The answer is YES!
It may seem intuitive, and you’ve also probably heard it before. But without the ability to measure, track, and analyze the success of your marketing efforts, you are not producing the most effective campaigns possible. This principle applies to all facets of marketing – email, social media, print ads, direct mail, websites, and even QR codes. Measuring the success of the QR codes you generate can provide necessary insights into your target audience’s preferences.
Take for instance a QR code strategically placed in the center of a print advertisement on a city bus. At first you might think, “What’s the big deal? Either people scan the code or they don’t.” This couldn’t be further from an effective analysis. Being able to track the number of QR code scans, what time of day it’s being scanned, and what mobile devices are being used can go a long way for the company’s marketing department. They’ll be able to understand more about the preferences of their target audience, and overall how eye-catching and appealing the advertisement was. Essentially this means that the analytical assessment performed on the QR code improved the ROI of the print advertisement as a whole.
Still not convinced that having trackable QR codes is a worthwhile investment? Consider these 4 common scenarios and applications of QR codes from a marketing perspective:
- A restaurant places a QR code on the front cover of their takeout menu. The ability to monitor QR codes will allow them to view the most popular time of day that people are reading their menu and geographic locations of scanners. This means that they’d be able to see which surrounding towns or areas most of their clientele is located.
- A print service provider decides to design and distribute a self-promotional direct mail piece to a list of prospective clients. They utilize PURLs for each recipient, and link those PURLs to QR codes. The reporting for this type of campaign will give the company’s marketing and sales team insights into who scanned the code thus meaning that they have shown interest in their services, or at least took the time to read the marketing collateral.
- A hair salon places a QR code on each section of their handout brochure. One code is located on each panel, and leads to a webpage that lists more information on the particular service listed on the panel. While the salon owners may already understand that their target audience consists of middle-aged females, they may not know which service is attracting the most clients. Or, a lack of scans on one particular panel could allude to the fact that they need stronger content supporting that service, since few clients are scanning the code to learn more about it.
- An association decides to utilize QR codes to monitor attendance at their annual conference. A QR code is generated for each attendee’s name badge. When each individual arrives and departs, they scan the code on their nametag. The reporting for these codes will reflect who arrived, how many times an attendee came or left, the actual time of arrival, and mobile devices used for scanning. All of this information could be invaluable to the planning committee for next year’s annual event.
The bottom line is don’t underestimate the value of analytics, especially when it comes to QR codes and printed collateral. Selecting a QR code generator with tracking features is a sure-fire way to ensure that your campaigns are being viewed consistently by your intended audience.
By signing up for a plan with QReate & Track, you are giving your marketing team the power to track the effectiveness of their QR code campaigns. Our smallest plan option allows for the creation of up to 5,000 QR codes EACH MONTH along with reporting capabilities all for $19.00/month! In case you’re still not convinced of the importance of tracking QR codes, here’s a quick listing of all the reporting that is included with our analytics feature:
- Location
- Scanning volume per day
- Scanning volume per hour
- Devices being used to scan
- Total number of scans
- Reporting in both graphical/web and Excel formats
So stop delaying… it’s inexpensive and easy to get your marketing campaigns back to a measurable success!
