Codes Are Working!

QR codes never quite took off here in the U.S. The same can’t be said about Japan, however, where cell phones are manufactured with built-in NFC capabilities. Here in the U.S., QR codes are a hassle. If you’ve ever had to scan one, you know what I mean. In addition to having to find and download a QR code scanner application, it requires a clumsy trust between the brand, the 2D material, and the person trying to scan the QR code. The brand has to trust that the printed material will attract people and that the people will actually scan. The people must trust the brand that this will be worth their time and they have to trust that the printed QR code will actually work.

The same is true for shortened URLs. You have to trust that people will remember to go to “bit.ly/cmox2014″ and actually type it in a mobile browser.

Already, we see where things could easily fall apart. But there is data that suggests that QR code usage is actually increasing. According to MarketingCharts.com, “ScanLife said it processed 18 million scans via its ScanBuy application in Q1 2013. That’s up from 13 million scans in Q1 2012, which in itself was up 157% over Q1 2011.” ScanLife, apparently, has seen some upticks in usage. It did appear to slow down, but no matter what, it still gained.

QR Codes Are Definitely Not Working!

Aaron Strout, a blogger for Marketing Land, was quite skeptical about these stats. He argues, “…I know that there is research that shows that an increasing number of people are ‘scanning a QR code,’ but what I haven’t been able to find are statistics that show repeat usage.” And he has a point. Why aren’t there stats about repeat usage? It’s one thing to say “People used the QR code!”, but how do we know they didn’t throw their phone in frustration or immediately give up after scanning once?

Aaron also suggested some alternatives to the QR Codes:

So, as a marketer, what’s the alternative to QR codes? While no clear leader has emerged, here are a few technologies — some new, some existing — that can help provide a richer, or at least simpler, experience as we work to connect the offline world to the online:

• SMS short codes — every mobile phone has functionality that allows users to text. Short codes are an easy way to punch in five numbers and receive back information (usually a link) that can connect one to an online experience. This isn’t a super sexy solution, but sometimes, the simplest answer is the best answer.
• Augmented reality apps — these new technologies do require the download of a mobile app, but the payoff is immediate and allows for a much richer experience. Creating the experience requires more effort on the part of a company/marketer; but in the end, the result should be more engagement and adoption by the end user.
• Mobile apps, like Weight Watchers, that allow mobile interaction with existing UPC bar codes — this gets back to the “sometimes simpler is better” principle, and nearly every package/label in the world has a UPC bar code on it. Using that as the catalyst for an online interaction versus creating a new code that takes up additional space at least lowers the barrier to entry on the part of the marketer.
• Bluetooth and NFC (nearfield communication) — while these technologies are still in the nascent stages when it comes to communication between ads/products and mobile phones, they will become more prevalent over time and will require minimal effort on the part of the end user.

QR Codes Worked for These Guys:

But even for marketers who don’t mind the look or idea of QR codes, surely there’s a recipe for success, right? Uriel Peled from MarketingProfs.com published an article about when to use a QR code (and when to never even think about it). We’ll let you take a look at the absolute fails, but the success stories were cool:

10 Great Ways to Correctly Use QR Codes

1. Lifestyle companies such as Macy’s, JC Penny, and Tesco are some of the most notable success in QR codes marketing. These companies find inventive ways of incorporating QRs into their marketing messages to entice customers to scan and enjoy the benefits.Tesco’s for example, became the second biggest retail grocery chain in South Korea (changed its name to Home Plus)—not by expanding the number of stores, but by including codes on posters in subway stations, train stations, and sidewalks, allowing people to order groceries, on the spot.
2. Restaurants are cashing in on QR codes too—just ask The Melt, famous for its grilled cheese sandwiches. Customers can easily scan QRs that will then automatically get their food on the grill while they are being seated.
3. Universally popular names such as Taco Bell and Mountain Dew used QR code campaigns on their drink cups, with many free music downloads available to those who scanned them. In total, some 200,000 downloads resulted from this successful campaign.
4. THQ Homefront is a videogame that uses QR codes throughout the game for players to unlock exclusive, never-before-seen content. Within two days, some 30,000 codes were scanned.
5. Leonardo DiCaprio’s film Inception also made use of QR codes to ramp up the sense of mystery and hype around the movie. Flyers, T-shirts, and posters promoting Inception contained codes that led to a fake website named What Is Dream Share?
6. Google’s Favorite Places marketing campaign earmarked 100,000 places to visit in the USA. Those top businesses each got a window decal with their QR code on it. Passers-by could then scan the code for a wealth of information on the business.
7. The Florida State Law Library uses QR codes in its books to help link them to other electronic resources.
8. A restaurant in Washington DC named Policy uses QR codes in its window, by the menu box. Patrons and passers-by can scan the QR codes, taking them to the online menu or allowing them to make reservations.
9. vCard electronic business cards are great way to use QR codes to add rich multimedia content to traditional business cards.
10. Scandinavian Airlines put together one of the most exciting promotions ever; the ad campaign required two smartphones (side-by-side) to scan the QR code to receive the deal. This campaign boosted revenue and got more people to fly together.

Read more: http://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2014/24499/proper-and-improper-use-of-qr-codes-10-great-examples-of-each#ixzz2uRccKizs

So When Do They Work?

After reading about each of these success stories, QR codes really, truly work when these things are present:

1. There must be added value so great, that the user actually thinks about the opportunity cost of not scanning the code.
2. The placement of the QR code must be perfect. There has to be enough foot traffic, but can’t be in an annoying place where people won’t want to stop.
3. If placement is an issue, the QR code must be transportable, i.e. placing the QR code on a Taco Bell cup that the user can take with them.

In conclusion, add the greatest value for scanning, and you will reap the rewards. If the motive for scanning is simply to visit a website, don’t expect a lot of engagement.

 

What do you think? Are they dead? Are they useful? When have you seen success with QR codes?