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There were two blog posts/news that prompted this article.

One, about bringing techies to explore nature and their noses out from behind their computers and devices. The other is about helping students be more creative and also help others understand an artwork process. I find both stories very compelling because both made use of QR Codes in a conventional yet extremely useful way…which is to help others learn more about something by giving them the window of opportunity to find out more about something that they might be curious about right there and then.

Many people don’t give QR Code much thought, to be completely honest with you, even if they knew what the code was all about. Others who have no inkling about what to do with the codes would just walk past the code without a second thought. ‘I thought it might be a part of the artwork or maybe just some sort of decoration,’ admits Laura, a newbie to the world of Smartphones. Those who KNEW what QR Codes may see no incentive in scanning the code. We live in a hard and fast world, folks, so, there is no time to waste. We are on the go. Time is money. It is not worth my time…etc, etc, etc.

So, I hope the likes of you out there who are using QR Codes or are thinking of coming up with your own QR Code will keep the above two opinions in mind when working your strategy.

In one school, students were given a topic and then told to come up with their own artwork projects. While working on the projects, the students were told to film themselves doing it so that the process is documented and can be showcased to others to give them a better idea about how the artwork was borne. And that, they did.

The teacher had a brilliant idea, as you can see, because the videos were then edited and placed online. The artworks were showcased along with a QR Code leading to the online videos. Let’s say you think a particular artwork is very creative and would like to find out how they came up with it – scan the code with your smartphone and it will bring you to a video of how the artwork was derived at.

Another piece of news might be more interesting to all your tech-gadget lovers out there…or maybe not.

The article reported that the Sequoia Riverlands Trust (SRT) have decided to bring QR Codes to the parks and lands that they are currently managing, one of them being Kaweah Oaks Preserve. There are, as we all know, many different preserved plants and flowers that are meticulously maintained at these preserve, some of which never seen the light of the day in your regular concrete jungles.

So, what the managers did was to place QR Codes linking to articles and informative videos, images and pages that can be found on the internet to help visitors learn more about the plant that they may be interested in.

Director of SRT, Kelly Ryan, said that they specifically wanted to reach those who are hooked to technology and bring them out of their indoor environment and into these preserved lands.

Do you think it is going to work?