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How To Use QR Codes For Small Businesses

Bocktown craft beer growler with QR code

How do you get your customers to use QR codes? Just give them a compelling reason to pull out their smartphones and start scanning away. That might sound simple enough, but for a ton of different reasons which were covered in a recent post, they still haven’t been fully embraced by most customers. So what can you do to get them to engage?

Make it compelling

What’s compelling, you ask? That depends on your business and your customers. For Chris Dilla, owner of Bocktown Beer and Grill, it’s using them to point patrons to an ever changing list of American Craft Beers--a strategy that seems to be working swimmingly.

Chris first commented on my blog, sharing her thoughts on the role of QR codes in small business marketing and some of the keys to getting customers to engage. Since Bocktown is best known for their craft beer selection, Dilla decided to add QR codes to their growlers. Patrons are able to use QR codes while in the restaurant, since the growlers sit as props on most of the tables. Once they purchase a growler, customers can view the current tap list from virtually anywhere. The code is taking them right to a list of what’s on tap on that particular day at either location.

Make it specific

Pointing to a specific page on their site allows patrons to access the specific information they’re looking for without having to spend a lot of time clicking around—something that could be extremely difficult and frustrating if your webpage hasn’t been optimized for mobile devices.

Beyond adding a QR code, Dilla also took full advantage of the available real estate by including their logo, a direct link to their website (for those customers who aren’t interested in, or don’t understand, QR codes), their address and phone number, and a short blurb about their business. 

Make it tangible

By incorporating the code onto something their patrons are actually going to use instead of creating a table display that will wind up getting lost behind the salt and pepper shakers, they’re increasing the likelihood their customers will engage with it.

What do you think makes a QR code scan-worthy?

And once you scan, what type of information are you hoping to find? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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[Image: Flickr user kevin wen]



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