The use of two-dimensional barcodes has quickly grown as a common way to connect print components of campaigns to the Web, adding an element of interactivity while also adding a response mechanism. While there’s been a lot of focus on the barcodes themselves, the experience after a person “clicks” on one of those barcodes seems to be often treated as an afterthought. Even though a mobile barcode can grab attention and prompt a response, the experience delivered on that respondent’s mobile device needs to engage and ultimately act as a way to meet the goals of a campaign. Aligning the use of 2D barcodes with actual goals of a campaign will help determine what type of experience needs to be delivered to a respondent. There is significant opportunity to leverage mobile barcodes in a campaign; those that find true success will deliver the best end-to-end experience.

The willingness for marketers to utilize two-dimensional barcodes in their campaigns has grown as mobile technology has evolved and matured. Smartphones, camera phones, and other mobile devices have been increasingly adopted in the United States and decoding applications have become more readily available on those devices. Many of those devices are also capable of handling rich Web and application experiences, which has prompted greater interest in trying to engage with people in a truly cross-media fashion.

According to an InfoTrends study on cross-media marketing from 2010, awareness about mobile barcodes in the marketing community is significant. 64.7% of marketers surveyed indicated some level of familiarity with mobile barcode technology. While only 8.1% of marketers use mobile barcodes today, 35.9% indicated potential future use; significant awareness for something that has only become mainstream in the U.S. over the past two years. Digging a bit deeper into the results finds that large organizations with over 2,500 employees have the greatest awareness and greatest use. Larger companies are likely to deploy more visible campaigns for a broader audience, which makes two-dimensional barcodes an attractive tool to use.