Over the past 18-24 months, more and more companies have been hoping on the mobile barcode (e.g., QR Code, Microsoft Tag, SnapTag, Data Matrix, etc.) bandwagon, and have been doing so without fully understanding the technology behind the various code formats and how best to develop and implement an effective mobile barcode-based campaign. When operating in this manner, more often than not, the mobile barcode based advertisement or promotional campaign will result in a failed attempt to deliver for both the consumer and the advertiser, and the question could be asked, why bother with the technology in the first place, if not to just make the brand/product appear as hip, cool and/or technologically savvy.
When thinking about the use of mobile barcode technology, companies need to recognize that there are a number of best practices, marketing and technology related, that have already been established, field tested and proven to work. At the very minimum, companies need to be aware of and understand these best practices before they go about producing their first, or their fifteenth, mobile barcode based campaign.
One of the most fundamental best practices/rules of mobile barcode based marketing is that the campaign, specifically the scan resolve content (i.e.,...

