QR Codes Gone Too Far?

QR Codes, or quick response codes are a type of 2D bar code used by smart phones to scan and pull up a coded web address. In recent months, perhaps QR codes have gone too far…  Let’s crack the QR code.

These special bar codes can be scanned by any smart phone with a camera, internet access and a QR code reader (most are free).  They’re used by marketers and advertisers as a way of bridging the gap between the online desktop or print worlds and the small-screen mobile world.

QC code awareness still hovers around the 52% mark and adoption is slow and skewed toward Apple’s iOS environment. Digital analyst, comScore, reports a measly 6 percent of mobile subscribers currently use QR code technology. That 6 percent tends to be male, white and wealthy.

“That’s partly why there hasn’t been a massive uptake, although that’s changing as the smartphone market starts to expand,” says Oliver Williams, founder of Oliver Digital in an interview with NPR.

Cracking the Code on the Right & Wrong Way to Use QR Codes

I love that this technology is being leveraged by big Brands like Starbucks and Audi to offer customers new and faster ways to interact with their brands.  I also love that it’s not only being used by the big guys, but also by small brands like that little coffee shop on the corner.  I must admit, even JDM hopped on the bandwagon when we installed a QR codes app on our Shameless News blog sidebar a few months ago.

So lots of love, but QR codes are still just a toy in the marketer’s toolkit.  We’re all still trying to figure out QR code best practices–and it has a lot less to do with what the code looks like then what the code is for and where it’s placed.

For example, despite numerous erroneous attempts, QR codes don’t work well on anything that’s not a flat, stable surface relatively close to where the scanner is standing.  So T-shirts with QR codes don’t work well and QR codes on moving cars are also not the best idea.

So let’s put this new toy back where it belongs–as a tool for bridging the gap between print/offline and mobile/online.  Please don’t try putting QR codes on jet planes, billboards or tattooing them on yourself!  That’s just QR too far (#QR2Far).