Do QR Codes and Real Estate For Sale Signs Really Go Together?

Don't use technology just for technology's sake. It feels that's what some REALTORS® are doing with QR (quick response) codes on their For Sale signs.

There's always some new gadget being promoted to REALTORS® as the hot new thing that will enable us to gain more attention and more clients. QR codes are everywhere and real estate is no exception. To use a QR code, you point your smartphone at the QR code and your QR reader quickly scans the code and gives you the option to open, email, copy or share the website, pictures, contact information or whatever the originator has created. We made two generic ones that are pictured here in about 15 minutes. But you can make them in different colors and have unique designs overlaid.

When a QR code is on a For Sale sign is someone going to actually slow down or stop long enough to figure out how to point their phone at the QR code to have the site downloaded? Yes. Someone will, but Bob and I believe we will reach more people with a home web address like www.284StCloud.info with our phone number on the sign. By the time someone pulls over, snaps a QR code, etc. they could have remembered an address, wrote it down or recorded it in their phones without ever stopping. 

For those who say add a QR code and web address and phone number and name all on the sign rider. We say, less is more. It's important to have as much white space on the sign with the largest letters to make the sign easy to read.

We also know you're missing a big part of the marketplace if you use your For Sale sign rider to put a QR code instead of the house website. Many still aren't aware of what a QR code is or what to do with it, but they know a web address. I was at a meeting last week amongst business professionals in the area where QR codes came up. Many didn't have a clue what a QR code was or meant, or how it could enhance their business. The web address also allow passerbys to easily see the address and start saying it in their minds.

I know many REALTORS® feel throwing a QR code on the For Sale sign makes them look hip and on top of the latest technology, too. Demonstrating you know how to use technology in creative ways shows you're hip and technology-savvy, not that you're just using it. It's the same thing as saying "I can get your home listed on over a dozen internet sites, so I know how to promote your home online." Well, not exactly. All of us know about 90% of home buyers search online first and foremost so having a home on at least a dozen internet sites at this point is basic. How do you now harness the power of the internet beyond that? The answer isn't, "well I post to 20." Answering this question well is what shows we're very technology-savvy and is a big point of difference in a homeowner choosing a REALTOR® for a successful sale.

When a QR code is used, it should be useful. Give me a value add somehow. For example, Bob and I have QR codes on the back of our business cards. They allow a person to download our contact information onto their phone right on the spot, which is also a very green thing to do. I used it this weekend at our public open house. Someone wanted to follow-up with me and since our conversation led me to believe he used technology a lot, I joked that instead of taking my card he can just download my info into his phone so he can easily reach me about the real estate topic we were discussing. He did. He liked it. He thought that was cool.

QR codes have a place in the real estate industry, but I'm not sure if it's on the For Sale sign. I know I’m going to get blasted for this and I can't wait to see one used on a For Sale sign in a way that proves me wrong, but just because we can do something does not mean we need to really do it. Using technology just for technology's sake can be a waste of time, money and opportunity lost. As REALTORS® Bob and I make sure we're using technology and not letting it use us.