We all know that the world is becoming more mobile. While there are lots of ways to engage your customers in the mobile world, there is one way that stands out to me. It is a way that is even easy for the novice to implement. There are also no tools to buy so you can do it for free! So, what is it? It is the QR code.
You’re probably already familiar with QR codes, but if not, they’re the square barcodes like the one on my SteveBizBlog business card that drives prospects to my website.
I have advised clients to use them to make a game out of choosing a discount, which makes their engagement memorable and share-worthy. Another tactic is to provide a unique code to identify the source of a lead as part of the viable customer model or simply to create mystery and send them to a landing page.
QR codes are a simple mechanism to engage prospects and customers. It’s up to you to figure out how to use them to capture the visitor and drive them into your sales pipeline. The process is simple and straightforward. The first step is to create a website or landing page that is mobile friendly. Next, capture the URL and search the internet for one of the many free QR code generators such as http://www.qr-code-generator.com/.
Next paste the URL you copied into the text box, hit the enter key, and wallah! The app creates a unique QR code for you that you can download and use in your promotions.
There are lots of ways you can use QR codes for your business. To get your juices flowing, here are a few ideas as a starting point.
Outdoor Signage: Add your QR code to outdoor signage where people spend time waiting such as at bus stops, or train stations.
Instant Discount: Have a customer select from a few random QR codes printed on discount cards near your point of sale checkout. Scanning each card either produces a “try again” message or a specified dollar off or percent off savings discount to produce a word of mouth sharable experience.
Sign up Discount: Post a QR code at your point of sale checkout to allow customers to enter their cell phone number so they can download a one-time instant discount in exchange for their cell phone number and provider so you can send them future SMS announcements about special deals you have.
Networking Events: Want to stand out at your next networking event, add your name and QR code to an address label so you can stick it to your “Hello, My Name Is” tag. Encourage folks to scan it so they can friend you on LinkedIn or your Facebook business fan page.
Download Contact Info: Add your QR code to the collateral material so people can easily download your contact information to their smartphones.
Business Cards: Add a QR code to your business card so people can either instantly go to your website, dial your phone number, or send you an email rather than having to manually enter your URL, phone number, or email address from your card.
Create Mystery: Add a QR code to a question on promotional material or even a T-shirt so the viewer needs to scan the code to discover the answer.
Play a Video: Add a QR code to your packaging so a prospect can see a recorded demo of your product or see a special message you produced and uploaded to YouTube.
Play an Audio Message: Add a QR code to an ad to allow the prospect to hear your latest podcast.
Download a Report: Add a QR code to a mailing so your prospect can download a PDF file you prepared for them.
Take Payment: Display a QR code at your booth to take your customer to your shopping cart app so they can download or pay for your product by entering their Credit Card or PayPal information.
Training Event: Add a QR Code to make your next training event more engaging and fun. Allow participants to access additional information; it’s a terrific way to keep the audience engaged and involved.
There’s no real mystery to using QR codes to grow your business. All you have to do is generate the QR code and drop it into your material. Be creative! By using QR codes in unique ways, you can create a memorable interaction and be rewarded with shareable moments and customer loyalty.
How can you use a QR code in your business?
Please share your QR code ideas in the “Leave a Reply” section below.
