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Top 10 Reasons ScanLife EZcodes Are Better Than Quick Response (QR) Codes For U.S. Marketers
June 22, 2010 • Atlanta, GA USA – ScanLife’s EZcode brand version of quick response (QR) scan codes will win the defacto standard battle in the United States rather than the QR code first developed – and now ubiquitous – in Japan.
EZcode • Twitter Example (Text SCAN to 43588 for free scanning app)
- Unfortunately, the QR codes miss the mark and don’t provide an optimized experience for scanners on the mobile device – which pretty much, includes the entire target audience.
- These QR codes are certainly impressive to behold and are a nice first try … we hope future endeavors will yield QR codes that provide scanners with much more exciting and mobile-friendly content.
New York City – that’s an “A Plus” for a great innovative idea and great timing with Internet Week 2010; and a “B Minus” for implementation.
Here are my top 10 reasons why EZcodes will be the scan code of choice by U.S. marketers and why the City of New York (“NYC”) should have used EZcodes instead of QR codes in their Times Square buzz-marketing campaign. (In this That’s GREAT! blog post, I have also included a recommendation for ScanBuy to help ensure that their ScanLife EZcode wins the defacto standard in the U.S.)
EZcode v QR Code
- Analytics. Analytics. Analytics. – When you create EZcodes at ScanLife.com and the codes are scanned with the ScanLife app, ScanBuy provides you with data and analytics (e.g. gender, age, household income, zip code, smart phone model, mobile carrier, number of scans and date scanned). If you use a free QR code generator on the web, you don’t get analytics. Clients – and their Agencies – need data to help evaluate campaigns. (ScanBuy also includes data and analytics for QR and Datamatrix codes created at ScanLife.com and scanned with the ScanBuy app.) Any code created by ScanLife and scanned by the ScanLife app will generate “most data 100 percent of the time; and income and zip date about 10-15% of the time,” according to a representative of ScanBuy. My guess is that NYC used a free QR code generator that does not provide any analytics regarding the scanning of the QR codes in Times Square. [Kindly comment to this blog post, if you know otherwsie ...]
- Size Matters – EZcodes can be as small as a dime. “Typically QR codes are anywhere from 2x the size of an EZcode to 10x the size of an EZcode, but the QR codes that [ScanLife] generate can always be a minimum of 1 inch,” according to a representative of ScanBuy. Typically, QR codes that are not generated by ScanLife, are larger because the information is include in the code itself (rather than the EZcode that “points to” a database for the content or call-to-action). Using an EZcode scan code leaves more room in print media to use for something else. “The size of an EZcode does not increase based on the information which it is linked to, while other formats are directly proportional to the amount of data delivered [except when generated by ScanLife],” says a ScanLife in its “EZcode Benefits” brochure. See page 2 of this brochure for a terrific chart showing a comparison of size examples of EZcodes versus QR scan codes.
- EZcodes Are Easier To Scan On A Smart Phone – the simplicity of an EZcode density design make it easier to scan. While EZcodes and QR codes may be equally easy to scan in a magazine, that’s not true of outdoor boards, clothing and other uses.
- EZcodes Are Faster To Scan On A Smart Phone – the simplicity of an EZcode also make it faster to scan. Seconds count to get the call-to-action completed.
- EZcodes Are Easier to Reproduce – the simplicity of the EZcode design means it’s easier to reproduce – even as small as the size of a dime, for example. If you make a QR code the size of a dime, it’s likely that the QR scan code will not scan!
- ScanLife App Is Pre-Loaded on Many Smart Phones – Since the ScanLife app (free) that reads EZcodes is pre-loaded on many smart phones, you’re a step ahead. Plus, the ScanLife app reads every major barcode format including: Quick Response (QR) and Datamatrix scan codes. Millions of mobile phones with the ScanLife app can read EZcode scan codes. [Scanbuy reportes 25 million as of 6/23/10]
- No One Ever Gets Fired For Buying From IBM – You’re in great company with EZcodes. Major marketers using EZcodes include: McDonalds, American Airlines, Sears, CitySearch, US Air Force, Case Western University, Sprint, Guinness, Billboard magazine, Morgans Hotel Group, and Car and Driver magazine.
