Quick Response (QR) code technology is the hottest thing in mobile marketing today. One pop artist, Shin-B, for example has made it the focal point of her recent video, Get-Up and Go, in an effort to promote her music.
Yes, it’s true that QR Codes offer a lot of new ways to communicate. But when it comes to using a QR Code to promote your business, here are some things you’ll want to think about if you hope to get the biggest bang out of your marketing dollars.
What is it that you want people to do? What value are you providing? After people use their mobile phones to scan your code, you have a tremendous opportunity to keep them coming back for more. So use it – don’t lose it.
Let’s take an upscale spa, restaurant or club that leads customers to scan a QR code that they’ve printed on an in-store poster, directing them to an online sign up page for an exclusive offer. After signing up, customers receive confirmation that they’ve registered for an upcoming promotion, concert or event.
What about folks who print a QR code on their business card, offering potential customers the ability to scan and download their contact information directly? Just imagine what this could mean for your customer relationship management system. By inviting your prospect to store your contact information on their phone, you’ll have already broken the ice for your follow-up call.
There are a variety of ways to engage customers who scan your QR code, encouraging them to sign-up to receive updates to your blog or join your Facebook Fan Page via the Trumpia Facebook widget. This not only alerts them to the latest blog postings, it automatically updates your database, giving you an effortless way to build your database. You can also do this by inviting people to receive SMS or MMS text messages, alerting them to VIP promotions or the availability of new how-to videos on your YouTube page.
You can also use a QR campaign as an opportunity to publicize your mobile short code number (a 5 or 6-digit phone number for sending and receiving text messages). For example, customers who don’t already have a QR code reader can download one by texting a mobile keyword to your short code.
When you use a QR code to maximize the results of your traditional promotions or online advertising campaigns, you’ll want to assure your customers that navigating the world of QR coding and decoding is no longer a difficult task. Many of today’s popular QR readers are pre-installed and ready for use by the customer when they purchase a new cell phone. Other QR readers can be easily downloaded by users of smart phones such as the Apple iPhone, Samsung Blackberry or Google Android.
The possibilities can be endless when it comes to using QR Codes to maximize the success of both your online and offline marketing programs. The real trick is delivering a campaign that is memorable enough to truly engage your customers – even when they are on the go and k-kind of busy.
