Have you seen odd squares with random maze-like hieroglyphics? Known as QR (Quick Response Codes), they are in magazines, storefront windows, websites, transit bus and subway signs. Created by a subsidiary of Toyota in 1994 to track box contents, the codes 
have been adapted by companies to market their goods and services.
Smart phones can scan the codes and direct the customer to your website. It is a quick and easy way to pull customers to your website–enticing them to take immediate action while reading a magazine in line at a grocery store or going through a drive-thru line. Companies have started to use these QR codes to offer coupons or special offers.
Fox Television has its own set of QR codes that allow you access to “insider content, videos, first-look photos, show secrets, behind-the-scenes footage or exclusive cast interviews.” GameStop started a new partnership with Del Taco, which allows customers to get discounts when they find a QR code on the back of a Del Taco cup.
Overall, QR codes can be a useful and interactive marketing tool. The benefits: they are free, they drive traffic, and though QR codes were once unique, the QR is being challenged by Microsoft tags that are characterized by colored triangles or dots. These codes can hold more information than first-generation QRs, and were first used to encode human DNA.
For more on mobile marketing tools, visit Build Your Brand and Design an App.
