QR Codes Link the Off-line and Online Mobile Worlds

Over the last week or so there have been a number of announcements by businesses and services using QR codes for information sharing. These savvy access routes to web pages have started to embed themselves into every day living with use by health services, restaurants and for commerce purposes.

www.postcardsandinvitations.com This company is providing QR Codes that link to personal videos that give that extra special personal message beyond a sending birthday card.

Nissan have started using QR codes to provide supplementary information on their vehicles in dealerships. Jon Brancheau, Nissan of North America’s vice president of sales and marketing, said “It’s a true mass market effort across all products and all Nissan dealerships nationwide – part of our pledge to bring innovation to every aspect of the vehicle design, buying and ownership experience.”

Online insurance company iMingle has announced that QR Codes are now being used to provide access to their online payment site for insurance by policyholders.  The QR code sent out with the monthly bill allow clients to scan, pay and then shred the bill. There is direct access to the payment site without needing to enter through a login process.

British Museum considered linking to wikipedia as a source of information from objects in it's gallery.  By scanning the code, the language setting of the phone will ensure that the visitor is taken directly to the wikipedia page relevant to the object in the correct language. The Museum have stated that they want QR codes to direct visitors to their own web pages and not wikipedia's.

In Athen, Georgia, USA women can schedule a mammogram using QR codes. By scanning the code on a printed advertisement, women are taken to the Athens Regional Medical Center  to read more about breast cancer and to book a mammogram if they wish.

How could you use QR codes in your business to improve your marketing message, service or efficiency?

Google Places - putting your business on the online and mobile map

Google reports that out of every five searches, one is related to location and it is this fact which prompted them to create Google Local which has since undergone many changes to become Google Places.

If you're already au fait with Google's local business sector then you're also familiar with Google

Places. The change of name goes hand in hand with many more benefits now being offered to local businesses and their users.

Google Places: Easily defined local categories

Google Places is designed to help people seach out local businesses in much the same way as they would previously have used Yellow Pages. All the businesses are divided into categories, so if for example you run a cattery in Chichester,West Sussex, then all a prospective customer needs do is search for 'cattery in Chichester, West Sussex' and your name will appear. However, how Google Places differs from Yellow Pages is that it is available on any computer or mobile device such as the smart phone, and since more people are utilising their smart phone to accesss the web to find stores and businesses, it is an important advertising platform on which to showcase your business.

Creating your profile

A Google place page takes only minutes to set up and really is an essential piece of kit for small businesses taking their first steps online. Setting up a profile is quick and easy, you simply add such information as your opening hours, contact phone number, and address and then verify via SMS, phone or postcard. You can also add some photos, a few keywords and even a video. Many people stop at this stage, which is a real shame, since taking a little longer to SEO your profile and providing a little more detail, could really punch your business to the top of Page One.

A place listing is made up of several bits of information which Google themselves add and which they have sourced from third parties as well as yellow pages. To make sure your listing is pulling its weight it makes sense to make sure all the data you add is kept up to date.

Specifics to add some weight to your ranking

One of the new additions to the place listings is the 'areas served' section which allows you to include areas which you do business in. This not only lets you tell customers that they need to come to you, but you can let them know that you will travel or deliver to them. This is useful if say you run a chiropody service in Chichester but are prepared to travel to clients within a 20 mile radius.

This is a great way for businesses to extend the scale of the area in which they work and can also enable you to optimise your site by including names of key towns and villages within your 20 mile radius. The more data you enter, the more likely you are to climb the ranks. This works particularly well if you can list brands that you sell, since this allows you to use keyword rich text, add images and even videos, all things which Google loves.

Get techy with QR codes

Google also offers customised QR codes which can be scanned by smart phones to help people searching for a specific local business.

Another great  addition is the ability for business owners to post real time updates to their place page. This is a simple and effective way of promoting special events, new product arrival, and also makes incentive or coupon offering, a breeze.

Personalised dashboards enables a business owner to track his data to check on how many visitors have found his business and what keywords they used to find it and where they came from. It is even possible to request a free photoshoot of the interior of your business to complement any photos that you have already uploaded.

Get reviews and customer feedback

Finally, you can request that customers review your site, a bit like on Trip Advisor, and this can help you get new business. Naturally you will have to take the good with the bad, but that's normal ith any reviews.

