2D Bar Code Strategy

Valiant Entertainment, the character-based publishing and licensing company, recently announced the placement of a  QR Code on the front cover of its upcoming X-O Manowar comic book, which is scheduled to be released in May.


When the reader of the comic book scans the QR Code, he/she is linked to a 47-second You Tube video, which depicts the mouth of X-O Manowar talking about the upcoming story. Once the video starts to play, the reader is supposed to hold their smartphone over the highlighted area on the comic book's front cover, so it appears as though X-O Manowar is actually speaking.

Is this an original use of QR Codes? Not really, as this technique has been seen before, but I'll tell you what it is, it's first mover advantage. Valiant claims this to be the first use of QR Codes, in this manner, within the comic book industry and, if that's true, then more power to them and the media attention they can garner from it.

From a public relations perspective, being a 2D technology first mover or creating a truly innovative 2D campaign can do wonders for an advertiser with respect to generating media attention (and subsequently consumer attention) and, I believe, this is often overlooked from a strategic perspective when advertisers consider using 2D technology. If there is a story leverage it.

Back to the scan resolve content for a moment. While I know what the code has been set up to do, I wonder why the company stops there. At the end of the video, there are no links to share content, learn more about the comic book's main character(s), where to purchase, etc., etc. Why not enrich the brand and/or character interaction that much more?

Could the company offer more in the way of value and benefit via the QR Code, sure, but I believe the PR angle wins the day.

2D Barcode Litmus Test: PASS

Icelandair has a new out-of-home campaign which makes use of a QR Code. This billboard was found on the side of a New York City phone booth kiosk.


When the consumer scans the rather dense (I'll get back to that in a minute) QR Code, he/she is brought to a page on the desktop version of the company's website titled "Netclub Signup." Once on the page, the consumer is prompted to provide an email address in exchange for the latest travel fares and special offers. Gee, how original. How meaningful. How valuable. How boring. Is this the best the company can come up with? Sure, it's one thing to request an email address and try to build a list, but it's another to truly engage with a potential customer and attempt to win them over and earn their business. I see none of that here, do you? Also, why not optimize the mobile experience and send the consumer to a mobile website?

Beyond the scan resolve, I question the call-to-action, which reads, "Sign up for the latest fares and special deals to Iceland and beyond from Icelandair." Does the company really believe they are going to drive traffic with a call-to-action as basic as this?

With respect to the QR Code, why generate a dense code, one that is potentially difficult to scan, instead of a more simplistic code? Instead of using a 132-character URL address to generate the code, the marketing team could have shortened the URL to just 20 characters (give or take depending on the shortener used). The look of the code would be cleaner and the scan success rate would be higher.

Lastly, to know the uniqueness of a travel destination like Iceland, I would think the company's marketing team and/or its agency could have developed a more fun, different and engaging campaign that would accomplish the objective of building a list and that much more. Heck, at the very minimum, develop a campaign worth sharing with others.

2D Barcode Litmust Test: FAIL

Since the beginning of the year, I have noticed more and more Twitter hashtags being used in various advertising channels (e.g., print, out-of-home, television) and I wonder, will this interactive marketing tactic fare any better or any differently than mobile barcodes?


From a fundamental marketing perspective, hashtags and mobile barcodes serve very much the same purpose, meaning they are both tools (tactics) by which an advertiser can use to engage and interact with a target audience. Additionally, they both enable consumers in the target audience a means by which to share the brand, product, service and/or user experience socially with others. While some might believe the similarities end here, I don't believe they do and here's why. Just as with mobile barcodes, there are a number of nuances or obstacles, call them what you may, with hashtags that need to be addressed in order for them to be a truly effective marketing tool. Some of these nuances/obstacles include the following:

