QR code confessional

BY julie stolberg
2011/04/07

QR Codes Death - Dashboard Digital Agency Blog

I loved the idea of QR codes. I remember seeing an ad in an awards annual of a QR code billboard in Japan. I was amazed. With one click of your phone the code will directed you to a website or video. Sweet in theory, lame in practice.

Sadly they just don’t work. To get the code perfectly lined up for your phone’ reader is sometimes impossible. And then when you do, it usually links to a website which is often not mobile friendly. So you end up looking at a website that’s miniscule on your phone.

What I suspect is happening, is that Clients and Agencies are all over this new technology. For many it’s become an easy way to deal with more information. If a Client requests more copy on a print ad, the Agency will often solve this problem with a QR code. So a print ad that’s already crammed with multiple messages then directs me to a website with even more info. Talk about over load. We all know that simplicity and clarity in an ad works best.

Last week I was reading on article on vaccines for cat allergy sufferers, within the text was a QR code. So I took a photo of my computer screen with my phone just to see where the code would lead me.

(Never mind how absurd it was taking a photo of my screen!) Well it instantly pulled up the exact same article. Why? What’s the point?

For me a QR code should complete or enhance the message. In the case of the article that I read last week, it would be great if the code directed me to a video of the scientist being interviewed or linked me to a sign up sheet where I can register for the vaccine. All-in-all people need to get more creative with these codes. Or frankly get rid of them.

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  • 07/04/11

    Darryl Patterson says:

    I think it's that many agencies just don't understand the value a QR code can bring to a campaign and they misuse it. They sound cool so they often get used solely on that basis with no other merit or value to the customer. Just like any technology, you need to start with the idea and find the right tech to make it happen, not the other way around.
  • 08/04/11

    Julie Stolberg says:

    I totally agree. In fact, I just saw a nice QR idea one day after this post. It's for a group called Tees at Risk. They create t-shirts designed by teens. Each tee has a QR code that explains the meaning behind the design. Read the story here: http://www.youthareawesome.com/youth-design-t-shirts-to-benefit-teens-at-risk/
  • 08/04/11

    Adam says:

    For me the biggest problem with QR codes is that readers aren't standard on mobile devices. To make them useful and easily adopted by users, the reader needs to be integrated into the mobile handset's camera feature. Will this happen? Not with NFC right around the corner.
  • 22/04/11

    StefanG says:

    misuse aside, QR codes weren't really designed for any use outside of tracking autoparts in an assembly line. That, I think, is it's biggest failing. The idea is sound... just point a mobile device at an ad to get further digital content - but do we really need a code? With developments in Image Recognition, it won't be long before the ad itself becomes the QR code.