Overview

QR codes are small square graphic designs which are similar to a bar code.  The difference is QR codes can be scanned by a client’s smart phone and used to display text to the user, activate an application on a smart phone, add a vCard contact to the user's device, open a URL or compose and send an email or SMS text message, or provide your phone number.  QR codes, as well as your email address and web URL, should be printed on every piece of marketing collateral, put on your websites, included in your emails and any place else you enter your business information.  What you want the code to open or do depends on the campaign or marketing objective.

A QR code enables you to bookmark an ECB web page with your mobile phone quickly and easily. URLs can can sometimes be which make it very cumbersome to type in, especially on a cell phone. There are tools you can use to shorten a url but that's only part of a solution but leaves you without the advantages and benefits of using a QR code. With a QR code there is no need to type the any of the URL into your phone, instead you simply scan the image using a smart phone. Your phone reads it, converts it back into a URL and stores it as a bookmark. Then you can use your phone to go online to that page.

What you need in order to use read QR-Codes:

• You will need a smart phone, meaning its enabled with special technological advances over that of a typical standard cell phone, and usually comes as a camera capable phone.

• Your mobile smart phone will have to have extended services from your cell phone provider with internet access in order to utilize the internet functions, of which without you wouldn't be able to download the necessary apps in order to read the QR codes anyway.

• You will also need a QR code reader downloaded and installed on the phone. These can be obtained through your cell phone provider or through an app manager whch is preinstalled on your cell phone.

QR codes are small graphics which can be customized with colors or background images on them as well. The Museum of Fine Arts in VA used an image of Picasso on a promotion poster, the one posted on the left, which is made up of only QR codes to display the image. Each QR square brings up a different URL which takes the user to a different piece of information about the exhibit.

One of the best things about QR-Codes is not needing to scan them from any specific angle. QR-Codes are able to scan omnidirectionally, meaning in 360 degree’s, with high-speed recognition. There are three main squares on the QR-Code which tell scanners the exact way to decode the content within the QR-Code symbol.

QR-Codes vs Bar Codes

Bar Codes can only hold a maximum of 20 digits while QR-Codes can hold up to 7,089 characters. So obviously, size does matter. It matters because it allows QR-Codes to do things Bar Codes never dreamed possible.

One other main reason is due to the fact Bar Codes are linerar and can only scan in one direction. QR-Codes can be scanned either horizontal or vertical.

There is also a smaller version of the QR-Code which is called a Micro QR-Code. A Micro Code is 1/10 the size of a typical Bar Code and can hold as just as much data. This is similar to early hard drives which could hold up to 25 mgs, which we thought was massive at the time, compared to a 4 32 gig flash drive.