By Lisa Cork (Fresh Produce Marketing Ltd)
QR-codes: mistakes to be avoided
It is no wonder QR codes are popping up everywhere when you consider their benefits. First, they are basically free to generate and use. You simply create a code from one of the thousands of sites that now offers QR code creation and you put it anywhere you want to create a direct interface with your consumer. Second, you control where the scanned QR code link takes your consumer, so you can direct what you want your customer to see.
However, a QR code’s benefits are also its biggest enemy. The problem with free stuff, like being able to generate a code for free, is anyone can do it. This means the discipline that normally comes with ensuring a paid marketing activity generates value above its cost, basically goes out the window.
The result is the broader consumer marketing space is now saturated with QR codes. While 5% of the codes I have seen in the last six months are executed well, the reality is 95% are executed poorly. The consequence of bad codes is we run the risk of consumers not using them because they don’t trust them to deliver a good experience.
So what are the most common QR code mistakes? Here the top three list of Lisa Cork (Fresh Produce Marketing Ltd) based on her experience with QR codes over the past twelve months.
1. QR Codes That Can’t Be Scanned by Multiple Smart Phones
"I was at the PMA-USA in October and QR codes were big news. Most major produce companies had launched a QR code on their packaging. However, I could not scan about 75% of them. The reason why? As some explained to me, American QR codes were initially generated for Blackberry phones as they have high consumer penetration in the USA. As a result, I had trouble scanning most codes with my I-Phone. While this challenge will no doubt diminish over time, always check your codes scannability using a range of phones to make sure it is compatible" Lisa says.
2. Sending Users To Non-Mobile Enabled Web Pages
If you are going to use a QR code, then you must have a mobile enabled website/landing page where the people who scan can actually use their phone to navigate the page where you have sent them. If you don’t have a mobile enabled site, then don’t use a QR code until you do. It only leads to frustration.
3. Employ Marketing 101 – Think About Your User and the Experience They Want To Have
Marketing 101 teaches you to think about your target market and understand their needs in order for your marketing to have an impact. Using a QR code is no different.
Make sure you think about who owns smart phones and which demographic segments are engaging with smart phone technology. Then ask yourself, “What does this audience want/need to know about my product?” Someone who is a twenty-something will likely have different information/engagement needs than a fifty-something. Who is your code targeting?
Make sure you deliver on your QR code promise. If your QR code promo copy says “Scan this code for great recipes,” then don’t take them to your home page! You promised recipes, ensure the link takes them direct to recipes. This is one of the biggest frustrations from users and guarantees to put them off QR codes for life. Deliver on what you promise.
Finally, realise that QR codes will, like websites did, go through several incarnations. Just because you’ve put a QR code on your packaging doesn’t mean you can stop there. Just like Marketing 101 teaches, now you’ve got to pay attention to the results. Track your stats. Who is visiting? Where from? How long are they staying? Are they doing what you wanted? If not, then refine the campaign. Also keep yourself informed regarding how smart phone scanning technology is changing. There is already technology on the horizon that can connect information to existing databars, making it ideal for fresh produce where space can be limited.
"For the next two to three weeks, take pictures of QR codes you encounter in your daily life. They don’t have to be fresh produce related. Take a picture of the code in use (e.g. the magazine ad, billboard, on-pack, etc), email it to me ([email protected]) and let me know if you thought it was effective or not. In a future column, I will pick the best and worse codes and review their success."