Don’t forget QR Codes On Promotional USB Memory Sticks

One of the big technology and marketing trends of the year is the widening use of QR codes. QR codes or to give them their full name; Quick Response codes are two dimensional bar codes and they were originally developed by Toyota in Japan to help them keep track of parts and the status of vehicles during the manufacturing process.

Although they work in a similar way to conventional bar codes they contain significantly more information and open up all sorts of interesting marketing and communication opportunities.

Today if you’ve got an iPhone or Android smart phone you can download a QR reader from the relevant App store and start scanning QR codes. Because of this there are now literally hundreds of millions of potential QR scanners in the hands of consumers around the world.

Never ones to be slow to spot an opportunity the advertising and marketing community have been quick to exploit the potential of QR codes in all manner of interesting ways. Here are just a few examples of how QR codes are now being used:

• Billboard adverts are now commonly displaying QR codes – simply take photo of one of these with your QR scanner (Smart phone or iPhone) and the code will typically take you to a web page where you can get more information on the product, enter competitions, buy tickets etc.
• Magazine and newspaper adverts and articles now frequently display QR codes to enable to reader to quickly “jump” to a website or webpage that will display lots more information on the product, feature or article.
• Hot link to movie trailers from QR codes on posters, theatre stands and adverts in the back of taxis, on the bus and on the tube.
• Business Cards – don’t just print your name, address and web site URL on your business cards – print a QR code and allow your customers to jump directly to your personal profile, your Linked in page etc.
• Food packaging – they’re a great way of giving consumers more information about the food they’re buying, the nutritional values of the item, it’s origin and how to cook it – simply scan the QR code and open up significantly more information than could realistically be put on the box or carton.
• Exclusive offers and promos are increasingly being linked to the use of QR codes – to enter a prize draw you must first scan the code – this in turn takes you to a landing page where you get access to the exclusive deals on offer.

For advertisers the real beauty of QR codes is that they are free to generate, they’re easy to add to current advertising and they generate real traffic and interest.

We’re already seeing some of our more innovative customer print QR codes on their promotional USB memory sticks and it’s a trend we expect to grow rapidly over the next year or so.

If you are new to QR codes try ‘scanning’ the QR code to the left and see where it takes you…

Happy scanning!