QR Codes For Business

QR Codes were first created in 1994 by a subsidiary of Toyota to be used for tracking parts in the vehicle manufacturing process. They are a form of two-dimensional graphical type symbols that are used to deliver a variety of information that can be easily read by scanner equipment.

The two-dimensional effect is caused because QR Codes can deliver detailed data both in horizontal and vertical patterns. Because of the combination of both horizontal and vertical data delivery, QR Codes can carry up to several hundred times the amount of information delivered by ordinary bar codes.

QR Codes have come a long way since those early days, with businesses around the globe using them to deliver information to their prospective and current clients and customers.

Japan is still the world leader in QR Code usage, with all cell phones having the ability to read and decipher them. An example of how widespread and accepted QR Codes are in Japan is reflected in their use as giant billboards on the side of buildings. Here in the U.S., these codes are scanned using a smart phone app.

Large corporation such as Disney, Calvin Klein, McDonald’s, Pepsi, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Home Depot and many more use QR Codes to deliver such content as menu nutritional information, new fashion line demo videos, product descriptions and specifications, etc. A good example of this can be found by visiting your local Home Depot's power tools section. You will find QR Codes on the descriptive pricing label for each tool.

QR codes can be used in a wide variety of ways by local businesses, as well, including business cards, flyers, posters, websites, menus, invoices, local cable TV ads, contests, product labeling, storefront displays, provide discounts and coupons, giveaways, prints on T-shirts and many more. Imagination and creativity are the only things limiting how a local business can leverage QR Codes to expand their business.

In my next post, I will discuss exactly what type of information can be delivered using QR Codes, discuss more examples of how they are being used locally, and show how you can create them for your local business free of charge.