
Dear Marketers: Enough with the QR codes - kposehn
http://www.sheldoncomics.com/archive/120618.html
======
asolove
I think this boils down to the basic rule: don't disrespect your audience.

I keep going to meetings where people suggest using QR codes to advertise a
product. And I ask the obvious question: when have you ever scanned a QR code
and learned about/bought something? No one can ever answer. But there's a
vague sense that somewhere, out there, "those people" are using QR codes.

What's funny is no one seems to know who this is. Among the hip, young, techy
people at a startup, it is assumed QR codes are for technically-illiterate old
people who don't know what a URL is. Among well-dressed, professional adults,
it is assumed they are for all the young, hip people with their smartphone
addictions.

I assume someone uses QR codes, but I don't know who, and I don't see why they
are popping up in so many places.

~~~
brk
_when have you ever scanned a QR code and learned about/bought something?_

Shopping for dishwashers in-store, even after doing lots of online research.
The in-store display tags have very minimal info. Best Buy has/had a QRCode on
each product that took you to a webpage for that item with a lot more info,
reviews, etc. It was one of the main reasons I actually bought a dishwasher AT
Best Buy instead of elsewhere.

~~~
Angostura
Wouldn't it have bee just as effective to have

<http://bestbuy.com/12345> on the label.

~~~
brk
Not really because then I have to type a bunch of characters instead of just
clicking a button.

QR Codes are nice macros, in the right places. They don't necessarily belong
on every uncovered surface, but in many cases they can transfer a relatively
large amount of data quickly and easily.

I think we're still figuring out QR Codes and the proper applications of them.
I remember usenet discussions in 1996 asking "Why did Ford put a URL in their
commercial? Why do I need/want that? What do I do with it?"...

~~~
will_work4tears
I guess I'm old and inept, but I've never gotten a QR code to scan properly
with a "click of a button."

~~~
commandar
Odd. I've never had any trouble scanning them, even on my old G1. The camera
on that thing had trouble with normal UPCs at times.

------
heyrhett
This is one of my favorite tumblrs:
<http://picturesofpeoplescanningqrcodes.tumblr.com/>

~~~
sharkweek
it took me far too long to get the joke

~~~
cwe
ah, thank you. Always been confused by this.

------
masukomi
Japan has been using QR codes respectfully, and usefully, for years now.

People don't scan them in the US because most people don't seem to have a clue
what they are. If we spend any freaking time educating the public about what
they are and how to use them ( and stopped using those damn proprietary
variants) then we'd see a lot of value come out of them.

You don't like QR codes? Fine, then give me some %#$%@$ alternative that
allows me to get people from the print version of my stuff to the online
version without them having to type in some long string of characters on a
weeeee little phone keyboard that everyone makes typos on constantly.

Until someone comes up with a better alternative, maybe we should stop railing
against them and start learning how to use them intelligently and
respectfully, while making it easy for our audience to consume them.

Telling a spectacular story, as the comic suggests, wouldn't get people to my
site nearly as well as a button on the paper that they could reach down and
push.

QR codes aren't doing a great job of getting people their either, because
instead of educating people about how useful they are and what to do with
them, we're letting marketers use them without a freaking clue, while the
clueful sit around bitching about them without offering any good alternative.

~~~
mojuba
> then give me some %#$%@$ alternative that allows me to get people from the
> print version of my stuff to the online version

I think a plain URL printed with some agreed OCR-friendly font would do the
job much better than the ugly, unfriendly, redundant and unintuitive QR bars.

~~~
ColinWright
Do you have a really good OCR app that's 99.9% reliable? Or are you suggesting
a non-existent solution to a problem that already has a solution?

------
canthonytucci
Why is is so cool to hate on QR codes lately? I've heard Merlin Mann and Marco
Arment rag on them pretty often on their podcasts. I don't get it. No matter
how ugly, it's still a better way for me to get to your website/app from a
physical item (bottle of wine, print ad, whatever) than having me type out a
URL....sure they are stuck a bunch of places that make them ugly or
inconvenient to actually read....but so are URLs and phone numbers. I'm way
more likely to scan a code than open a browser and type out a URL or even
worse make a note/take a picture to remember to look something up later,
there's pretty much no chance at all that I will call a phone number if that's
all that is listed. The code (when implemented properly) takes me directly to
what I want with almost zero effort on my part.

But I may be some kind of weirdo, I think think QR codes are kinda cool
looking anyway, at least more so than (800)-999-9999 or <http://www.foo.bar>

