Are QR Codes for Real? —Sherburne
BACK IN August, I wrote about personalized URLs (PURLs) and provided some examples of campaigns that have used them to blend print and electronic media, and to make print more interactive. As we start the new year, I want to talk a bit about QR codes. Some industry pundits think QR codes will make PURLs obsolete; others are touting the ability to combine the two ideas.
First, you might be wondering what the heck a QR code is. Simply stated, QR codes are high-density barcodes that are readable by cell phones and simple PC cams. Recipients can quickly and easily interact with the QR-enabled documents they receive or see by pointing their camera at the QR symbol.
They are then instantly connected to a QR-encoded Web page without having to remember any information or type in numbers and promotional codes. The Web page could be a sales video, a coupon or a product promotion encoded with the specific recipient's demographic profile. It could even be a PURL.
QR codes are creating a lot of buzz, but they are not new. They were actually invented by Denso Wave Inc. in Tokyo in 1994. The history of barcodes goes back even further—in fact, nearly 60 years. We all see them most commonly as the UPC codes scanned at the supermarket. These are linear, or 1D (one-dimensional) barcodes.
QR codes use two-dimensional barcodes, or 2D barcodes, that can use patterns of squares, dots, hexagons and other geometric patterns within images. Sometimes these are called matrix codes. QR means Quick Response.
Interestingly, Denso invented them for tracking parts in vehicle manufacturing, but now they are used in a much broader context. How broad? A Google search for the term "QR Code generator" resulted in nearly 100,000 results.
I picked the first one, which happened to be http://qrcode.kaywa.com, which offers me the ability to generate QR codes for free. They can be a Web URL, text, a phone number or even an SMS. If you point and click with a QR-enabled cell phone at the resulting code, it will take you right to the site. Don't know if your phone is enabled? Many phones are being shipped with the software these days but, if not, a Google search came up with nearly a million hits—many of them free.
Okay, so the code is not that attractive, but nonetheless, it offers some interesting opportunities for enterprising print and marketing services providers, not the least of which is a new topic of conversation with customers. Try doing your own self-promotional campaign that includes a QR code and see what it gets you in terms of meetings with interested marketers.
One company doing a fair amount of work in this area is QRe8 (pronounced create). They bill themselves as the world's first mobile experience agency…creating multimedia experiences that bridge offline media (that's us!) with the mobile Web.
LinkedIn has a 2D barcode group established called 2D Codes for Global Media that has 632 members as I write this. There is lots of good discussion about how people are using this—dare we call it—new media. In Europe and Asia, the use of QR codes is much more advanced than in the U.S. and Canada.
In fact, a colleague of mine recently spoke to three groups of printers, two in Canada and one in the United States. All were amazed at the technology, hadn't heard about it, and were anxious to learn more. Only one person from the three audiences took the initiative to point and click on the spot, but I am told that my colleague's talk drove a lot of traffic to the small booth that was selling QR software at one of the shows.
Some examples:
The German Yellow Pages are introducing QR codes. Right now, they are only using a single QR code that takes you to their mobile Website, but one could see the value of selling the QR code capability to Yellow Pages advertisers so folks can simply point and click to call the advertiser. Maybe that could breathe new life into paper-based Yellow Pages.
There is also discussion about QR codes saving the newspaper and magazine industries, to be sold as pay-per-click advertising, though I am not sure I would stake my reputation on either.
QR codes are an interesting addition to business cards and there are many examples of that in action around the globe.
QR codes are being used on clothing and even tattoos (hopefully the removable kind!). You can embed your contact information, link it to your Facebook profile, a YouTube video or anything else you can think of. Maybe this is a new kind of speed dating, who knows? There is even a YouTube video teaching you how to make a QR code scarf on a computerized knitting machine with your own personalized QR code.
Global ad firm Ogilvy includes QR codes as one of the 12 Tenets of DigiMarketing and is using them in billboards and signage for such customers as Northwest Airlines.
On the slightly more morbid side, tombstones in Japan are being adorned with QR codes.
More importantly, you can begin using QR codes in your own self-promotion and your clients' campaigns immediately. Do a little digging on the subject.
Join the LinkedIn group (it is open to everyone). Pull your creative group together to do some brainstorming on how you can incorporate QR codes into your business. Go talk to customers—they may be more informed on the subject than you are, or maybe they haven't heard about them yet.
Either way, you can get some interesting discussions going about how to creatively use QR codes in business—which will help yours to grow, as well. PI
—Cary Sherburne
About the Author
Cary Sherburne is a well-known author, journalist and marketing consultant whose practice is focused on marketing communications strategies for the printing and publishing industries. She was recognized as a 2009 Woman of Distinction and was awarded the 2009 Thomas McMillan Award for excellence in journalism. Sherburne has written six books, including "Digital Paths to Profit," published by NAPL; and, most recently, "No-Nonsense Innovation: Practical Strategies for Success," written with Bill Lowe, the Father of the IBM PC. She can be reached at Cary@Sherburne
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