Guest Author: How to Use Mobile Media Quick Response (QR) Codes to Promote Your Business

February 9, 2011 – Atlanta, GA USA – The following Quick Response (QR) scan code article was first published in BKV’s Online Magazine for Marketers: 60 Second Marketer. It’s reprinted by permission of the author.

by Jamie Turner, Chief Content Officer of BKV’s 60 Second Marketer and co-Author of How to Make Money with Social Media.

Quick Response (QR) Scan Code: Text SCAN to 43588 to get a free scanner app. Scan this code to launch the 60 Second Marketer Social Media List of 45 Social Media terms

Dan Smigrod is the CEO and Chief Creative Officer at GREAT!, a company that generates innovative, breakthrough marketing ideas for a variety of well-known brands.

Not long ago, Dan wrote a blog post called 101 Uses for Quick Response Codes. You’re familiar with Quick Response (QR) codes. They’re the little square boxes (like the one on this page) that can be snapped by a smartphone to drive a user to a website, an MP3 download, a contact card or any other number of uses.

Interested in the QR code experience? Snap this QR code from your smart phone and find out where it takes you.

Dan’s post is really terrific. Seriously, I’d encourage you to visit the blog, print it out, then ponder all the different ways QR codes can be used to engage prospects and customers.

Dan has agreed to let me share my favorite ideas from his post with you. Here are some of my favorite ideas from Dan’s list:

1. Business cards — The recipient scans the code to import your contact information.
2. Website — Add a QR code to the contact page on your website so users can instantly download your contact information.
3. Product packaging — If you sell a product that requires installation, include a QR code on the box to drive users to online instructional videos.
4. Outdoor board — Great for a teaser campaign for a new movie or TV show. Scan the code to watch the trailer, sneak preview or teaser episode from your mobile phone.
5. Name tags — Create and add your scan code to your name badge to make it easy for conference attendees to get your contact information.
6. Home for sale signs — Add a scan code that launches a video or photo tour of the house.
7. Historical site markers — Ditto. A scan code can enhance the experience of the people visiting the site.
8. Restaurant menu — Scan the code for recipes to your favorite dishes.
9. Press release — Include scan codes in press releases to provide recipients with additional information.
10. Grocery shopping cart — Users can scan the code in to get special discounts at the grocery store. The scan code doesn’t change, but the offer rolls over with a new one every week.
11. Link to iTunes App store — The Wall Street Journal included a scan code in one of their ads that instantly drove the visitor to the iTunes App store, where they could download the iPhone App for that product.
12. In the Mens’ Urinals — Dan’s company GREAT! proposed and implemented the first interactive urinal communicator for CMT Outlaws. “Don’t miss Outlaws on CMT. You seem to miss everything else!”
13. YouTube video — Scan the code at the end of the video to take you to a related video, thereby keeping the user engaged.

Those are just some of the ideas in Dan’s list, so be sure to read the full post.

In the meantime, don’t leave the 60 Second Marketer blog without using your smart phone to snap our QR code on this blog post.

If you don’t already have a Quick Response (QR) scan code reader installed on your smartphone, here are the steps to make it all happen:

1. From your mobile phone, type one of these URLs into your web browser: http://get.beetagg.com/ or http://www.getscanlife.com/ or http://tinyurl.com/292s5go (launches iTunes App Store for Optiscan app)
2. Download the QR code reader to your smart phone.
3. Then, snap a photo of the QR code on this page and enjoy the ride!

That’s all for now, folks. We’ll be doing many more mobile media stories in the near future.

Onward.

_______________________

That’s GREAT! blog post by Guest Columnist Jamie Turner, Chief Content Officer for 60 Second Marketer, the online magazine for BKV Digital and Direct Response. Copyright 2010-2011 Jamie Turner. First published 9/1/10.

Reprinted by permission of the Author. Download a free chapter from Jamie’s book by clicking “How to Make Money with Social Media.”

Short URL For This ‘That’s GREAT!’ Post

• http://j.mp/QR60-BKV

Subscribe to the Free Daily Online Scan Code Newspaper From GREAT!

• The uSCANme QR Code Daily

That’s GREAT! Quick Response (QR) Scan Code Resources

1.     That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  101 Ideas for Using QR Codes
2.     That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  101 ‘Pointers’ for Using QR Codes
3.     That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  101 Major U.S. Brands Using QR Codes
4.     That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  50 Major Media Companies Using QR Codes
5.     That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Top 10 Mistakes to Avoid When Using QR Codes
6.     That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Top 10 Best QR Codes Uses in the U.S
7.     That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  (Video) ‘10 Reasons Free QR Codes Will Bite Me In The Tush’
8.     That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  (Video) What’s the Return on Investment (ROI) on QR Codes?
9.     That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  (Video) – 2011 is the Year of the Quick Response Code
10.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Multiple Choice:  (2010) (2011) (2012) is the Year of the QR Code
11.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Top 300 Must Read QR Code Articles
12.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Top 150 Must Read QR Code Articles
13.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  How Newspapers Can Use QR Codes to Delay the Demise of Print
14.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  QR Code Book : ‘I Live in the Future & Here’s How It Works
15.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Top 10 Reasons EZcodes Are Better Than QR Codes
16.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Guest Post: The 10 Commandments for Marketers
17.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Guest Post: How to Use QR Codes to Promote Your Business
18.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Guest Post: An Introduction to QR Codes
19.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Product Camp Atlanta: 25 QR Code Ideas in 10 Minutes
20.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Follow Dan Smigrod’s QR Twitter Account: uSCANme
21.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  Free Daily Online QR Code Newspaper (The uSCANme Daily)
22.   That’s GREAT! – QR Code 101:  All ‘That’s GREAT!’ QR Code Lists, Videos, Articles and Resources

Bonus: GREAT! ScanLife Promo Code (“Invitation Code”) = great (for small, medium, large businessesand agency/resellers so you can play with a robust, paid scan code platform (For example: generate free QR codes to practice with and generate usage reports for these codes). When you are ready to use the scan codes commercially, please request a quote from ScanLife or email GREAT! CEO Dan Smigrod.

Disclosures

• GREAT! is a Referring Agent for the ScanLife platform. Use the GREAT! ScanLife Promo Code (“Invitation Code”) = great (for small, medium, large businesses and agency/resellers) so you can play with a robust, paid scan code platform). For example: generate free QR codes to practice with and generate free usage reports for these codes. When you are ready to use the scan codes commercially, please request a quote from ScanLife or email GREAT! CEO & Chief Creative Officer Dan Smigrod.

• GREAT! is a Value-Added Reseller (VAR) of scan codes. GREAT! provides clients and their agencies with: a) scan code implementation (the actual scan codes); b) strategy (best use of the scan codes); c) scan code management (including reports); d) fast-to-market; and, e) without costly and embarrassing mistakes common even by large; A-list brands. Turn-key scan code services are provided for a flat monthly fee. For a quote, please email GREAT! CEO & Chief Creative Officer Dan Smigrod.

*Though Quick Response (QR) brand scan codes are a registered trademark of Toyota subsidiary Denso-Wave, Quick Response Code (QR) are commonly – and incorrectly – used generically to refer to all Two Dimensional (2D) mobile barcodes: including ScanLife EZcode brand scan codes; Microsoft Tag codes; datamatrix codes; and still other scan codes that are scanned or photographed on a smartphone such as an iPhone 4. Saying Quick Response code or QR code is like saying that you TIVOed the TV show when you actually used the Comcast brand digital video recorder to record the TV show.