~~~
anigbrowl
Karma-whoring, pure and simple. You can always get upvotes (facebook likes,
pageviews) for being cantankerous.

~~~
Gigablah
Yeah, pretty funny how that comic was ragging on QR codes and marketers, yet
the whole page was half covered by advertisements.

------
ColinWright
I scan QR codes regularly and find them incredibly useful. Poster about
something I might be interested in? Instead of typing error-prone-fully on my
stupid tiny keyboard, I point, scan, check the URL looks sane, then go to the
web site. Sometimes I take a photo and deal with it later.

Please, don't take away features I like and use just because you think no one
uses them.

Instead of hating on them so much, show how genuinely clever you are and
figure a way to make use of the technology, otherwise you're just like a
eunuch in a harem, pointing, observing, and criticizing, without actually
being able to do anything.

~~~
rprospero
I think a lot of hate comes from the fact that I've never encountered a QR
code where I couldn't have typed in the URL on my stupid-tiny keyboard faster
than the time it took for the QR app to scan the code.

I'm curious if this means my phone has a terrible camera or if yours has a
terrible keyboard. Probably both.

~~~
ColinWright
It's the error-pronedness - clicks are far easier. Can you always type a
lengthy URL without any mistakes or having to make corrections?

Plus, I can't read a poster and a phone without constantly changing whether
I'm looking through glasses or not. I type pretty well, but the scan wins
every time.

 _Added in edit: I really, really don't understand the downvotes. I'm offering
a point of view as to why QR codes are easier for me. Is your downvote saying
that I'm wrong? Is your downvote saying that it's irrelevant? Is your downvote
saying that only people who hate QR codes can be tolerated? Is your downvote
saying your mind is closed to other points of view? Help me to understand!_

~~~
rprospero
It took me 28 seconds to type in this sentence on my cell phone. I didn't use
auto-correct, so it's a pretty good match for typing a url, if a little long.
That time did include going back through to correct for errors. Comparatively,
I've never seen a QR code scan in under a minute, either on my own phone or on
one from my friends, family, and coworkers.

I could see the glasses thing being a pain.

~~~
learc83
>I've never seen a QR code scan in under a minute,

How is it taking you that long to scan QR codes?

I'm using a free barcode scanner with a fairly slow phone (LG Optimus) and I
just pulled up a bunch of QR codes to scan.

Every one is done in under a second.

It takes the same amount of time for me to pull up either the keyboard or the
barcode scanner, and I definitely can't type a url in under 1 second, so the
scanner beats it hands down.

~~~
ColinWright
I suspect he's not talking of the time to actually scan the code, but the
total time, given one code, of picking up the phone, finding the app,
activating the scanner, checking the URL that it brings up, and then hitting
"Go".

As I say, I do all that in about 20 seconds. Once the app is open, individual
scans are very quick.

------
tthomas48
I feel like this article is backwards. QR codes are still the best way to
transfer from print to phone. The problem is most people are still
transferring from print ad to phone ad.

My theater company uses it to send people from our poster to our ticket buying
site (and let you know where the QR code goes). There's genuine utility here.

Don't throw out the useful application because so many are doing it wrong.

~~~
PhrosTT
The issue is you're one of a few using them correctly.

Most implementations are unlabeled, no indication what it does or why I should
bother.

------
mseebach
Number one missed opportunity for QR-codes: "For Sale/Rent" signs. It actively
annoys me that I don't have a super-low-friction way to take a closer look at
a for-sale house I'm walking by.