- Pre-Built Scan Code Tools – With EZcodes, in addition to launching a webpage, you can (easily) create a tweet; run a sweepstakes; automatically initiate a pre-determined phone number; send a text message; automatically open a message with the address and text fields pre-filled; launch a carrier specific menu; send all basic contact information to the address book;automatically save a calendar entry (and more). In the NYC Times Square campaign, I would have preferred pre-filled in tweets to create audience engagement, or at the very least, a NYC mobile optimized websites, as Mashable suggests.
- EZcodes Are Smart (Change Info – Even After The Code Has Been Published) – You can print an EZcode scan code in a magazine without knowing the info that you will associate with that EZcode. Plus, even after the scan code is in use, you can tweak your content. Perhaps the production deadlines for the NYC spectacular signage was before NYC knew what content it wanted to provide, so it had to go with an existing URL at the time of production. Had NYC used EZcodes, it could have changed the URL that it “points to” during the campaign!
- GREAT! Recommends EZcodes – Just because you are starting to see QR codes in the U.S., doesn’t mean that’s the best choice. Once you do your research, you’ll agree that the scan code of choice for U.S. marketers will be easy an easy decision – EZcode.
QR Code • Twitter Example (Text SCAN to 43588 for free scanning app)
Recommendation For ScanBuy To Help Ensure The Success Of It’s EZcodes
ScanBuy offers two pricing strategies for using EZcodes:
- pay a flat monthly fee, or
- pay a one-time project fee based on the scale and scope of the project and the window that the EZcodes will be used
The challenge with these two pricing options is that you have to have a conversation with ScanBuy for every project. At best, this is cumbersome in the get-to-know ‘em phase. (Personal usage of EZcodes is free, but no analytics and not all EZcode uses are offered.) At worst, some potential marketers will fail to test EZcodes and opt for a free QR code generator without knowing what they are missing.
I recommend that ScanBuy eliminate its free personal usage EZcodes and add the following ScanBuy Membership plan:
- $49 12-month ScanBuy membership; includes up to 5,000 scans per year (a penny a scan) and then 2 cents per scan. Offer a free introductory special now through 12/31/11 (via promo code); or $24.95 for the first 12 months including up to 5,000 scans free. Offer pre-pay options for various buckets of additional scans within 12 months. (e.g. pre-pay $50 for 5,000 additional scans.)
- The 12-month $49 membership offer enables an affiliate marketing program to be implemented to generate revenue to cover marketing this expense (even if discounted to $24.95); and, more importantly, enables offering the same EZcode service to every customer (offering analytics and all versions of EZcodes options) so Clients and Agencies can test a full-working robust account without having to disclose its marketing plans to ScanBuy.) Codes can be retired – and re-cycled – if the annual 12-month membership is not renewed.
- After 5,000 scans, the ScanBuy member can either pay monthly via credit card; cancel the account (all codes for this customer will no longer work); or – in the case of a major account, request and receive special one-time project or monthly pricing. (Large projects/accounts will need to know fixed costs up front in order to budget for the project.)
- Even once large projects end, ScanBuy members can still opt to pay the two cents per scan to keep the codes active (or, pre-pay for a bucket of scans for predictable savings.)
The annual $49 12-month membership revenue will generate substantial revenue for ScanBuy beginning with annual renewal of membership. Plus, by the 13th month, it’s a an easy business decision to renew the EZcode membership and to pre-pay for EZcodes in exchange for predictable savings.
