Blog Chat: Are You Confused About QR Codes?

Last month in her Navigating Off the Napkin blog for FundRaising Success, data maven Angie Moore confessed to being completely confused by QR (quick response) codes.

Moore … and a lot of other people, if we’re being honest.

From her post: “From a marketing perspective, QR codes are about helping a constituent quickly access information. But, in reality, there is an engagement that is the true measure of success. Did the constituent spend time on the site or interact with the information he or she accessed? The metrics are extremely important for this marketing tool, but the strategy is as well. Why do you want to use the QR code? What are you trying to accomplish with your constituents?”

Following are some of the comments the post attracted:

“I use QR codes for the convenience of the end-user only. Rather than have someone enter a long, specific URL into their mobile device browser, a QR code takes them there immediately. I find it most helpful for sites that share site maps, parking arrangements, event pricing, surveys and general information.”
— Brenda Rouse

“Brenda, thanks for the reply — would love for you to send me some of the specific examples. Sounds like they work well for events.”
— Angie Moore

“Without some compelling reason to use the ugly QR code, they just stay ugly. As a consultant to many nonprofits I have tried to tie them to good uses but it seems it always falls short since the nonprofit has not built a mobile landing page that is legible on the smartphone, a very key interaction ingredient.”
— Steven Schnoll

“The problem with QR codes is that people that create them can wind up sending people to their PC site on their phone. Horrible experience. If the QR code can take someone to a mobile-optimized site, problem solved. As to Steve’s comment, there are services out there that can empower the nonprofit to create their own branded, mobile-optimized site, with responsive design. You don’t have to like the look of QR codes, but when they are used correctly, they bloody well work.”
— Lance L