~~~
jmj42
They are starting to show up on realtor for-sale signs. There's one I drive by
on my way to/from work that scanned a while back. I landed on the realtor's
page about the house (which, BTW, was way out of my price range).

~~~
sologoub
My last attempt to scan one of those took me to the search page not optimized
for iPhone/Android on the realtor's personal site... and no clue as to how to
find the house I was standing next to.

------
zach
The best uses of QR codes are DEEP LINKS. Not as "mystery links", not to look
modern, but to jump directly to one item in the middle of a hierarchy or a
pool of options.

Check out how Tesco used QR codes in Korea to make a virtual grocery store:
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJVoYsBym88>

This is a great use of QR that is a mile away from the typical "scan this
instead of typing two words and pressing .com" usage that is typical in the US
and confuses people as to why QR even exists (as in this comic).

------
calinet6
Especially the QR-codes that _aren't_ QR codes. I honestly tried to scan a new
style barcode that wasn't QR, that literally said below it "Please download
the SomethingCode app to read this barcode."

Never have I sworn out loud so fervently at a magazine, or so quickly sworn
off purchasing from that (rather large) company.

~~~
Karunamon
You swear at magazines and boycott a company because they ask you to download
an app?

Wow. Perhaps consider anger management classes?

------
ctingom
Home Depot had a QR code linking to a YouTube video showing how to install a
garbage disposal. It was right by the product.

~~~
3pt14159
If every Android, Blackberry, and iPhone came with a universal QR code reader
it MIGHT be worth it, but none of them do, so you have to provide printed
material or a url _anyways_ so there is no real reason to use them now.

~~~
ImprovedSilence
But if it comes down to typing a long ass url in my phone, or pushing a button
to scan a code, guess which one I'll pick. Don't impede technological progress
just because "not everybody has it"

~~~
urbanjunkie
Here's how the future will be:

Long home button press.

<beep>

"Siri (or Android version, or WP12 version) , search for <whatever the thing
is>"

<beep>

<Here are your search results>

~~~
s_henry_paulson
Then consider me loathing the future in advance.

To me, people talking out loud to their phones in public is akin to bluetooth
headsets.

The technology might provide an easier way to let you do something, but you
look like an idiot.

~~~
urbanjunkie
If the price I have to pay is that people like you think I'm an idiot, I'm
sure I'll manage.

I am curious though, how do you distinguish between people "talking out loud
to their phones", and people talking out loud to other people using their
phones (ie making a phone call).

~~~
dllthomas
There are a lot of situations where people talking on the phone to other
people is annoying and rude. I expect there's substantial overlap with the
situations where people talking out loud to Siri is annoying and rude.

~~~
urbanjunkie
And for the most part those situations are not ones where the presence of QR
codes would be of significant benefit.

Note that I think QR codes are great for things like airline tickets or
baggage tracking tags.

------
superasn
I feel the same about those silly "Pin it", "Follow me" icons on every
webpage. I cannot say that it has never helped any site get more traffic but
for the most part it is just monkey copying monkeys all the way down. They do
nothing except make all pages look generic and cluttered. The biggest example
of just doing it for the sake of it is the porn sites that use these share
icons too (who in the world shares a xxx video they watched on their facebook
timeline?)

------
frou_dh
A stored called John Lewis in the UK had a really big QR code as part of a
window-covering display I think was to advertise online shopping. What struck
me, even as someone who knows what they are, was how visually _menacing_ this
huge QR code looked. They must be extremely visually unwelcoming to the
uninitiated, which strikes me as the unfortunate old aura of technology which
has only recently been shook off.

------
xlevus
I have a few issues with QR codes.

1\. They are still cumbersome to use. If I could open up my camera app (which
I can launch with a press of a button) and point it at the QR code then maybe.
But currently I've got to unlock my phone, open google googles, put google
goggles in 'live' mode, then point it at the code, and wait for it to focus.

Now, there might be camera apps that scan for QR codes while you're snapping
pics. But if it's not baked into my stock phone I don't see anybody else doing
it.

2\. I really only ever see the things on the Tube. But there's no cell
reception on the tube. What use is a URL I can't load?

3\. If I showed my mother (Somebody I'd consider a 'typical' user. Has an
iphone and a few apps on it. Uses the web for facebook, work and emails) a
picture of a QR code she'd probably tell me that the art lessons I took in
high school didn't pay off. If my mum doesn't know what a QR code is what's to
say other people will?

4\. A QR code alone isn't a call to action. Tell me what I'm going to gain by
scanning it and I'll probably be more receptive to it.

------
bradbeattie
I'm not going to scan a QR code that doesn't tell me upfront what it does
(e.g. get a discount, view more info on this product, etc). QR code + verb
summary: helpful. QR code on its own: ignored.

------
DavidAdams
My company went to a trade show recently, and instead of brochures, we made up
a little business card with some summary information on the front, and a big
QR code on the back. When you scan the QR code, it puts the summary and
contact information into your phone as a contact. (It's labeled, so people
know that scanning the code will transfer the card's information to their
phone's contact list). I think this is pretty darn useful. It's nice to have
something physical to hand to someone, but nobody wants to re-key contact
info. And we want to make it easy to get the info from the card into their
phone. You can use vcard or MECARD format.
<http://code.google.com/p/zxing/wiki/BarcodeContents>

I don't know why more people don't use the scan-to-transfer aspect of QR
codes.

