QR code will die if,,

Added: (Wed Dec 08 2010)

Pressbox (Press Release) - It isn’t what you got it’s how you use it. An old saying but I think it now really does apply to QR codes. You are no doubt seeing more and more of them, they are even on TV in the UK and there is the start of the problem. Waitrose fired out press releases left right and centre claiming to be the first company to use them on TV. I don’t think so. However the real issue is the length of time the QR Code is on the screen for, just a couple of seconds.

The idea is that the code can be scanned by a consumer with a mobile device, try it, it is never going to happen. If you want to engage with the mobile generation then give us a chance of engaging with you!

The other issue that could stifle the growth of this is marketing companies that advise their clients just to use them as a link to their mobile unfriendly website. If you just stop and think about this for a few seconds the end user is tech savvy and won’t appreciate that.

Please if you are going to use these codes for marketing make it a worthwhile experience for the end user. By that I mean:
• give them a website that looks good in a mobile device
• give them content that is relevant to the specific offer
• give them something of value

The more people that get this wrong at this early stage will stifle the growth of a simple but cool app that could be of great use to the end user. I am also a believer in the concept of negative marketing. These people that have adopted the mobile web will not take kindly to a brand wasting their time and as a result will just blank you out, I know I do.

Use with care is the moral of this story