We have much to cover, so we’ll jump right into the action. Our focus this week is all about leveling up your QR code usage. 

If you missed last week’s primer on QR codes, check it out here.

QR codes are a breeze to create. Tools like QR Code Monkey and Canva (both free) are great places to start. QR.io and Flowcode are more premium options that allow you to create dynamic QR codes (more to come on these shortly) and use API integrations to facilitate more advanced use cases. 

Start by picking the “style” of QR code, which is used to tell the scanning device what to do (browse to a URL, send an email, send a text message, etc.). Then enter the output information (URL, message to send, etc.) and customize with your colors and logo. 

QR codes have two primary benefits: 

QR codes can be produced in two different forms: static and dynamic. 

Static QR codes are typically free to create, but are a bit more limited in their use. They cannot be edited once created, can be more challenging for devices to scan, and do not track scans. QR codes work best in situations that don’t require frequent editing, like directing users to a fixed URL. We’ll also cover a trick in bit that you can use to work around the shortcomings that using static QR codes presents. 

Dynamic QR codes can be edited after being created, scan more quickly for the user, and enable scan tracking and analytics. Dynamic URLs work best for creating highly-customized QR codes with directives that may change over time. Additionally, the scan tracking can be quite helpful for QR codes that direct the user to something other than a web page.

When using QR codes, you want to embrace your inner marketer. Or maybe that’s just what I tell myself so I have an excuse to use my long-dormant marketing degree 😉. 

QR codes are most successful when they are used to facilitate the primary call to action. The call to action is what we want the recipient to do. Typically, this is to make a payment, but it could also be to visit a website/online banking, download an app, access a document for signature, call/text us, etc.  All good calls to action are clearly communicated. Think obvious and attention grabbing.

There are some best practices that you should always adopt when using QR codes: