Metro Herald Jumps Onto The QR Code Train

It was an anticipated thing – to see how newspapers can integrate interactivity into their printed dailies in an effort to enhance reader experience. QR Code has been in use in Japan for over a decade now and in recent years, increase in usage is seen in a large part of Europe, Asia and now America.

Digital Reach Group which is a mobile internet service company recently tied up a deal with the people behind Metro Herald in an effort to combine offline newspapers, online information and mobile technology.

The experience basically goes like this. If you are reading an article printed in Metro Herald right now and sees an advertisement about a gardening tool that you are interested in, information about the advertisement and product is available instantly to you when you pull out your smart phone or android and scanned a QR Code printed along with the advertisement. Depending on what the intended target of the QR Code is, you will most likely find pricing, product description, reviews, comparison of prices, manufacturing information, instructions or a video about the gardening tool.

All the information is loaded into your mobile phone so that you can save it into the phone and show it to your friends to get their opinion when you meet up with them for coffee.

Does that sound like something you would do?

Although response to QR Code marketing is not as huge as online social networking at the moment, we foresee that QR Codes, the internet, mobile phones and online social networking can be conglomerated into one huge marketing vehicle.

This point and scan method of using QR Code can also be used to encourage people to give their reviews, reach customer service people, download mobile applications, access coupons, sign up for memberships or enter competition. As far as the experts can see, we are only skimming the tip of the iceberg.

Metro Herald believes that this move will give the newspaper a unique edge over their competition as this is something that they can offer directly to advertisers and agencies alike, said the managing director of the paper.

This year alone, we have seen many big guns from various industries jumping enthusiastically into the bandwagon and we here, at beqrious.com, think that there is more to come.