Google Places: Good for virtual businesses as well as bricks and mortar types

Google places is great for businesses, even if you don't have a bricks and mortar establishment. Many people prefer to do their business locally and conduct their search either online or with their smart phone. You can reach a whole new audience when you list your business with Google Places and with the increased use of mobile technology, it's another important tool in your arsenal of marketing strategies to stand out from the crowd.

Every week we're going to share with you the interesting developments that are occurring in the mobile marketing world. Sign up on RSS to make sure that you don't miss your mobile marketing news updates. We found these interesting – we hope that you find something in there for you too - :

Mobile Marketing News

Tourism body, Visit England, pilots QR codes to provide tourists with further information about tourist attractions.

QR Codes in Tourism

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-14144014

Google commits to future in QR codes and buys loyalty card startup for what mobile marketing purpose?

GoogleGoes for QR Codes & Loyalty

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/google/google-acquires-qr-code-based-loyalty-card-startup-punchd/3120

Property being marketed in the US with QR Codes

QR Codes Grab More Attention

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jerry-chautin/boost-your-sales-with-qr-_b_896332.html

F1 at Silverstone Using QR Codes to collect customer feedback

Grand Prix Uses QR Codes for Information Collection

http://www.gomonews.com/silverstone-employs-qr-codes-for-customer-feedback/

Intel Invests in Mobile media marketing business

Intel invests in Mobile Media Marketing

http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2093331/intel-invests-mobile-marketing-outfit

Many consumers already think that they have 4G – could slow sales.

4G Costs and Issues

http://www.informationweek.com/byte/news/personal-tech/wireless/231001283

Mobile Commerce Popular Globally according to MEF

Mobile and mobile marketing are growing....

http://www.internetretailing.net/2011/07/consumers-embrace-mobile-commerce-globally-91-in-uk-and-79-in-brazil-have-used-mobile-to-engage-in-commerce/

UK Losing Out on £Millions Due to Spelling Mistakes

Paw spelling damages internet sale

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-14130854

Mobile Marketing news brought to you by Mobile Marketing UK

QR Codes fill the blanks

How many times have you found yourself struggling to write down a list of ingredients for a wonderful looking dish presented on a cooking show? Many of the recipes on cooking shows look so tempting and interesting to make – but it can be a challenge to get around to finding the recipe and making a note of what's required after the show. Well that could well be a thing of the past with a new concept, QR codes, that the BBC have started using.

QR Codes Feature in The Good Cook

'The Good Cook' show which is presented by Simon Hopkinson on Friday nights is the first television cooking programme that uses QR codes to provide details on the recipes shown.

The BBC have put their customers first by providing the convenience afforded by QR Codes. At the end of each recipe presentation a QR code is displayed that will take the viewer to the web page of the recipe where the viewer can find details of the ingredients and the preparation method for the dish. All the viewer needs to do is to hold their smartphone towards the television screen and read the QR code with their camera and use their QR reader.

With the BBC being a major brand, this says more than just convenience for viewers to us – it's another piece of 'proof of the pudding' that QR codes are becoming more established in the UK. We're looking forward to finding other innovative uses and we'll be bringing you any other new developments as they come about.

'The Good Cook' show is shown on BBC1 on Friday evenings and is also available on the BBC iPlayer. By the way – the recipes look delicious so even if you don't have a smartphone – then you might want to see what scrumptious recipes they have on offer.

Can you use QR Codes in your business?

QR codes or Quick Response codes, were first used by the Japanese in production to provide information for assembly line workers. QR codes can be used to send almost any information to mobile phones: from web links to videos and should feature in your mobile marketing armoury. How can you use QR codes to improve your customer's experience of your business? Maybe QR codes should stand for quality remdered!

Making shopping qr quicker

QR Codes in Action

Tesco are leading the way with online shopping in Korea, assisted by qr codes. Desperate to become the no 1 supermarket chain over their closest rival, Tesco Home Plus are doing all that they can to help consumers become customers. Tesco have devised a method to draw in more consumers without needing to increase the number of stores. Subway stations have become the ideal place to make up a shopping list as you'll see.

According to Forbes Magazine Koreans are one of the hardest working people on the planet. With time at such a premium, grocery shopping can be avoided by using a smartphone. Why go to the mountain when the mountain will come to Mohammed.

