Mind your Ps and Q...R Codes.
Huh? QR Code?
So it works like a bar code? But looks a wee bit snazzier? Is that the only difference? As the French would say…non.
QR codes were designed to hold more information than a barcode but still be decoded (meaning scanned by a reader and turned into info you and me can actually read) just as quickly. The typical barcode can only hold a maximum of 20 digits, whereas the QR-Code can hold up to 7,089 characters. Yes – exactly.
Who are they for?
Every smart-phone can download a free app which reads a QR code and opens up the information inside. These apps also let you make your own QR code so their popularity will grow exponentially we’d imagine, especially as it’s open to everybody – not just businesses.
They’re already widespread in Japan, soon they’ll be as familiar over here as the barcode we all know and love (or rather all know and ignore as it is so commonplace).
Where will I see them?
QR codes are becoming increasingly common in newspapers, in magazines, on signs…on the side of buses (yes indeed) – because they’re great for advertisements where space is pricey. Just as commonly they are appearing on business cards – where space is tight and a QR code will link people straight to your website – genius!
As you may have noticed we’ve recently created a QR code for our website, and our designer Polly has created us all our own QR code for our new business cards. But that’s where you have to…
Mind your Ps and Q…R Codes…
The QR code on our business cards is nice and chunky – Polly checked that it could be read by all smart-phones, even the oldies. Just yesterday, our Sales Consultant Will was given a business card from a marketing company of all places, with a QR code so small, we couldn’t even read it on a brand new top top top of the range phone with an 8 mega pixel camera!
So well done Polly – as ruthless as always with your attention to detail! And if you’re looking for a company to create your QR code and your business cards or postcards – come to us to get it done properly!