When attempting to sign into Apple TV, existing users have two options: awkwardly use the remote to type each letter and character of their email and password, or scan a QR code that allows them to login almost instantly.(marketing campaign)
Although the latter delivers a superior user experience, it would not have been a possibility if the epidemic had never happened.
The 27-year-old “rapid response code,” which was created by Denso Wave to trace vehicle parts across several manufacturers, can now be found in restaurants, billboards, TV advertising, and even the backs of cereal boxes (some people are even getting QR code tattoos).
Melissa Hobley, OkCupid’s chief marketing officer, tells The Current, “I personally never utilised QR codes.” “Then Covid came along, and they were at every restaurant, and they just became a thing.”
According to Insider Intelligence, about 84 million smartphone users in the United States will scan a QR code this year, increasing 10% from the previous year and up 59 percent from 2019. The resurgence of the QR code signifies a huge shift in consumer behaviour that appears to have occurred overnight. Many brands utilise QR codes in some capacity, whether it’s to improve user experience, acquire first-party data, or bolster measurement and attribution capabilities, thus this trend affects practically every aspect of advertising.
However, employing them is not as straightforward as using the codes themselves. For its widely lauded out-of-home ad campaign, OkCupid, for example, began incorporating QR codes on billboards and subway advertisements. “However, we had to consider if people could even read or reach the QR code in some of our out-of-home ads,” Hobley explains. “Marketers should not overlook where people will skim their materials.”
Tips-and-tricks(marketing campaign)
According to Tal Chalozin, co-founder and chief technology officer at Innovid, which works in the CTV space (its stock symbol is “CTV”), the number of clients including QR codes in their CTV commercials has increased significantly.
Chalozin has observed frequent blunders — and excellent practises — made by marketers when using QR codes on CTV during the last few years. “The code isn’t always visible for long enough for someone to scan,” he explains. “Scanning will take longer because people are normally 10 feet away from the screen.”
QR code marketing(marketing campaign)
Viewers frequently dismiss QR codes that aren’t animated, he adds. When it comes to QR code marketing, there’s another tactic that most advertisers aren’t aware of: “The shorter the URL encoded in the QR code, the easier it is to scan from a distance,” Chalozin explains, noting that each QR code image contains three black squares, each containing data. “Essentially, with shorter URLs, the amount of data compressed is significantly lower, making the black squares much larger and hence easier to scan.”
CTV measuring has also been improved because to QR codes. “You can figure out how many people scanned the QR code once they view the ad,” Chalozin explains. “If the code directs you to a website, you’ll be able to view the bounce rate and post-scan activity.”
According to Hobley, OkCupid’s CMO, the dating app’s most recent out-of-home campaign included QR codes. She claims that QR codes have made things like measurement a little easier, but they also have certain disadvantages. “Yes, measurement has grown easier because they can see an immediate answer,” she says. “However, the QR code is unpredictably unpredictable. On some days, a large number of individuals will use the QR code to download our software. However, on other days, this will not be the case.”
“What makes them surprising is figuring out the ‘why,” Hobley adds. “However, they’re also a lot of fun.”
‘How much is it worth?’
QR codes have been present since the early 2000s, but their clumsy user interface has been frequently ridiculed. To use them, smartphone users had to download a separate app. However, this added a layer of friction that slowed their expansion. In 2017, Google and Apple integrated QR readers to their native cameras, but it took a global epidemic for the technology to catch hold.
The QR code made its debut earlier this year when Coinbase produced a 60-second Super Bowl commercial featuring nothing but a bouncing QR code (the stunt was so popular that it crashed the crypto platform’s website). More recently, during SXSW in Austin, Texas, 400 drones formed a QR code to advertise Paramount+’s new sci-fi series Halo.
According to Shenan Reed, senior VP and head of media at L’Oréal, most marketers will not use QR codes for marketing stunts like the one at SXSW.
“How valuable is a QR code?”
“Will it be marketing or customer services?” Reed wonders. “Advertisers can place QR codes on packaging. Besides, they can place it on items, and shelf hangers. This is to direct customers to a how-to video or virtual try-on.” Consumers value this, but it’s not advertising; it’s customer service.”
L’Oréal, for example, employs QR codes to allow customers to virtually test on numerous lipstick shades. “Consumers have figured out QR codes, and they’ve turned them into a turnkey solution for them,” she says. “They’ve evolved into a fantastic technique for marketers to improve existing interactions with media that would otherwise be static.””
Source: marketing campaign