~~~
mrtron
What % of business cards got scanned?

------
Pelayo
Here in Chile, Nike put a QR code in an ad for a 10k run. It took you to a
site with some information... unfortunately it was in flash so iPhones
couldn't view it.

------
da_n
I have never really understood the QR code hate. To just dismiss such a cool
technology due to a dislike of how they look seems shallow at best. I also
find QR codes genuinely useful, and have found myself scanning them quite
regularly. I just wish iOS had it built in.

------
aaronjg
The problem is that 'me not wanting to ever see your ad again' is NOT
quantifiable. Marketers can see the positive impact of QR codes but not the
negative.

Thus by their metrics the more prominent the QR code, the more people who
swipe it and the 'better' the ad performs. But it's very expensive to quantify
the negative impact of the QR code. Advertisers would need to run focus
groups, ask people if they saw the ad, what they remembered about it, what
their impression was, etc.

So we find ourselves seeing more, bigger QR codes, even though people don't
really seem to care for them.

------
stinky613
I think QR codes are almost never applied appropriately. I can Google
something as quickly (if not more) than I can scan and process a QR code.
True, a QR code may help me reach deep info easily, but a QR code has meaning
ONLY to a computer; a URL has meaning to both a computer and to a human.

Let's say I see a poster advertising, say, a contest by Budweiser to win
Superbowl tickets. Two scenarios that, for the sake of argument, are mutually
exclusive: A) The poster has a QR code. If I don't scan that QR code then and
there my interaction is done. B) The poster has a URL
(BudweiserSuperbowl.com). If I don't visit that site while I'm standing next
to the advertisement there's still a chance I may remember the URL and decide
to check it out later. This is the similar to the reason we invented DNS to
obviate the need to memorize IP addresses.

brk's example of a QR code on a washing machine at Best Buy was far more
useful to Best Buy than to the customer: scanning a bar code can yield
technical info, reviews, prices etc. whereas scanning a QR code will only give
you the information that Best Buy or the manufacturer wants you to see.

Some places I wouldn't mind seeing QR codes:

\- Videogames have more and more long alphanumeric strings to enter to enable
online features, downloadable content, et al.; why not also include QR codes
for Kinect to scan?

\- Mini QR codes on menus to take you directly to nutritional info for a dish
could be cool

~~~
DanBC
> _URL has meaning to both a computer and to a human._

I'm not convinced. I think that most people don't remember URLs, in the same
way that they freak out when an error dialog pops up and the just click any
button to make it go.

"What did it say?" you ask, trying to fault find. "Oh, I don't know", they
reply, "I just clicked [NO]".

And honestly, no-one is going to remember "budweisersuperbowl.com". See also
AOL using "aol keywords".

~~~
stinky613
So maybe they're both bad ideas, I can accept that. In fact I know I
personally would be far more likely to just Google "budweiser superbowl" than
pay attention to the URL, but if I'm going to pick one or the other for my ad
I'd stick with a URL. Those same people you reference certainly aren't the
ones who are going to both know what a QR code is and have the motivation to
scan the code. Anyone _could_ read a url and remember it whereas no one I've
heard of can look at a QR code and understand a lick of it. If nothing else I
stand by a URL in this situation being a better bad idea than a QR code.