Virtual grocery stores have been set up in subway stations so that grocery shopping can be done whilst waiting for the train.

QR Codes Bring Shopping to the Consumer - where they want it!

Posters have been placed across walls to mirror what you would find in a supermarket. With aisles and shelves, the products are lined from top to bottom of the poster. The only difference being that you cannot pick up or touch the products – after all they are only an image. On each product you will find a QR code that can be scanned by the shopper with their smartphone camera. It's then added to the shopping list, can be paid for and then the groceries are delivered directly to the shopper's home. Yet another example of mobile marketing in fruitful action.

QR codes allow shopping lists to be made up at a number of locations, which are placed in convenient spots for shoppers. Gone are the days of lugging heavy shopping bags on the bus or train and then up flights of stairs to reach home.

The only downside of grocery shopping by this method is not being able to be specific about how ripe you like your fruit, or even how large you like your strawberries. You'll be on the receiving end of whatever somebody at the store chooses on your behalf. However, the convenience of shopping in this way would outweigh this small gripe.

It seems that you cannot see the nutritional facts about the product until you have scanned it either. Sometimes part of the pleasure of grocery shopping is looking at new products or brands that you haven't seen before. If somebody is in a hurry and just looking for convenience and standard food products, then this method would work well.

QR Codes in Shopping Heading to UK?

We've been wondering how long this will take to hit the tube stations in London. Will Tesco bring it over here for our own commuters? Of course, online shopping has been available for many years now, but not in this fashion. It's a whole new experience with the customer being able to pick out their choices as they walk down the virtual aisle.

Mobile commerce is in a very exciting growth phase right now and we're really enjoying watching the developments as companies find new ways to make the best of what is available from current technologies. Take a look for yourself on this video of the Tesco shopping aisles that we came across:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGaVFRzTTP4

What ideas have you got about how QR codes can be used?

QR codes bring everything to life!

QR (Quick Response) codes have been appearing on Japanese tombs for more than two years! If they can be used to help us celebrate the lives of those who went before, they most certainly can help people in every walk of life within our daily lives too.

QR codes can be read by smart phones, providing a link to a content that can be seen on a mobile phone browser. So the codes on the Japanese tombs enable visitors to see details of the deceased, photos, details of their life and maybe even video messages from beyond the grave!

Mobile marketing companies have been using QR codes for some time. But their use is not limited to company benefits. So how can QR codes by anyone in everyday life?

Listed below are 7 ideas of how you could use them to great advantage – use these ideas either directly or to act as prompts to encourage other thoughts of how you could use QR codes to help you send improved messages in many different ways.

1. CVs. Applying for a job? Why not attach a QR code to your CV to show additional information including: a photo, copies of certificates, pictures demonstrating achievements in previous tasks, anything that will lead to you getting an advantage over other candidates.
2. Invitations to birthday party celebrations. Show maps, directions to the venue, photos of the host, details of entertainers,
3. Wedding invitations: Maps/ directions to the church and the reception venue, seating arrangements, maybe photos of suggested wedding presents,
4. Birthday cards: designing your own card through an internet site? Why not add a QR code with a link to a video giving a personal birthday greeting.
5. Anniversary cards: Give your life partner a special video message – much better & certainly more personal than a verse written by someone else!
6. Letters to Friends: Include a link to a video or photographs to add colour and clarity to your message.
7. Complaints: Complaining about damage caused by tradesmen, poor quality equipment, broken deliveries? You don’t need to print out photos, simply transfer to a computer screen and create a QR code.

By the way, QR codes may be an excellent way to get messages to smart phone users with less than perfect sight. Record your message and send it as a pod cast.

How do you get a QR code?

It’s easy. There are many choices of provider out there. All you have to do is visit a site such as: http://www.qrstuff.com and follow the clear instructions. Please note we have no link with this company at all – so no ulterior motive in mentioning them. Google lists many more QR code providers!

Using this or one of many other providers you can send a straight text message or link to photographs, videos or other information stored elsewhere on the web.

To send a photo, open a free account with flickr, upload a photo and copy the URL (the web site address starting with HTTP: which is shown in the top bar of your computer page) into the QR reader and click to download your QR code. It is that simple.