Bar Codes Tread New Tracking Ground
Running shoe company Brooks Sports is treading on new ground in mobile marketing. This month they launched a cool new mobile campaign to promote the new Ghost 3 running shoe. The campaign includes direct mail, interactive barcodes and a sweepstakes.
It seems that QR codes are quickly becoming a great way to truly bridge classic marketing standbys such as print advertising and in-store displays with mobile marketing. Brooks tapped Jagtag, an interactive barcode maker as well as the marketing agency of Marden Kane and retailer Finish Line to pull together a complete end-to-end promotion. The 2-D barcodes will appear on direct mail sent out to a database of 10,000 Finish Line customers as well as the shirts worn by the retailer's sales associates. Customers or even visitors who e-mail photos of the barcode will be entered to win prizes but the real purpose is to help engage current and potential customers as well as get better tracking on the direct mail campaign by measuring the video views and visitors to finishline.com. Better tracking. That’s an ROI we can all run with. The campaign is not only a great example of a new way to use QR codes to track campaign effectiveness, but it is also a great way to use the cool tracking technology to lead customers to more information.
From do-it-yourself stores, full feature kiosks to self-checkout lanes, it seems like a new self service option appear every week. And with the proliferation of smartphone use, it seems like a perfect opportunity to provide deeper product information or customized multimedia to shoppers while they are engaged with brands. User reviews, short videos and even product configurators can be instantly accessed with the camera scan of a barcode.
More and more print
ads like this one are allowing readers to quickly go to an advertiser’s
web site for more information, register for contest, or just brand-engage a little deeper
than print will allow.
QR code reading software is not only free for smartphones, it quickly becoming a part of application upgrades of existing smartphone programs such as Blackberry Messenger and iPhone.
QR codes are also gaining traction in outdoor as well. Forbes ran a piece on Calvin Klein for example is replacing their racy public billboards with QR codes. They recently replace billboards in NYC and LA. People just need to snap a quick mocile pic and they are taken to a 40 second commercial which I’m guessing is as saucy as they want.
And while QR codes are already all over the place in Japan, they are also starting to appear in print advertising. The NY Islanders are using QR codes too by offering free gifts to people who scan the QR codes that appear in theirupcoming print ads.
QR codes are even finding their way onto business cards. At the SXSW event this year QR codes appeared on flyers, postcards and even business cards allowing attendees to instantly follow people, events or organizations with a smiple camera click.
But to be clear, QR codes are not a new media. They are just a gateway from traditional to new. And as mobile marketing beings to take flight, I see QR codes definitely co-piloting the trip.
For a nice list (101 to be exact) of QR code application ideas, check out Dan Smigrod's piece.
