There are many ways to get people to your landing page, including QR codes, but it’s not the channels that you use that ultimately drive conversions, it’s the experience you create in your funnel. And that’s where many marketers go wrong.
But enough negativity. Why don’t we lighten it up a bit by taking a fun little quiz? You know the type: just read the questions, pick A, B or C, then total up the points associated with your answer and find out how susceptible you are to QR code marketing (err, I mean how mobile savvy you are) at the end of the post.
It’s just like reading one of those Cosmopolitan mag ones (come on, admit it – you read some of those sex quizzes).
Just promise me you won’t look down the page to see the answers…
Question 1
You’re sitting in your kitchen having breakfast. You’re reading the back of the cereal packet for the third time in the last five minutes, when you see a QR code tucked away next to the ingredients panel. By visiting the site you can find out exactly how many calories are in a single cheerio. Do you:
- A. Get your iPhone out of your pocket. Scan the code. Go to the Website. (3 points)
- B. Immediately start looking elsewhere on the box for a URL, spilling cereal on the table when you look on the bottom of the packet, then, when you find it, run upstairs to your desktop PC to find out more. (2 points)
- C. Do nothing. It’s early, you’re late for work and have absolutely no clue what those black squares mean. (1 point)
Question 2
You’re at the store next to your office. You’ve got a new box of cereal to replace the one you dropped on the floor during breakfast. Standing in the queue you notice a sign on the counter offering discounts for regular customers, with double-discounts at your local store. All you have to do is check in on their Website. Do you:
- A. Steal the sign surreptitiously when the cashier isn’t looking and run home to check in from the comfort of your home. Then realize you left your cereal at the store. (2 points)
- B. Take out your iPhone. Go to the URL. Check-in. Get a discount. (3 points)
- C. Do nothing. Who wants to check-in? Check-ins are for airports. (1 point)
Question 3
You’re home from the store (after forgetting that you should be at work) — and slightly out of breath from the run — so you turn on the TV. An advert for a new, even bigger TV catches your eye, and they’ve got deals for their Twitter followers. The links to their offer pages are right there in their Twitter stream. Do you:
- A. Scribble the Twitter name down on a piece of paper, then hunker down in your home office to follow them on your 32″ widescreen monitor. Yeah baby! (2 points)
- B. Pick up your brand new Samsung Galaxy. Fire up the Twitter app. Search for the account. Follow it. Click through to their deals landing page right there on your phone. (3 points)
- C. Twitter? You can’t even cope with your own breakfast, never mind reading about what Chris Brogan is having for breakfast. (1 point)
Okay, that’s it. It’s time to add up those scores…
| Your Total Score | What it Says About You |
| 9 points | You are a QR savant and should make fun of people who aren’t as advanced as you. Give yourself a #HighFive for being awesome at mobile stuff. It’s not all great news though – if you’re a trekkie, just do me a favour and don’t walk around at conventions making beeping sounds as you scan the symbols on people’s outfits. |
| 7-8 points | You’re clearly still a bit old school as you’re mixing pen and paper with your digital life. It’s very romantic of you to cling to the past, but come on how much did you pay for that phone?! (Not to mention the TV and cereal). |
| 4-6 points | You’re stubborn and only scan QR codes when your friends do it, never actually taking advantage of offers or caring about what will happen. You probably don’t even have a real QR reader app and are just faking it. |
| 3 points | You shouldn’t even be allowed to own a phone. On the plus side, you probably spend your time doing interesting things. p.s. never get a job in marketing… |
The three scenarios outlined above show just a few of the ways in which smart retailers are using changes in customer behavior to their advantage. The use of QR codes to connect offline printed media with an online presence is rising and they can be an efficient way to drive traffic to your landing page. There’s no fiddly typing of URLs on a tiny keyboard, you simply scan the code and are taken directly to the website – ideally to a mobile friendly landing page.
Using advertising at Point of Sale is also a great way to appeal to a captive audience. By catching shoppers at the point of purchase, you have the opportunity to influence the decision-making process. If a customer is already with you, you want to make sure they come back again.
A growing percentage of activity on Twitter and Facebook is from mobile devices (55% on Twitter, 33% on Facebook). Chances are, if you’re driving people to your social media presence, there is a good chance they are doing it on a mobile device.
QR Code Usage Stats – Infographic
Check out this infographic about QR code use. Once people have done it once, you’ll find that they tend to keep their eyes open for more opportunities (it’s actually kinda fun when done right).
(Infographic courtesy of Digital Buzz Blog)
But what has all of this got to do with landing pages?
The unforgivable sin for a landing page is a poor user experience. If you’ve done the hard work and directed people to your page but the experience is a poor one, you’re simply throwing away time, money, effort and potential customers. Creating a strong user experience, regardless of how the user accesses your page, is paramount.
By making sure your landing pages are mobile-optimized, you’re giving yourself a head-start on the road to conversions. Make it easy for your users to read and navigate the content on your landing page and you will increase conversion rates. Leave them trying to read tiny type on a tiny screen and you’re fighting a losing battle.