1. Consumer Adoption. The majority of the American public are not registered users of Twitter so, by default, they probably have little or no idea of what hashtags are, how they are used and what they represent. Even of the registered and active users of Twitter, not everyone is familiar with hashtags. Question: How or why make use of a marketing tactic that only speaks to a select few?
2. Education. Of the hashtags that I have seen in advertisements, promotions, etc., none have been displayed with educational copy to help consumers learn about hashtag "technology" and how to make use of it. Question: If a large portion of the consuming public has limited or no knowledge of Twitter hashtags then is it the responsibility of the advertiser to educate potential users?
3. App Use. In order to interact with a Twitter hashtag, a consumer needs to first download an app to his/her mobile phone and then launch the app to reply to the hashtag. Question: Is it up to the advertiser to suggest which app to download and how to interact with the hashtag?
4. Connectivity.  Many of the hashtags that I have seen have been displayed on out-of-home billboards which are located in areas with no Internet connectivity (e.g., subway). Question: Does it make sense for advertisers to assume that consumers are going to remember the hashtag, so that the hashtag can be accessed or interacted with at a later point in time (e.g., once out of the subway)?
5. Call-to-action. A fundamental aspect of advertising and promotion is the call-to-action but, with the vast majority of the hashtags that I have seen, not one has had a call-to-action or descriptive copy informing the consumer what the hashtag represents. Question: Would hashtags be more effective with a call-to-action? Is a call-to-action even necessary?
6. Expectations. As with other forms of interactive advertising and/or media, consumers expect certain results to happen. Question: With no call-to-action, no descriptive copy, etc., how does an advertiser plan to manage consumer expectations involving a hashtag?
7. Post-interaction. After a consumer Tweets to the hashtag, what happens then? Question: How does the advertiser respond to consumers taking the time and making the effort to spark or share a conversation about their brand, product or service via the hashtag? Should there be any reward for replying to the hashtag?
8. Metrics. As with most other forms of advertising and promotion, ROI is being scrutinized. Question: How does the advertiser monitor, measure and assess hashtag ROI and plan for next steps? Does it make sense to test hashtag copy?

Do any of these comments and/or questions sound familiar? Many of them should, especially if you work with or have considered mobile barcodes for your marketing and advertising.

While the use of hashtags may make perfect sense from one brand, industry, audience and/or objective to another, in the long run, I do not believe they will fair any better or much differently than mobile barcodes, as a marketing tool or tactic, primarily for the reasons cited above. By this, please do not misinterpret what I am trying to say. Just as with mobile barcodes, there is certainly a time and place for hashtags, just as long as they are correctly formulated, implemented and monitored.

Please share any insights that you may have on hashtag marketing.

Recently, I saw this "interactive" print advertisement for Beauty Bar and, while clever, I am not really sure what to make of it.

Printed in the center of the page, on the woman's face, are the following "interactive" instructions: 1. Go to beautybar.com/now on your smartphone browser. 2. Place smartphone here. 3. See today's look applied. Simple, right? Wrong. I followed the instructions and attempted to "interact" several times, but nothing appeared on the screen. Frustrated, I went to my laptop and typed in the URL address given in the instructions. Here, I was able to see what I should have been able to see on my smartphone, which was a rotation of six different images of the model in the print advertisement, where each image portrayed the model in a different look (i.e., different makeup). 


As I said, a clever use of a smartphone, but too bad the interactive experience never materialized as intended. But, even if the experience worked, I wonder how the company would enable the reader of the ad to read and learn more about their products, purchase the products and/or share the content/mobile experience with others. Also, where would the value and benefit have been for the reader? Was a purchase discount being offered, exclusive content, anything?  


Questions to the marketing/creative team: Did you consider using a mobile barcode or a digital watermark?  Did you find codes or watermarks too involved or too costly? Did you actually test the resolve mechanism?  Was this developed in-house or via an agency or vendor? Were any objectives set for the campaign?

Question for the players at home: Do you believe we see more of this interactive strategy or does it fall by the wayside?

While this is not a true 2D barcode campaign, it strives to be interactive, but fails. Sorry.

2D Barcode Litmus Test: FAIL

Read about "Getting it Right the First Time with 2-D Codes" in the latest issue of The Seybold Report, a subscription-paid newsletter for the publishing and printing industries.

The first part of the article discusses 2DCertified, the mobile barcode certification program developed by Print2D, and the second part of the article, written by me, discusses how to get better results from a mobile barcode campaign.

Enjoy. 

The other day, I walked past a retail store here in New York called NY Cake. See anything interesting in the store's front window? Did you find the QR Code? If it weren't that I'm always searching for mobile barcodes chances are I would have walked right past this one (look to the right of the sign in the center).


Not only is the code somewhat hidden against a busy backdrop of colors, shapes and patterns, but there is also no call-to-action, no incentive, no descriptive copy associated with the code, nothing. So, even if I spotted the code, why would I, or anyone else for that matter, bother to scan it?


