If you got your hands on the latest Security Management magazine and flipped through a few pages you might have noticed these little quirky squares on a few of the ads.
These squares are called Quick Response Codes or QR for short. QR codes were created in 1994 by Denso Wave a subsidiary of Toyota for the purpose of tracking auto parts. (Wikipedia) But in today’s social media and digital world they are used in various ways to market your business through mobile devices.
What Does it Do?
The QR codes are codes similar to UPC or product bar codes used for tracking inventory. (Warning, geek speak ahead) The difference is UPC codes are 1 dimensional in that they can only store a small amount of data and only contain numeric values. QR codes on the other hand are two dimensional matrix codes (no, not Neo) that contain alphanumeric (both alphabet and numeric) characters and can store or encode very large amounts of data.
How Does it Work?
You scan the code with your mobile device (Android, iPhone, tablets) and you can link to content on the web or use mobile device functions such as SMS (text), phone number, and email.
A QR code can easily created using a QR generator.
You can find QR generators on the web or through your mobile device application directory. They are all for free. The one that works well for me is Bit.ly as it supplies you with basic analysis of the data. For my iPhone I use QR Code Reader by TapMedia Ltd. which contains a generator with it. Do a search to find others for your device or platform.
Applications of Use
There are several uses for QR code. As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, you can place the QR code in ads for a special promotion, discount information or fill out a quote. Here some other suggestions:
- Linking to social media networks such as Facebook business page or LinkedIn group.
- At a convention like ASIS 2011 use it to share information on seminars, meet ups, etc. Instead of handing out brochures, link the brochures through a QR code.
- Share a QR code to exclusive content for specific clients or customers.
- Put a QR code on your business cards with links to sign up for an email list or download contact information.
These are just a few of the many examples with which you can use QR codes.
Why is This Important?
Although QR codes are not new, they are still somewhat of a novelty to small businesses in the United States. So starting out now you might be ahead of your competitors when the novelty wears off.
Security Aspect
Although rare, I have read about competitors pasting another QR code on top of another to disenfranchise their competitors customers. A more prevalent threat is a wide spectrum of spam – from ads about certain types of drugs to malicious code that will do quite a bit of damage to your computer.
There you have it. QR codes! I’m hip to be square, are you?
What practical examples of QR codes have you seen?
