Philips LED Light Bulbs and QR Codes
Posted on by Timothy Boyle
I was reading my latest issue of Reason magazine when I happened upon an advertisement from Philips for their LED light bulbs (full disclosure, they use Qfuse for their QR code needs, though I was not aware of this at the time). But what is special about this advertisement, at least in my opinion, is their good use of their QR code, which I will highlight hear as an example to be emulated.
Now you might say that this QR codes use on the face of it isn’t all that creative or exciting, and you would indeed be correct. Creativity, though often times an important factor, does not make or break a QR code’s effectiveness.
The first thing that stands out about this code, and arguably the most important factor for any QR codes, is the fantastic call-to-action. Right next to the code reads “Scan the code with your smartphone to see the savings!” This is great for a couple different reasons. First it tells people what to do. Even this far into the 21st century there are still people who do not know what to do with QR codes, this helps them realize how to interact with it.
Second, it gives them an idea of what they will get upon scanning the code. In this case they will see just how they can save by purchasing these particular light bulbs. Typically telling people they can save money is a great way to entice them to do anything; scanning a QR code is no exception.
The next thing Philips marketing staff did well here was connect the QR code to a mobile optimized landing page. From here the prospective customer is given information Philips believes is valuable to the consumer to choose their light bulbs. It also lets them watch a video on LED lighting. This is all good information that can help drive the sale of their light bulbs.
A simple use of a QR code for sure, but an effective one at that. There is not a single area where the Philips marketing team has gone astray from QR code best practices, and because of that they created a fantastic QR code. If your looking to start using QR codes in any of your marketing or advertising this is a good place to start if you wish to see exactly how it should be done. Of course creativity is rarely a bad thing as well.