Out of curiosity, I scanned the code and was brought to the desktop version of the company's website, gee, big surprise there. But, why? Why, if I am standing right outside of the company's store, am I being linked (pushed) to the company's website? Doesn't NY Cake realize my proximity to the store based on my interaction with the code in the window? Certainly they should. Instead of linking to the company's website, why not provide me with an offer or incentive to walk into the store and do some shopping right then and there?

In situations like this, it is clear that companies are using mobile barcodes with no thought, strategy or objectives involved. All they want to do is use 2D technology to appear hip and cool. Can there be any other explanation?

To use mobile barcodes effectively, companies must take into consideration the proximity of the consumer and view the campaign from the consumer's perspective, not their own. Also, a campaign objective would go a long way to ensure that the mobile experience is one that makes sense, is relevant and offers some value or benefit for the consumer. Pretty simple, isn't it?

2D Barcode Litmus Test: FAIL

Scottrade, the financial services company, recently tried their hand at using a QR Code and, guess what, it fails.

The size and placement of the QR Code is fine, but there are two other components of the advertisement that I question. First, the call-to-action (Scan now and get up to $100 back in account transfer fees**) is somewhat appealing, but why the asterisks? Oh, right, the regulatory disclosure needs to be pointed out and mentioned. Not sure about you, but as soon as I see an asterisk next to an offer that offer immediately loses value and meaning. In this case, there is a certain minimum that needs to be invested in order for the offer to hold. Why not offer something that does not require regulatory oversight? What ever happened to the free toaster?


Second, when the reader of the advertisement scans the code, the resolve links to the corresponding product page on the desktop version of the company's website. Sure there is a lot of information on the page, but there is no direct tie-in and/or reinforcement of the message found in the print advertisement. Question to the company's marketing team, have you ever heard of or made use of a customized landing page and a mobile one at that? With such a page, the graphical imagery found in the print ad could have been used as a tie-in, there could have been a clearer reiteration of the promotional offer and the ability to make an investment could have been simpler. Also, by using different landing pages, perhaps the company could have tested one version versus another, and determined if one version resonated more with consumers and pulled a higher response rate.


Simple in theory, yet so many companies just want to ignore the basics when making use of 2D technology. Is the marketing team really jazzed by a $100 promotional offer with strings attached, or was this just the easiest offer to make? Are they glad they went to the desktop version of the company's website after scanning the code with their mobile phone? You be the judge, or we can let the consumer do the talking and see just how many took Scottrade up on their offer.

2D Barcode Litmus Test: FAIL

About two months ago, Microsoft Tag announced that their proprietary Tag reader app will be able to scan and decipher open source QR Codes but, since then, the Tag group has been awfully quiet.

Prior to the announcement, there was almost daily activity on Microsoft Tag's blog, but now there's hardly an update and, if there is, it's in relation to their NFC offering. In addition to the blog, the group's LinkedIn group and Twitter account have also gone quiet as of late.

What I also find strange is that on the blog, there is mention that QR Codes can be generated, but no where on the site can this be done. From what I can tell, only Tags can be generated and tracked.  

Microsoft Tag, anything you wish to share?

You can't blame them for trying.

Recently, Sports Illustrated announced the use of digital watermarks in the soon-to-be-released 2012 swimsuit issue, as a means to enhance the reader experience. Two years ago, Sports Illustrated used JAGTAGs in the swimsuit issue, and last year the publication used Microsoft Tags. This year, it seems as though the magazine wants to offer its readership an interactive experience again, and with digital watermarks they believe it will be easier for readers to understand and make use of the interactive technology. With a digital watermark, which is invisible to the naked eye, a reader can hover their smartphone camera over any portion of the targeted content, as opposed to focusing in and scanning on a specific barcode (QR Code, Microsoft Tag, etc.) symbol. Additionally, the scan time is suppose to be quicker with a watermark versus a mobile barcode, but I have yet to experience this for myself.
An app will be needed to scan one of the 19 digital watermarked pieces of content in the issue, and Sports Illustrated has developed an app for both Android and iOS model phones.

While the digital watermark technology, which has been supplied by Digimarc, is new in the swimsuit issue, the company that spearheaded the campaign, Nellymoser, is not. Last year, Nellymoser was behind the scenes helping SI with the integration of Mircosoft Tags.

Over the next few weeks, it will be interesting to read about and hear the buzz that this campaign generates. Stay tuned.