The Marriage of Business and QR Codes

(Or Five New QR Code Campaigns from Real Businesses)

QR codes are a godsend for many businesses.  Because of the popularity and flexibility of QR codes, businesses are finding new ways to use it for their marketing and operations.

Here are some of the ways that QR codes are being used by today’s businesses.

1. Ferrari’s QR Code directs traffic to their site!

For most of us, the sight of a sleek, red and hot sports car is enough to make us drool.  But with Ferrari’s latest Risi Competizione, that is simply not enough.  Ferrari has put a QR code on the front and rear of one of their cars racing at the Sebring International Raceway in Florida.  These codes were also placed on the team uniform.

Scanning the QR codes would take you to their website at http://www.risicompetizione.net, where you are informed of future races.

2. In-game advertising.

Axe’s United Kingdom brand, Lynx, has made use of QR codes to further its in-game advertising.

If you have been playing Need for Speed, Fight Night Champion, PKR and some other titles, then you would surely notice the various ad placements by Lynx.  These in-game ad placements now have QR codes included.

Scanning the Lynx Excite QR code in these games take you to a site that offers exclusive content, including a video with Kelly Brooks acting out as a fallen angel.

3. Scan it and win!

In Seattle, exhibitors and visitors to the Seattle Center’s VegFest will be treated to QR code temporary tattoos.  The promotion, sponsored by Dave’s Killer Bread.  Now if you wear these tattoos on your skin, you can snap it with your smart phone and win prizes.

Dave’s Killer Bread is giving away a DKB loaf, a DKB T-shirt or a DKB goodie bag, which is filled with tasty and health DKB breads and a lot of cool stuff!

VegFest is the largest vegetarian food festival in the United States, by the way.

4. Sleep in a QR code.

Soehne and Partner have come up with a unique design for their hotels in Dubai’s Studio City district.  In a city of really funky and unique hotel designs, we are going to be treated to a QR code hotel.

The project is nicknamed Project Code.  It is not clear, however, if visitors could actually scan the code and if that is possible, where the code would resolve to.

5. Shop even when the store is closed.

Think about it, you are late for your 11 a.m. meeting and you passed by a Ralph Lauren store and they had something really nice on the window.  Before getting into your taxi cab, or your car, snap their QR code and you’re on your way to owning that!

Ralph Lauren’s interactive window features their different product lines outside their shops.  So even if it’s 10 p.m. and the shop is closed, you can still shop.  All you have to do is to scan the QR codes and it will take you to an online version of the product page.  From there you can buy that item easy as pie.