------
Kilimanjaro
How about using an IPV6 binary code? You know, the internet of things ;-)

    
    
        levis.com/model-550/stone-washed
    
        2001:0db8:85a3:0000:0000:8a2e:0370:7334
    
        | ..:. .... .... ...: 
        | .... ::.: :.:: :... 
        | :... .:.: :.:. ..:: 
        | .... .... .... .... 
        | .... .... .... .... 
        | :... :.:. ..:. :::. 
        | .... ..:: .::: .... 
        | .::: ..:: ..:: .:..

------
RobertHubert
Bottom line, they link you to content that you cant get without typing in some
url into your phone. They are convenient when its relevant. Passing by a
restaurant you might want to go to later, launch app with one hand, scan code,
keep walking, review menu... They are links that transcend platforms, would
you be just at apposed to a rfid tag that you just swipe your device over to
connect? I think they are extremely useful when used correctly. They save time
and they dissolve errors. They are essentially internet links removed from
computers... when I hear the anti qr code arguments I think to my self, well
are you against hyperlinks? Do you avoid clicking links that could give you
additional information about something your interested in? Then whats your
beef with a link on a movie poster or can of soup? They're here to stay until
replaced by a nicer looking swifter alternative but the concept will never go
away.

~~~
zalew
The most useless QR code I saw was this movie poster
[http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/i/2011/08/19/Martha-Marcy-
poster_...](http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/i/2011/08/19/Martha-Marcy-
poster_510.jpg) which led to a website... wait for it... in flash! (and yes, I
_could_ have flash on my Android, but I chose not to)

------
user49598
Why don't any good 'URL Finder' apps exist.

    
    
      1) Open URL Finder app
      2) Take picture
      3) URL finder identifies all the urls in the picture.
      4) Your browser opens those urls
    

These QR codes aren't being used for robot orientation or shipment tracking,
they don't need to be so fault tolerant. Why not just OCR plain text?

~~~
Karunamon
It takes ages for most camera apps to decode a QR code designed for ease of
reading and ubiquity - what makes you think it would somehow be faster to do
OCR on arbitrarily sized and styled fonts?

------
thesagan
Many advertising agencies simply get caught up in trends and fads and don't
take a hard look at the actual effects these trends have on their audience.
Periodically I do work for these agencies on their print materials, and often
clients ask for these QR codes without even understanding what they DO. All
they know is that "it's happening" and they want in on it.

Now, sometimes it makes sense, and other times not so much. But the pattern is
clear, at least with these clients: play the part, and the client is happy.
Try to educate the client, and you might just find yourself looking for
another one.

Too often clients don't look at the results of their decisions, at least in
the larger organizations. Just my experience, and maybe I get shitty jobs
which skews my view.

------
xarien
People don't understand QR codes.

QR codes are a medium of transportation and a digitalization of analog
information. However, if what's at the end of that trail isn't something
people are interested in, then it doesn't matter if that trail is the yellow
brick road, they're not going to follow it.

The reason why QR codes are used is that they're cheap, dirt cheap. But most
vendors are simply adding them without thinking about adding value. When you
start adding value like convenience, discounts, promotions and other means to
hook an audience, that's when the ability to interact with print becomes
validated. Until vendors start doing this, posts and comics like the above
will exist...

------
sjs382
If people didn't scan them, the statistics that go along with them are
useless.

People do scan them, though.

