Track Your Letter With QR Postage Stamps ?

Perhaps old news to citizens of Croatia, but as far back as 2011 the Croatian Postal Service started putting QR codes and a numeric tracking code to their stamps



You can then check to see how far your letter has travelled by entering the code on line

and check out its exciting journey on their interactive map

I'm not quite sure at what point the sender scans the QR code..after all, they have put the letter in the post box?

High Noon for a QR code

Look What We Found with a QR Code

Look What We Found is actually the name of a good quality convenience food suppliers who use natural produce from British farmers

The QR Code led me to the very engaging TV Ad that I hadn't seen previously

I particularly like the way that they used the Facebook page to learn more about their consumers through a survey to explore why these ready meals were being bought

And to get feedback on their packaging redesign

Pointless QR code on Father's Day

I actually a QR code fan I even have them on the back of my business cards. But sometimes..just sometimes I wonder about the sanity of the marketers who use them

Of course Father's Day is upon is this weekend and being a grateful son, went out to buy a card the other day.

I chose the image below as my dad loves his garden, so it felt appropriate




Now on the back of this, while checking out the price..sorry Dad..I noticed the QR code



Scan me , watch me?

I tried.

Now of course, the card still being in the cellophane wrapper I couldn't get to scan it properly but I bought the card nevertheless.

I got home and tried the code again, and this redirected me here

I just thought..huh? What was the point of that?

I've just sent my dad a physical Fathers Day card. Mainly because he is of an age where he still appreciates a physical card ( funnily enough so does my 13 year old daughter). So what is the card with a QR code trying to do? Its not even as if the video is some how related to the image I had specifically chosen for my dad.

Are you trying to convince me to move over to e-cards?

Is it meant to make my father think, great son, he said Happy Fathers Day twice?

Can we think about technology before we run headlong into applying anything to everything?

Commuter Shopping with Peapod

Peapod the leading Internet grocer in the US Pilots Virtual Rail Program; Commuters Shop, Scan and Book Grocery Deliveries From Their Smartphones

We all lead busy lives and none more so than the commuters in the Chicago area. “Chicagoans spend, on average, more than an hour commuting to and from work each day.  That’s well over 200 hours a year in transit time alone,” said Elana Margolis, Peapod's Director of Corporate Communications

To help and make sure they don't run out of groceries, Peapod have set up larger than life virtual store shelves in a couple of busy locations.

The shelves are stocked with popular products from Coca-Cola, Barilla and Procter & Gamble that can be scanned and ordered via a smartphone.

Commuters are able to start shopping, amend lists and book deliveries

The App is available on both Apple and Android phones.

And the pilot runs off the back of a trial they ran in Philadelphia, described in the video below, working with Giant and Titan . There, commuters bought a wider selection of products and a with a bigger average basket size. 90% of commuters who scanned returned




Now of course not all organisations can help their customers in this way. It doesn't need to be on big scale with lots of budget.

As I wandered through my city centre last week, I came across this Estate Agent's window who made sure that just because they were closed you weren't able to view properties.

It doesn't have to be more sophisticated than that but Peapod's work ( very similar to the Tesco Korean example below ) is a great example of where physical meets digital to make lives easier

Where Do I Sign Up? 2

Last year I penned a piece on some ideas for a brand's email sign up page Where Do I Sign Up?.

Essentially it boiled down to

1. Make It Easy to find and do – ideally above the fold Top Right, but it’s worth testing this.
2. Provide only one newsletter subscription page that includes information about all available email newsletters
3. Clearly state when users have navigated to the newsletter sign-up process
4. Don’t pre-select any newsletters for users unless they have clicked on a link that named a specific newsletter
5. In multi-step processes, let users know how many steps remain
6. Explain the ‘value proposition’ – what’s in it for me?
7. Manage expectations – what will I get when and how often?
8. Have a clear Privacy Policy and if you use incentives - be transparent
9. Send a confirmation email, or maybe even the last newsletter – but tell the subscriber to look out for it
10. On the confirmation page / email get subscribers to add you to the contacts list!

But of course the brand website is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to where you can begin that email relationship. The opportunities are endless...well, almost....so here are a few suggestions

Point of Sale - A quick request of email address and name with POS integration to your email platform can result in a welcome email literally as the customer walks out of the door

QR Codes - These can just about be added to anything and everything with a link to the registration page. Imagine next time you're in the queue at the cinema..and next to you is poster with a QR code promoting the venue's newsletter?

Facebook - No need to direct fans away from Facebook either. Just register them for the email where they are. But maybe make it look a little more appealing than this Reiss attempt

Twitter - Perhaps promoting the email program with any welcome Tweet to new followers

SMS - Great if perhaps promote using outdoor media at large events such as football games. It's been a very successful tactic at Wembley I know.

Foursquare - Great opportunity to capture email addresses during check-in registrations for promotions and as part of any location based loyalty programme

Apps - An article in the Observer this weekend reminded me about the power of apps ( especially the momentum of Android). It's a real opportunity to grab an email address, especially when you consider that a large number of downloaded apps remain that...downloaded and unused!

Product Registration - We recently purchased a new washing machine and was amazed that at the point of registering my machine for it's guarantee, not no real argument was made for me to give an email address - at the very least offer to send me the Guarantee via email?

In-store - In a previous post I've mentioned this great piece of work by Best Buy and how they used interactive screens in store to capture email addresses from customers who were just about to walk out...and maybe buy elsewehere.

AT&T View of QR Codes

The World Park Campaign

Reading the Signs

I came across the FIAT Street Evo app recently and was impressed by the numbers claimed at the end of the clip.

1. 1 million signs spotted
2. Great feedback
3. The most viewed Fiat brochure in history!

I think the use of technology, location , gamification make the campaign truly engaging.

Let's hope the conversations turned into conversions.