Check out this new study from the firm ScanLife. What do you think is suddenly so much more appealing about QR codes? What can communicators, social media managers, and marketers take away from these data? What do you see as the future of QR codes for 2013 and beyond?
QR codes have been slow to take off, but now that smartphones are so ubiquitous and social media is no longer called “new media,” their allure is rising. For one, scanning a barcode is easier than typing a URL on tiny keys. For another, QR codes benefit from “shiny new object” syndrome—they’re the cool thing to do.
QR codes still have a long way to go before they become mainstream—think: “Will my mother use this?”—but in light of these data, they deserve a seat at the brainstorming table, especially for contests and loyalty programs.
QR codes will get a big boost when geolocation apps like Foursquare and SCVNGR, loyalty apps like Belly, and payment apps like Square integrate them. As with the digital wallet, ubiquity depends on use by major retailers (see Square’s recent deal with Starbucks).
Addendum (8/12/2012): Success!