[For 101 Uses For Quick Response (QR) Codes: Creating Audience Engagement With The Next Killer U.S. App, please see my That's GREAT! blog post of June 12, 2010. To download the free ScanLife app for your smart phone, text SCAN to 43588; search your app directory for ScanLife; or go to getscanlife.com]
Related That’s GREAT! blog posts: [Added 8/2/10]
- That’s GREAT! – 101 Uses For Quick Response (QR) Codes: Creating Audience Engagement With The Next Killer U.S. App (6/12/10)
- That’s GREAT! – Top 10 Reasons ScanLife EZcodes Are Better Than Quick Response (QR) Codes For U.S. Marketers (6/11/10)
- That’s GREAT! – Top 10 Mistakes To Avoid When Integrating 2D Quick Response Codes In Your Marketing Plans (8/2/10)
- That’s GREAT! (8/20/10) Product Camp Atlanta: Social Media Meets Quick Response (QR) Codes: 25 Great QR Ideas In 10 Minutes (Then We Brainstorm 25 More Ideas)
Postscript:
- Here are some comments – via Twitter – to this blog post: @christianoliver, @christianoliver (Since most scan codes take you to a URL, your mobile still needs a data connection to the internet.)
- ScanLife VP of Marketing David Javitch posted (6/21/10) a comment on the LinkedIn Group: 2D Codes for Global Media regarding the difference between Japan and the United States regarding scan codes and camera phones: “… The main reason that Japan worked so well is because all of the operators preloaded a reader on devices which run on 2-3 operating systems, and that had great AF [Auto Focus] cameras (needed to read complex QR codes). They also focused on the QR code as the primary point of interaction. In the US for example, AF cameras just started hitting the market in the past 10 months, and there are 6 different operating systems that all handle the camera differently (even different devices on the same OS work differently). UPC code scanning has also become quite popular here which is great because it creates adoption, but it also adds another layer of complexity. So, we need to prioritize both the handsets and the barcodes which are most likely to be used by consumers and businesses. Right now, that is evolving very quickly based on what the market wants, and we will continue to be flexible to do what is best for the industry. The market will standardize, but that will likely happen on different timelines by region.”
- GoMo News – BA’s barcode causes confusion – Datamatrix or Aztec? (7/20/10) [UK based]
Disclosures:
- [As of July 2010] GREAT! is a value-added reseller of *Scanbuy’s Scanlife 2D and 1D Platform for Quick Response (QR);EZcode; and Datamatrix codes. GREAT! provides two (2D) scan code implementation, scan code management and scan code consulting to clients and their agencies. Contact us.
[...] QR code first developed by Japanese corporation Denso-Wave in 1994 and now ubiquitous in Japan. (The Top 10 reasons EZcodes will win the defacto standard battle in the U.S. is the topic of a anoth…That’s GREAT! blog post.) To download the free ScanLife app for your smart phone, text SCAN to [...]
great follow up, thanks for keeping me in the loop Dan!
Since EZ codes are not standardized and recognized by other mobile phone decoders, they contribute to poor consumer experiences. It is extremely short sided and arrogant to think that the general public recognizes the different types of codes. When users w/o Scanlife try to scan EZ Codes they will not be inclined to read other symbols. They will loose faith in the technology.
@John Galt
EZcodes are just one option that ScanLife provides to its users. We can also generate QR codes or Datamatrix, so the system is format neutral. It is early in the market, and it is too soon to say what will be standard – and that will also differ by country. ScanLife is preloading apps on to new phones in the US, so the compatibility with EZcodes is already over 100 million phones, many more than any other app.
Quote “ScanBuy provides you with data and analytics (e.g. gender, age, household income, zip code, smart phone model, mobile carrier, number of scans and date scanned)”
Reasonably sophisticated 2D barcode service providers can provide the
“zip code, smart phone model, mobile carrier, number of scans and date scanned”
as well, e.g. http://www.post2m.com offers all these plus additional CBSR (Context Based Service Rule) engine for Chameleon type QR.
But, the
“gender, age, household income”
is something doubtful for me. How can you guarantee such data for all the mobile phone population, unless the phone users were forced to “cough up” these data? How accurate would that be? What’s the ScanLife guarantee on such demographic data? Is it a hype only?
