People don’t really use that phrase anymore to describe New York it seems. OK. That’s off point anyway. This is just a brief discussion of two back to back barcode encounters in NYC today.
First I was in a cab this afternoon and “taxi TV” was playing a tourism promotion for Canada. The call to action involved a 2D barcode presented beside the ad on the screen. The bumpy cab ride kept me from holding still to get a fix on the code. It was comedic.
My second encounter tonight was more successful — at least in terms of scanning. I stood across the street in Times Square from the outdoor ad below and was easily able to scan the code using Scanbuy’s Android app. Unfortunately the promotion/ad/site failed to load. But the scanning from at 50-75 feet away went remarkably well otherwise.
What this suggests to me is that every single outdoor ad should contain a 2D barcode to:
- Acquire the customer
- Get the coupon
- Download the app
- Track response to the ad
- Enable the message to be shared with friends
Of course users must have a barcode scanning app on their smartphones, but many smartphone users do and it will be pre-installed on many going forward.
October 6th, 2010 at 6:15 pm
With a bit of fiddling, the QR code scans in QuickMark on my iphone, from your picture in this post. Very impressive. I got a YouTube video promoting the game.
I find that I frequently scan 2D barcodes I find in images, indicating that, at least until the novelty wears off, these codes can have a substantial reach.
October 6th, 2010 at 6:46 pm
[...] Sterling, on his Screenwerk blog, talks about a 2D bar code ( A QR Code ) that he found in New York. What I found interesting is [...]
November 16th, 2010 at 3:20 pm
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November 17th, 2010 at 1:08 am
[...] With its visual search app, Goggles, the company is trying to promote the idea that marketers can use it to connect traditional media (e.g., print or outdoor ads) to “immersive” and dynamic online experiences. This is already being done to varying degrees with SMS and QR codes linked to products, print and other traditional media. [...]
June 1st, 2011 at 3:20 am
[...] Sterling, on his Screenwerk blog, talks about a 2D bar code ( A QR Code ) that he found in New York. What I found interesting is [...]