Building your own small business is no easy task, and marketers and business owners are constantly on the lookout for new things that can help improve certain business processes. One such thing is a QR codes for business purposes. In this article, we’ll go over the notion of a QR code and how to use QR codes for your business.
What is a QR code?
A QR code (also known as a Quick Response code) is a type of matrix barcode that contains data that can be read by an imaging device, usually, it’s a smartphone camera. QR codes typically contain alphanumeric characters and can be used to store URLs, contact information, or other types of data. When scanned, a QR code can be used to quickly access the data stored within it.
Uses for QR codes in business
QR codes are used by a wide range of businesses, from small local businesses to large corporations. Businesses use QR codes for a variety of purposes, including providing product information, offering promotional discounts, tracking customer interactions, and more. Here is how you can effectively use QR codes whether you have a restaurant or a flower shop:
- Provide customers with access to product information, reviews, or other useful content.
- Allow customers to quickly access promotional discounts, offers, giveaways or other incentives.
- Track customer interactions and collect customer data for marketing purposes.
- Add a contactless payment option for customers (this one is especially useful in the era of the coronavirus pandemic).
- Provide customers with direct access to a business website or social media page (it’s an excellent way to grow your social media following and improve your SMM strategy).
If your company is a non-profit organization, or maybe you are running a fundraising campaign, you can opt for business cards for fundraising with QR codes. People interested in your cause can scan the QR code and get additional information, or make a donation through a secure payment system integrated into your landing page.
Entrepreneurs and gurus can provide access to their online courses using a catchy call to action and a well-placed QR code.
How to set up QR codes for business
To get the best results while using QR codes, it’s important to follow some essential best practices on how to set up QR codes for your business:
- Create a unique URL for each QR code and make sure that the link is relevant to the code’s purpose.
- Use clear and concise messages or labels to explain the purpose of the QR code.
- Provide a call-to-action to encourage users to scan the code.
- Track the performance of each QR code to measure its effectiveness.
- Ensure that the destination landing page is optimized for mobile devices.
- Keep the design of the QR code simple and consistent with your brand.
- Test the QR code and its landing page before you show it to your customers.
- Place the QR code in a visible location that is easy to scan. These can be store counters, restaurant tables, café windows or entrances, etc.
How to get QR codes for your business
Suppose you decided to give this QR code idea a try, and you are wondering how to create QR codes for business cards, for instance. There are actually a number of tools that can help you generate and manage QR codes for your enterprise in particular.
Popular tools include Google’s Chart API, QR Code Generator, and Visualead. These tools allow you to easily generate and customize QR codes, track their performance, and more. Additionally, many software services and platforms (such as Square and Shopify) offer built-in QR code generation and tracking tools.
Using QR codes for small business marketing
Businesses can use QR codes for marketing in a variety of ways, including on business cards, flyers, store signage, and other print advertising. QR codes can provide customers with easy access to a business website, sales chatbot, product landing page, coupons, or other promotions.
By using a QR code scanner, customers can quickly access the data stored within the code. This provides businesses with an easy way to track metrics such as the number of scans, scan demographics, and best/worst performing campaigns. Business owners and marketers can generate leads that came to a customer support chatbot or a landing page from a QR code. This customer data can then be stored within your CRM. You can later use this data to improve future marketing campaigns by means of segmentation and personalization. What is more, businesses can use QR codes to provide customers with a convenient way to access product information, reviews, testimonials, giveaways, and such.
Summing up
Trying new things to better your business is definitely a good thing. Means you don’t want to settle. The same goes for creating QR codes for business, be it a small coffee shop or foreign language school that wants to attract new students.
QR codes have many benefits for businesses of any size. Especially, taking into consideration the fact that some QR code generators provide their services for free, which is always good for your ROI.
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