QR Codes are Making a Comeback

Custom designed and branded QR codes get more engagement, especially with clear call-to-actions.

Have you ever wondered what the funny square-shaped barcode image was? It doesn’t look like a regular bar code and sometimes it has colors and is branded. Well that is a QR Code or quick response code. It has in fact been around since the 90’s, but for many reasons its popularity was small and then it disappeared. But boy are they back and growing exponentially. Pre-COVID expectations suggested 11M households* in the US would use at least 1 QR code in 2020, however, due to the pandemic, that number will rise significantly by the end of the year. It’s interesting that a virus (not a computer one) will likely make QR codes a global sensation.

A quick as to why they struggled in the past and how moving past these 3 hurdles has made the QR code more accessible. There are 3 main reasons that prevented QR codes being everywhere sooner: Low awareness, ease of use, low expectations.

I still meet people today that don’t know what a QR code is or have never scanned one. The lack of marketing the codes in the 90s and early 00s lead to a lack of exposure and use to everyday consumers. People just didn’t know about them and they failed to have a strong network effect because of the next 2 reasons I’m about to share. The second reason is that they were historically difficult to use. Before smartphones, people needed a special QR code readers in order to scan them, and with early smartphones a dedicated app was required. Businesses are to blame for the last reason. The landing experiences behind QR codes used to be a terrible user experience, conditioning users to not want to scan them.

However, QR codes are making a major comeback. Their use has steadily been increasing over the past few years with making them more accessible via any smartphone’s camera, custom branding, and businesses are using them everywhere to promote contactless interaction, payments, and sharing of information.

Next time you see one, if you haven’t already experienced it, pull out your phone, scan it and see where it takes you. If you’re in need of your own one, all you really need is a modern day online QR Code Creator to build one. Try out your creative designs and have some fun for free.

About the Author

Martin Barrow is the Founder of mobUX (pronounced mo-bux or mobile User Experiences) — a MarTech startup working on interactive mobile experiences that tell stories, collect data, and convert buyers. You can connect with him on Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, to talk about anything marketing, mobile, or QR code specific (he’ll let skiing and scuba diving topics slide as well).

Do you want to create amazing mobile experiences for your customers? Check out mobUX!

*A study by QR Tiger (“QR Code Statistics in 2020: Everything You Need to Know”)