Your client using
QR codes on ads
Codes allow smartphone users to access a wealth of information
By Diego Vasquez
Mar 28, 2011
Quick response codes are now the hot thing in media. These easy-to-generate boxes can be placed on just about any type of printed media, where people can scan them with their cell phones to be sent directly to the advertiser's web site or to an internet-based promotion.
A QR code is a low-cost addition to an out-of-home campaign, and it's a great way to get potential customers to interact directly with the brand.
Also, because QR codes are scanned using smartphones or other mobile devices, the target audience is obviously an attractive one: mostly young, affluent and tech-savvy.
To find out how to add QR codes to out-of-home media, read on.
This is one in a Media Life series on buying out-of-home venues. They appear weekly.
Fast Facts
What
Outdoor advertising using QR codes.
Who
Any out-of-home agency can add a QR code element to a campaign.
How it works
QR codes, which look like small boxes with funky designs inside them, much like bar codes on products, are printed codes that can be scanned by a smartphone or other device with an internet connection.
Users point their phone's camera at the code to scan it. Once the code is scanned the user is asked if they'd like to follow the code's internet link, which can be to anything from a YouTube video to a sweepstakes sign-up page to an online store or a web-based game.
The codes offer advertisers a direct-response element that's rare in out-of-home. If a billboard piques a passerby's interest, he or she can interact with the brand immediately using their smartphone.
Advertiser usage of these codes varies widely.
A movie studio might use codes to direct consumers to an exclusive trailer. A financial institution could use them to help customers download a mobile banking app. A restaurant chain could use a code to link users to a map of locations. And so on.
In a recent campaign in New York and Los Angeles for hip-hop artist Lupe Fiasco, QR codes were projected onto the sides of buildings during evening hours. Those who scanned the code were linked to exclusive Fiasco-related content and got an opportunity to pre-order the artist's latest album.
Last year Calvin Klein replaced three racy billboards in New York and Los Angeles that had been running with new boards that simply read "Get it uncensored," along with a QR code. The code linked passersby to a 40-second video featuring the models from the original ad.
Markets
Outdoor ads with QR codes can be used in any market.
Numbers
U.S. smartphone penetration is expected to hit 50 percent by the end of this year, according to Nielsen. There are currently 73.3 million smartphone users, according to eMarketer.
A recent survey by the marketing firm MGH found that 72 percent of smartphone users said they would likely recall an ad with a QR code. Seventy percent said they planned to use a QR code again or for the first time.
How it is measured
Since QR codes are web-based, brands can track how many times they are scanned.
What product categories work well
Frequent QR advertisers include restaurants, entertainment, media, retail, beverages and fast food.
Demographics
Smartphone owners are 60 percent male and 40 percent female, according to comScore.
Seven percent of smartphone subscribers are ages 13-17, with 17 percent 18-24, 28 percent 25-34, 23 percent 35-44, 15 percent 45-54, 7 percent 55-64 and 3 percent 65 or older.
Among those who have used a QR code, 6 percent have an annual household income of $25,000 or less, according to the MGH survey, with 23 percent between $25,000 and $49,999 and 71 percent at $50,000 or higher.
Making the buy
QR codes are usually part of a larger out-of-home campaign, so no additional lead time is needed. Lead time for outdoor campaigns varies, usually between two and four weeks.
Cost is also minimal. Design firms can create customized codes for a fee, but codes can also be generated online at no cost.
Who’s already using QR codes
QR code advertising has been used by Calvin Klein, Lupe Fiasco, Time Magazine, 1stBank, Sephora and Chino Latino.
What they’re saying
"When you run an ad that says Bob's Carpet, you want people to go in the store. When it's Bob's Online Carpet, you want them to go to the web site. There's no reason why every single ad shouldn't have a QR code because it gives people the immediate ability to go to the next level." –
Nic Denyer, senior vice president of non-traditional media at Streetblimps
Web site info
Streetblimps
http://www.streetblimps.com
Alt Terrain
http://www.altterrain.com
Attack! Marketing
http://www.attackmarketing.net
Brand Connections
http://www.brandconnections.com
Brand Marketers
http://www.brandmarketers.com
GoGorilla Media
http://www.gogorillamedia.com
Mango Moose Media
http://www.mangomoose.ca
MGH
http://mghus.com
michael alan group
http://www.michael-alan.com
|
|
|
