QR codes for marketing are back

They have become a common sight during the pandemic. We’ve scanned them to check into venues, log test results, browse menus, and buy rounds instead of visiting the bar. Yes, it is fair to say that the QR code has returned, and is perhaps more prominent in our daily lives than ever before.

In the last two decades marketers have tried on many occasions to persuade the public to want to use them – so will the QR be sticking around, and can marketers get it right this time?

How do QR codes work?

Let’s briefly begin with some context. QR codes are not new. They were invented in 1994 by a Japanese motoring company to track vehicles and parts through the manufacturing process.

QR codes work in a very similar way to barcodes at the supermarket – they are just scanned differently. Every QR code consists of several black squares and dots which represent specific bits of information that can be instantly be read using a smartphone camera. This information is then translated by the phone into something more easily understood – for example, a link to a website.

The ‘rise’ of the QR Code

When smartphones became commonplace, so too it seemed was the urgency of marketers to draw audiences to their website or digital content without the need to type in a wordy URL. Within a few years, it felt like QR codes had been prominatly positioned over just about all marketing collateral – poised ready to be quickly scanned. Yet, both businesses and consumers struggled to get to grips with how to use them correctly, and as reported by Forbes back in 2012, they also became negatively associated with ‘spammy’ content or cheapened offers.

Despite falling out of favor with marketers, QR codes continued to prove their worth for practical purposes such as product and goods tracking, then more recently, supporting the huge growth in e-ticketing. As a result of the latter, their familiarity with consumers increased once again as they were used to grant access to gigs, log attendance at conferences and for check-in to travel.

A second wind – is the QR code back and here to stay?

Unlike in the past, during the COVID-19 pandemic, large numbers of people learned how to use them quickly and easily – in part due to new formalities such as checking into venues using the NHS app.

This resurgence potentially opens up previous and new exciting opportunities for marketers, with QR codes a useful gateway to some of the key things customers are looking for when they interact with brands, such as experiences and offers.

For some products, whether it be wine or wardrobes, retailers have been using QR codes on shelf labels or display items to negate the need for printed sales information.

During the pandemic, the QR code also proved a hygienic and practical way for customers to access menus, or place an order in pubs and restaurants. This approach allows you to continually update the information without the constant need for reprinting, plus going paperless may help you to boost your environmental credentials too. For marketers, it can also help you to integrate your in-store and online offering.

Opening up AR and entertainment

For app-adverse consumers, the QR code is helping brands to share new and exciting new brand experiences. A survey of U. S. smartphone users found that 78% of consumers would refuse to complete a transaction that they would have “otherwise been interested in” if they were required to download an app to complete it. Yet, when it comes to accessing AR experiences, which are often browser-based (with no app required), a growing percentage are accessed via QR code – sparking a new interdependent relationship between AR and QR codes.

When EE welcomed customers back to their UK stores after the lockdown in early 2021, the company used QR codes to turn shoppers’ heads and transform every storefront. By scanning a QR code, customers could use the mobile browser on their phone to load an AR ‘unboxing’ that revealed a selection of gaming worlds right there in-store. Each world included information about the titles included in the gaming deals it was offering. See for yourself here.

A QR-activated ‘digital scratch card’ which offered in-store customers the chance to win an Xbox (among many other prizes!), also ran as shops reopened.

“A year ago, we wouldn’t have thought about using QR codes.” Nathan Odell, the head of retail marketing communications at EE told The Drum.

Should you be using QR codes?

So in short – whether you are allowing someone to quickly view product information, or opening up an entertaining AR experience for customers, the pandemic has helped make the simple process of scanning a QR code a more straightforward trigger device for marketers.

If you’re curious or once again find yourself testing the use of QR codes on your marketing collateral (for example on adverts, business cards, even promotional items), we would suggest you always link to something worthwhile for your audience or customers.

Using QR codes for practical reasons (such as accessing food menus) is one thing, but if you are using them as part of a marketing campaign or to enhance a customer experience, then you risk disengagement if you don’t get it right. Feel free to get in touch if you would like to talk it over with us.