QR Codes in Marketing

The combination of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Apple iOS 11 update, which enabled smartphones to scan QR codes, has accelerated the widespread  adoption of QR codes. QR codes are used for various purposes, from sharing content to facilitating contactless payments, and, most importantly, marketing to potential customers.

As a strategic marketing tool, QR codes can help create effective campaigns that capture attention and prompt customers to act. They provide consumers with the right information at the right time, increasing brand awareness, driving user engagement, and generating more leads. QR codes also offer valuable data to better understand consumer behavior and refine marketing strategies.

Why use qr codes in your marketing strategy?

QR codes make your marketing efforts more effective and efficient by streamlining interactions, enhancing user experience, and providing valuable insights through tracking and analytics. They are also cost-effective to generate, offering a budget-friendly way to boost your marketing strategy.

Here are 3 benefits of using QR codes as a marketing tool: 

1. Build brand awareness

QR codes provide a direct and interactive touchpoint between a brand and its audience. 

For example, QR codes can link directly to a business’s social media pages or website, encouraging engagement with your brand’s content and increasing awareness of your offerings. 

2. Generate relevant leads 

QR codes can simplify generating and following up on leads in a streamlined and user-friendly manner. For example, QR codes can link directly to sign-up forms, contact forms, and information requests, allowing businesses to capture information quickly and efficiently. This creates a seamless interaction that increases form completion rates. Additionally, automated responses or personalized follow-ups can be triggered, ensuring no lead falls through the cracks.

3. Build brand loyalty and advocacy

QR codes can build brand loyalty and advocacy by creating unique and engaging experiences for customers. For example, QR codes can be used to provide special offers, loyalty programs and personalized content. This not only makes customers feel valued but also encourages repeat engagement and word-of-mouth promotion.

How can QR codes be used as a marketing tool? 

Integrating QR codes into your marketing strategy can be a highly effective tool for driving engagement and conversions. However, it’s important to consider their purpose and how they can best serve your goals in order to see their impact. 

Here are some ways you can  use QR codes in your marketing strategy:

1. Drive traffic to your website 

Add QR codes to printed materials such as flyers, brochures, business cards, and posters to direct customers to specific landing pages on your website. This simplifies the process for customers to learn more about your products or services, increases site traffic, and generates more leads.

2. Increase engagement on social media 

Use QR codes linked to your social media pages to boost engagement. By adding QR codes to online or printed ads, you can drive traffic directly to your social media profiles. This enables followers to like, follow, and comment, fostering  interaction with your brand and enhancing your online presence.

3. Encourage more customer reviews

Customer reviews are an important part  of  the decision-making process for potential customers. Gathering positive reviews builds credibility for your brand. By providing QR codes that link directly to a rating or feedback page, you make it easy for customers to leave their reviews effortlessly. 

4. Offer promotions 

Incentives are an effective way to encourage customers to use your products or services. Use QR codes to link to coupons or promotions, offering deals to attract new customers and reward loyal ones. This approach provides an engaging way for customers to interact with your brand.

5. Make it easy to locate your business 

Make it easy for customers to find your location by adding a QR code to your website, or promotional content. Users can scan the code and be directed to a navigation app with your physical address. This can increase foot traffic to your business.

6. Create an exciting way to interact with your brand 

QR codes can serve as an exciting way to interact with your brand by connecting the online and offline worlds. You can get creative with it and engage your audience in unique ways. For example, place QR codes on product packaging or promotional materials. When scanned, these codes can lead to interactive content such as videos or augmented reality experiences. This not only makes the customer experience more engaging and memorable but also encourages them to spend more time with your brand.

7. Provide more product information

QR codes can serve as digital extensions of physical objects. By adding QR codes to product packaging, you provide customers with access to additional product information, user manuals, promotional videos, and more. This approach makes the overall consumer experience more user-friendly, and allows for deeper customer engagement with your brand.

Examples of great QR Code marketing campaigns

1. Nike’s “Unlocks” Campaign 

Nike introduced QR codes in their stores to create a more personalized shopping experience. By scanning QR codes placed on mannequins and displays, customers could unlock product details, reviews, and style recommendations. Additionally, these QR codes provided access to exclusive offers. This campaign enhanced the in-store shopping experience, blending physical and digital elements to drive customer engagement and sales.

2. Heinz’s “Track your bottle” Campaign 

Heinz launched a campaign where they placed QR codes on their ketchup bottles. By scanning the QR code, customers could learn about the farms where the tomatoes were grown and see the journey from farm to table. This campaign engaged customers with storytelling, and also reinforced Heinz’s commitment to quality and sustainability. 

3. Emart’s “Sunny Sale” Campaign

Emart, a retailer in South Korea, launched a campaign where they placed shadow-activated QR codes at their various locations. These QR codes could only be scanned during a specific time of day when the sun was at the right angle, creating a shadow that completed the QR code. When scanned, customers received discounts and special offers that could be redeemed in Emart stores. This time-sensitive campaign generated excitement and increased foot traffic during off-peak hours, boosting sales during those times and increasing brand awareness.

Best Practices for  using QR codes in marketing

• Ensure a clear strategy 

Before creating your QR code, establish a clear goal for your campaign. Determine what you want to achieve, whether it’s increasing website traffic, boosting sales, collecting customer feedback, or promoting social media engagement. Design your QR code and the content to align with this strategy, ensuring that it guides users toward the goal.

• Track and analyze performance 

Once your QR code marketing campaign is live, make sure to track, analyze, and monitor its performance (e.g., number of scans, devices used, etc.). This data can provide valuable insights into customer behavior and the effectiveness of your campaign, allowing you to make data-driven decisions and improvements.

• Ensure a clear call-to-action

Let customers know what they will get by Including a clear call-to-action with your QR code, such as “Scan for a 15% discount” or “Scan to watch our product demo”. This encourages more users to engage with the QR code.

• Optimize  the destination

Ensure that QR codes link to optimized and mobile-responsive web pages to provide a smooth and efficient user experience on mobile devices.

How to create a QR Code for marketing?

1. Choose a trustworthy QR Code generator, like QRstuff,  which offers a range of features to create dynamic and customizable QR codes suited for your campaign needs. 

2. Select the type of dynamic QR code needed: Depending on your campaign goals, choose the appropriate type of dynamic QR code. Whether it’s for URLs, social media links, contact details, or promotional content, dynamic QR codes allow you to update the destination URL even after printing.

3. Customize your QR code’s design: Ensure your QR code aligns with your brand identity. QRstuff provides various customization options to make your QR code visually appealing and consistent with your brand.

4. Test the QR code: Before launching your campaign, test the QR code to ensure it scans correctly and directs users to the correct content. 

5. Download and implement your QR code: download the QR code and integrate it into your promotional content. This can include printed materials like flyers, brochures, posters, or online platforms such as websites, social media, and email campaigns.

6. Track Performance Over Time: QRstuff offers analytics tools that provide valuable insights into customer behavior and campaign effectiveness, allowing you to make data-driven adjustments and improvements.

Why Choose QRStuff as the Solution  for Your QR Code Marketing Campaign?

QR codes can play a strategic role in your marketing campaigns, but finding the right tool to generate and manage these QR codes can be challenging. QRStuff stands out as the all-in-one platform for creating, tracking, and managing your QR codes effortlessly. Unlock the full potential of your marketing campaign  with QRStuff.

With QRStuff, you can customize the appearance of your QR codes to align with your brand, manage them efficiently, and gain insights to better understand your audience. 

Ready to discover how QR codes can transform your business? Start by creating QR codes for free with QRStuff, or subscribe today to unlock full design capabilities, generate unlimited codes, and access all file types and more!