------
b_emery
I predict that a few years from now we will not be seeing QR codes. I dislike
them because they are ugly and their abuse seems to be widespread and growing,
but I can see many reasons, some of which are posted here, why they would be
useful. But why does it have to be an ugly code? Getting the data (link?) into
the phone is the general problem. Seems like image search is getting to the
point where you can scan in a logo, or take a photo of it, and plug that into
a search to get to the product/web site etc. The point being that it doesn't
have to be an ugly black and while mishmash. How about OCR on the URL?

~~~
icebraining
_Seems like image search is getting to the point where you can scan in a logo,
or take a photo of it, and plug that into a search to get to the product/web
site etc._

1) The recognition is less reliable

2) It depends on another service which might be unavailable, slow, not have
the logo in its database or have it associated with a different URL.

3) It's limited to products that have their own logos, which are a small
minority.

4) It can't support different URLs for the same service or product, losing
context.

5) As ugly as they are, QRCodes are identifiable as a link, logos aren't.

 _How about OCR on the URL?_

OCR in real world conditions, using camera phones (not everyone has a 4S or
similar) at widely different angles and distances and on the outdoors doesn't
work that well. There's a reason why QR Codes where invented, and it was not
just to offend people's aesthetic senses.

They have those big squares to detect the distortion, extra bits using Reed-
Solomon for error-correction, they're much more compact and immediately
identifiable.

------
djt
A few points:

\- The only people I know that use and are excited by putting QR codes in are
nerds and/or marketers. I think it serves to quench our thirst for something
shiny that is a technological hack. Most people dont feel the same way though.

\- The results are obfuscated, when you scan the code you dont know where it
will take you, worse if there is no details around the code. Its like a
shortened link.

\- In Japan it is a utility which is useful. In the West it seems to be a
shiny toy for marketers.

\- Much like Flash, it is a transitional medium between print and digital. It
will be interesting to see what comes out next.

------
learc83
QR codes are new to most advertisers, so they don't know what to do with them.
They're just using QR codes to use QR codes without thinking about whether
they make sense.

When the wii first came out, it was full of games where motion control made no
sense. Some marketing guy told the developers to add motion control. It didn't
matter if it fit the game or not, they just did it, so they could say they had
it on the box.

There is a place for QR codes. As soon as the novelty wears off and
advertisers stop thinking they're cool, we'll start to see them used in real
meaningful applications.

~~~
finnw
Remember :CueCat? [1]

The marketers may just be repeating the same mistake. Fortunately it does not
require specialized hardware anymore (since most smartphone cameras can read
QR codes.)

[1]: <http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000037.html>

------
kadavy
I actually have found QR codes to be effective when used in presentations at
tech conferences. At the end of each talk, I have a QR code on the final slide
that points to a page where attendees can get more info.

About 1/4 of all people who visited that page at my SXSW talk this year came
in through a QR code. This is kind of an anomaly because a SXSW talk is
probably the perfect place to use a QR code.

My one complaint is, of course, that they are hideous. It would be nice if
there were a central database where you could upload your own symbols and
assign them to URLs.

------
dllthomas
I am confused why several people called this an article - it's a comic.

Which, mind, is not to say that it can't be correct or insightful, and it's
certainly amusing, but... I'm just confused.

------
angrytapir
I scan a QR code at my local coffee shop almost every (week) day. I use an app
that acts like an electronic loyalty card - you scan a QR code when you get a
coffee, and every 10th coffee is free (and I find I'm actually more likely to
do it, unlike with cardboard loyalty cards where it feels like you're
inconveniencing someone when they're busy by making them mark it).

------
matznerd
This has always been one of my favorite uses of QR codes, a grocery store in
the subway. Taking wasted space and wasted time, and putting them to
productive use is amazing.

<http://natmobi.com/innovative-qr-code-grocery/>

------
tocomment
How do you actually scan a qr code? Does the iPhone camera automatically
recognize them?

~~~
alexlitov
No, you need an app for that

------
sunkencity
Not that I'd ever bother looking up what it encodes, but the pencil-shave qr
code <http://pinterest.com/pin/23151385554160440/> is pretty damn good
looking.

------
jamesu
I like the idea of QR codes, but I've never seen anyone scan them in public.

In fact, the only thing I keep hearing about QR codes is how stupid they are
and how they should be obliterated from the face of the earth.

------
CookWithMe
Plus, they hang in the most ridiculous places: On billboards high in the air,
on a highway, across subway tracks...

I have no idea how to scan these. Well, maybe if I use a DSLR but not with the
average smartphone.

------
heydenberk
QR codes ceased to be useful or necessary when smartphones apps for reading
and opening plain-text URLs became available, which was a historical blink of
an eye after the advent of QR codes.

------
BrainInAJar
QR codes had great potential. All sorts of cool information you could stuff in
them

Then marketers discovered them. And now they lead you to the product's
website. I could just google that if I cared.

------
jsemrau
QR Codes are great. Probably you just don't understand them properly.

