Guest Post by Shanan Sorochynski
Okay, our adventure wasn’t as thrilling as traveling the Circuits of Time in a phone booth with George Carlin, but it was educational none-the-less.
This Fall the University at which I work hosted a career fair, cramming booth-after-booth of employers looking for new recruits into the main gymnasium.
It was a great opportunity for students to explore their options and a fun way for Kate (my colleague) and I to see how some organizations are using QR Codes.
Image: Optiscanapp via Flickr, CC 2.0
Here is what we found out:
1. Very few of the groups representing tech industries were using them.
2. Tiny QR codes on backdrops are hard to scan … unless you climb over the table, knock down the person at the booth, and scream “It’s okay, I’m an iPhone user!” Then it is doable. You also get to visit with Security.
3. Table-top QR codes, as Gas Buddy had, are great. There is no need to clobber people at the booths to scan these. It is also a great option for groups who don’t have the budget to redesign their display banners. *thumbs up.*
4. Many of the groups were providing QR codes with links to non-mobile sites.
That’s right, tiny text and maddening navigation for all.
5. Co-op‘s booth was our favourite. Look at that big, easy-to-find QR code. Look at it (at left)!
I grew up in a small Canadian town on the prairies.
Back then, to me, Co-op wasn’t about groceries so much as the place where old men with John Deere hats went to sit and drink coffee. To see Co-op delve into the new fandangle world of QR Codes was pretty great.
What we learned about displays in general:
1. Kate cannot pass up a free pen, and the quality of that pen can etch your organization’s name into her brain for life. She could tell me which booths would have the coolest gear before we even walked up to the tables.
Respect.
2. If you hand me a plastic dispenser that keeps band-aids organized in my purse, I will tell everyone I meet that day of your organization’s brilliance.
3. There are a lot of pretty booths out there that tell you absolutely nothing about what their company does. Their names are nondescript and their displays have a lot of pictures of smiling people in suits crossing their arms.
A great deal of effort seems to go into showing people that their business is dynamic and innovative, but none in communicating at a glance what they actually do.
4. The booths with the most traffic were the ones where the people staffing them made eye contact with the people passing by and tried talking with them.
This seems pretty obvious, but there were a surprising amount of people sitting on chairs looking off into space.
All in all, a rather excellent QR code adventure.
What has been your experience with QR codes, displays and marketing at career fairs and such events? Do you have any observations or pet peeves you’d like to share?
Shanan Sorochynski manages the University of Regina’s first official blog: YOURblog. Previous to this she was the managing editor of U of R Report, the University’s faculty and staff internal publication, and a print journalist in Manitoba.
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I love it when a QR code gives you contact information! I saw this at a technology conference sponsored by Rogers and it was so handy. I think it would be a great fit for recruiters at a career fair. They typically wear name tags anyway, so why not throw a QR code on their badge? I think it’s a great, clutter-free alternative to business cards.
What sorts of things would you want to be on the other end of the QR code – where should it link to? Personally, I can’t stand QR codes and the adoption rate is only around 6% of those with smartphones (not to mention those without them). I would be willing to bet that of those 6%, most are like me and only scanned like one QR code 4 years ago.Research also shows people are more likely to use QR codes at home instead of a retail situation, which is what I would consider the conference.
Beyond that, even if the code took me to a mobile site, that’s not why I’m at the conference/event. I can check out the site on my own time. I would want the QR code to drive somewhere relevant to me at that exact moment – a contest or drawing or something. Frankly, the benefit of me scanning the thing has to be pretty big and really apparent for me to want to pull out my phone and go for it.
Did you have any observations of anyone actually scanning the codes?
@adebrunner1
Not surprisingly I saw a lot of people with their smartphones out, but I don’t remember seeing anyone scanning the codes.
I don’t mind QR Codes though. They are handy if I want to remember to visit someone’s site. I just scan the code and it sits in my phone. It’s like putting a business card in my e-pocket. . . . and with business cards, maybe I’ll look at it later, maybe I won’t.
Your observations were so real, Shanan, thank you! I used to work in the pharmacy, and the drug reps would come with pens and we would all gather round!
It must have made for an interesting sort of exchange, though. If people are standing there, I’d feel awkward scanning the QR code and walking off. I just read another article today by Arik Hanson who found most of them aren’t that well executed. Did you find the ones that actually were mobile-friendly were convenient in terms of time, clarity, etc.?
@ShakirahDawud
I don’t remember if we did find one that was mobile-friendly, other than GasBuddy. GB is an app. So that company lives and breath mobile.
Other things that get in the way of QR codes being effective:
1.The people at the booths didn’t seem to know what I was doing. I had to keep saying “I’m not taking your picture, I’m just scanning the code.”
2. At these kinds of events people are still shoving paper at you: “Take our brochure, have a pamphlet. . . . here’s a big bag to carry all of our brochures and pamphlets.” So you are carrying a bag (possibly 2 if you brought a purse) and trying to scan codes with your free hand in the middle of a hallway where people are moving.
Shanan
@Shanan
Interesting. So it’s going to take some serious immersion before we get used to it–if we ever do. I’m starting to think there’s gotta be a better way. The old thing (what I’ve seen called the “poor man’s QR code) where you just text such-and-such and get a deal–seemed more effective, though I seldom had a reason or the wherewithal to use it.
@Shanan One of the points you made here – that the people at the booths didn’t know what you were doing – is critical. There’s no point in trying something new, a new technology, for instance, if the employees – the most visible personification of the brand/company – don’t know about it. Aaagh!@ShakirahDawud
My friend @Schmutzie just sent me a link on Twitter about why students tend not to scan QR Codes. Long story short: The process is too difficult + slow: http://explosionofawesomeness.visibli.com/share/bsZLHr
My friend @Schmutzie just sent me a link on Twitter about why students tend not scan QR Codes. Long story short the process is too difficult + slow: http://explosionofawesomeness.visibli.com/share/bsZLHr
I just commented somewhere on QR codes yesterday I forget where. The taking me to a non-mobile site was the biggest thing that drove me nuts. The second was not having clear codes for me to scan.
And being a vet of many B2B trade shows this was no different. amazing stuff and great observations @Shanan
I think it’s definitely important where your QR code is and the size of it. If it’s in a hard to reach area or in a busy area you may feel rushed and not want to scan it.
What I can’t believe is the fact that some people had their QR codes going to non mobile friendly sites! What a good lesson for anyone looking to create a QR code for their next display!
@rachaelseda
Yup. I think the problem is Point A to B thinking:
ie. I want people to get to my site easily with their mobile. It is easier to scan something than type in a web address so I’ll use a QR Code. Bam! Problem solved.
VS.
I want people to get to my site easily with their mobile. Does my customer use a smartphone? Will they want to interact with my site this way? Why? What do they want to do on my site with their mobile? What do I want them to do? Will it be easy for them to scan the code? What will they see when they do scan it. . . . etc. etc.
@Shanan Yes I think often times people get so stuck on keeping up with the the latest and greatest new thing that they forget that it’s important to think of WHY they are doing so and if it is even going to benefit their customers first