@Metha
Other barcode sites, don’t have their own app, so they can’t communicate with users like ScanLife can. The ScanLife app is being used by over 10 million people around the world today, and that number will increase exponentially as more phones are preloaded. We’re getting about a 20% response rate on our survey from our users, so the volume is significant and can be used to look at the representative audience.
[...] The first is an EZcode, the second is Datamatrix code, and the third is a QR code. Of the three, the EZCode seems to be winning the wars, in the US at least. Here are a few reasons why (according to Great!) [...]
[...] size matters, EZcodes can be as small as a dime, I wrote in my That’s GREAT! blog post: Top 10 Reasons ScanLife* EZcodes Are Better Than Quick Response (QR) Codes For U.S. Marketers (6/22/…“Typically QR codes are anywhere from 2x the size of an EZcode to 10x the size of an EZcode, [...]
What’s wrong with the top 10:
1. Analytics are great – but they don’t work if the person scanning isn’t online OR doesn’t wish to be scanned; there is no identifiable privacy policy associated with each code – users are at the mercy of any indirect code’s back end provider – this will create a huge privacy backlash because people don’t know what’s in the code, only what they ultimately receive. Forcing analytics on people rather than information is like forcing people to take a survey before they can pay at the cash – many would rather walk out of the store
2. The size is great, but is it redundant? If the EZcode is smushed or obfuscated over 25% of its surface, does it still scan? QR codes do – in real world tests I’ve witnessed
3. Easier to scan means what exactly? Less time? Hold the phone closer or further? Fewer unrecognized codes? I agree, simpler is better and typically faster, but that relationship will be tested every time.
4. Isn’t point 4 point 3? I suppose it depends on what easier means.
5. True: the simpler design is easier to reproduce, especially at small sizes. Is it also true that the smaller the unit size, the less likely it is to be seen and/or headed? I don’t want big codes anymore than the next guy, but the size of a dime? On what are you placing your codes? How close does my phone have to get?
6. Preloaded scanning software is good. Absolutely.
7. Actually, people get fired for buying IBM when it’s not the right choice. The list of commercial users doesn’t indicate quantity, penetration, or target market. If McDonalds uses these codes to track palettes of buns instead of RFID tags, what use is that to end-consumers? Are you actually suggesting that any company that is used by the likes of McDonalds, American Airlines, Sears, … is equivalent of IBM in the 80s/90s?
8. TRUE – but this can be done with any indirect code and with properly crafted direct codes be they EZcodes, QR codes, or Datamatrix codes.
9. TRUE and FABULOUS – next to analytics, this is a marketers parachute. When the campaign is over or things change, an indirect code allows the marketer to redirect the traffic to reflect such changes. Like point number 8, all indirect codes can provide this feature, it depends on the back-end host.
10. does any one company’s recommendation count as a reason? Seriously, Apple (via Steve Jobs’s open letter) doesn’t recommend Flash, but I know of a lot of businesses that still rely on the technology to this day.
What’s going to happen is this:
Marketers will jump on the bandwagon of easy analytics and parachute backend mods (changes after launch) so indirect codes will be the codes of choice.
I think the EZcode is a great example of a 2d bar code.
Individuals and non-profits will balk at the idea of REQUIRING their end-users to access a 3rd party platform in order to decode the relevant data. What if the back-end is down? One only has to think of Twitter and Soccer to know that a popular event can drive social media to its knees.
I can’t see these groups willing to register their content on a single-source provider (uniqueness is only guaranteed via use of Scanbuy’s service). Whose to say that Scanbuy can’t limit the use or misdirect the users of EZcodes? People still wonder how Google determines the top of the organic search. Will Scanbuy allow audits of their back-end platform?
In the end, what will “win” is the technology which doesn’t tie people to a sole-provider; unless Scanbuy licenses portions of the 75 sextillion address space to alternate providers, it can’t win. There will always be someone who takes the open route and finds a way to make profit alongside (think Google search and related ads).
Oh, and some people will insist that the codes are not indirect. A code that doesn’t work in poor signal areas is a code that doesn’t work period.
Those are my 2¢…
…James