Why the QR code is failing

Somewhere I have a 30 page report from an executive in a media company on why QR codes are the next big thing, because they are big in Japan.

If there was any red flag for me it was the fact that those that didn't know consumer habits, technology or why the milieu of both would effect the adoption of a new mode of doing things were saying these things.

QR codes were pushed because they hit the marketing sweet spot of engagement and measurability, without any acknowledgment of the dissonance imposed.

As I said once: "QR codes: like using a megaphone to seduce someone. The ugliest, stupidest, most useless (and used less) tech in a while."

The QR code is only failing in advertising contexts. Printed out your boarding pass for a flight lately? It probably had QR code, but the beauty is you barely needed to know about it. All you had to do was print your boarding pass and then stick under the scanner.

In advertising contexts, you need to recognize the QR code, know what the hell it is, know how to search for an app in your phone's app store that will read it, download that app, open that app, and scan the QR code. All to be sent to an advertiser's website.

For any consumer to do that, regardless of how interested they are in the ad, is a massive ask.

Key insight here is right at the middle: "People will not adopt a technical solution that serves to replace a manual task, if that solution is less efficient than the manual task it replaces. How could we think that QR codes for marketing would work any better than CueCat? Did we not learn the first time?"

No matter how great technically, no matter what the reward is at the end, if you can't get people to use the product it's not useful.

Sensational title aside, the key issue is identified a number of times in the article itself - creativity. They're not being exploited properly and as has been said, what's the point in having a scannable code that does nothing more than redirect to a website?

Firstly, it seems to be hard for these agencies to appreciate that someone scanning a code will want to see a mobile optimised site, not the standard one.

Secondly, they need to add value, so make them do something the user will find useful (which most of the time isn't loading a URL). Eg. as contact codes on the side of taxis and on their posters; as SMS ones that prepare a text for you to sign up to a service or enter a competition, etc. Even those are basic but are a convenience.

There are lots of things to do, but none of this means QR codes are failing (there's no solid evidence in the article to support that claim). Just that there's no imagination or actual thinking going on.

I don't think the qr code is failing, but actually just becoming mainstream.

Seems to be trending up pretty well. http://www.google.com/trends?q=qr+code

Whether it is due to marketers putting the codes everywhere or actual value is yet to be said, but certainly don't think the technology itself is failing.

I saw one use of the QR code that impressed me: in my city (Lyon, France), on bus stops, there are QR codes. Following them leads to a web page where you get the waiting time for the next buses. This is a quick and cheap way to display the waiting time without adding hardware to the bus stops.

The only good point I see for the QR code is that it makes it easier to get to a webpage. That made perfect use of it.

The problem is that QR codes are used to replace simple (static/generic) URLs. If you have a usage where there is potentially a wide range of values, they become more useful, but since they're being used in mass printing / advertising, they're going to be the same all over and in that case you might as well just use an easy URL.

QR codes work great when being used in items where there is a large (think 100,000) number of potential unique values. That scale means they shouldn't be used for a product SKU, for example - they should be used for a specific object like a SKU/serial # combo. Never enter a serial number again to register a product, for example.

Here in Europe I have seen lots of smart use of QR codes in advertising lately:

- Scan the QR code to receive a rebate coupon for the product advertised - Scan the QR code to receive a two for one deal on tickets for what ever event advertised - Places like 7-eleven offering you a free soda with your hot dog if you scan the QR code on the poster in the window before entering - Scan the QR code for an exclusive trailer for the movie advertised - An ice cream company introduced a new ice cream and you could scan the QR code on the advertisement to get a free ice cream - Adverisements for universities where scanning the QR code would let you order their information brochures sent home to you - Scan the QR code to be informed when the advertised service is available in your location

And several other uses I can't remember at the moment.

My point is that it is, like the author of the article indicates, quite possible to make great use of QR codes in advertisements.

Many of the mentioned campaigns I also know worked great. For example during the free ice cream campaign, the local 7-eleven was filled with teenagers with smartphones getting their free ice cream every time I went there.

I've also noticed that most of the campaigns that succeed don't "just slap a QR code in their", they give you information about it: "Scan the QR code to get a free ice cream using your cell phone. If you have an iPhone go to xxx to get a scanner, if you have an Android xxx, if you have a Nokia xxx" or similar solutions. It's kind of a chicken and egg problem. Nobody will use QR codes if they don't know what they are, or how they work. And nobody will known what they are and how they work, unless somebody tells them.

About the only ad that would get me to scan a QR code would be the promise of an explicit coupon code/discount.

My memory fogged up since so much time has passed, but last time I scanned a QR code I ended up on some fast food company's home page. What exactly did they expect me to do at that point? A coupon for a free softie/mcflurry whatever dessert product would have at least encouraged me to go visit the restaurant.

The one place I've used QR codes successfully is when friends visit and want to use my wireless on their phones. I've got a QR code for the SSID and another for the password. For laptops, I can hand out a little USB drive with a text file they can open and copy/paste.

I guess I was living in a fantasy world where I thought I could just take a picture of one with my iphone's camera app and something would happen. I tried a couple times and nothing happend.

So, how does it work?

QR codes are useful/useless depending on the way you engineer it, and the action that follows once when its read. We have integrated QR codes in our app, and the app comes with a QR scanner. It makes it so much easier to do several actions, and when we did our soft sales and customer feedback everyone loved the ease of use and the results. Actions like on reading a QR code taking you to a static website is rather useless. But, if upon reading a QR code you can initiate an action its pretty powerful.

I'm pretty sure it's because it's a solution looking for a problem as far as advertising goes. Much better served putting a "www.wheretofindus.com" on your ad instead.

It would be much more interesting to see stats about the use of QR codes in an actual campaign. If they generate even a few hits, and create a few new customers, it could be worth the inches on the ad. After all, they don't loose anything by using a QR code.

This is what we been saying for long time now, and with "our" solution there's no need for barcodes - we rely 100% on "the image". No names as that will only lead to bashing, so we'll just simply add on to this chorus: Barcodes are dying.

Demo coming soon.

I would argue the QR code is failing because my phone can't read them without downloading an app.

It's ugly and people want to use where they are also spending millions of dollars to make things not ugly. End of story.

Oh, and in the interest of making the future happen just a little bit faster, please fire anyone who thought otherwise on the way out.