While having a lazy afternoon walk in a shopping mall, my eyes were caught by a new artist exhibition. Visitors were able to vote for their favorite pieces of art using QR codes. I took the opportunity and scanned the QR code of my favorite work with my smartphone. To confirm my vote, I had to enter my email address. At the same time, I subscribed for newsletters.

After just a few seconds, I received an email confirming my vote and the first newsletter. Both were beautifully designed… when I opened them on my PC at home. On the mobile, I wasn’t even able to read them. Where did things go wrong?

Send Mobile Emails After Scanning QR Codes

Today there are more and more marketing and PR activities that include scanning QR codes, for example:

  • public voting for the best item
  • contests choosing the right answer
  • offering to send additional information

According to Multichannel Merchant survey, released June 2012, 47% of merchants used QR codes in their marketing strategies this year comparing with just 8% a year ago. When speaking about QR codes, the conversation is narrowed to mobile optimization of landing pages and websites. But how about mobile friendly emails?

After scanning a QR code, all activities, like voting and contests, include asking for an email address. And then – sending emails. If scanning QR codes, it means people are using mobile phones. And it’s quite sure they are also reading emails on the go. So make sure your emails for those activities are mobile optimized.

Sign Up for Newsletters via QR Codes

If your QR code activity requires getting email addresses, make full use of that. Do not limit yourself to sending just one email with vote confirmation, the right contest answer, and that’s all. Include in the email a link to your sign up form and invite people to subscribe for your newsletters.

In accordance with a recent Econsultancy survey, released June 2012, QR codes are the most used mobile channel for engaging with customers. Half of marketers (50% of companies and 49% of agencies) use QR codes, while only a third (29% of companies and 38% of agencies) use mobile optimized emails.

If your QR code activity doesn’t include getting email addresses… you’d better rethink your strategy. Integrate both channels in one campaign. Just a checkbox with „I want to receive your newsletters” or a link to the sign up form – and you have a new or upgraded contact list for further communication.

Create Mobile Email List

If people subscribed to newsletters via QR codes, mobile friendly email is must-have in this situation. Track how people got in your sign-up form or create a special sign up form only for those subscribing via QR codes. Of course, both sign up forms and email should be mobile friendly.

Marketers often create online surveys to find out which of their subscribers read their emails on the go. This is your possibility to build an exclusive contact list of those reading emails on mobiles without any other methods.

To sum up

Mobile marketing growth is unlikely to stop in the near future. Integrating mobile marketing in the overall marketing strategy is a serious long-term decision for a company and takes both time and resources.

So instead of focusing on one mobile element and ignoring others, you can develop many at once and maximize your ROI. Email marketing goes hand in hand with SMS marketing, creation of apps – with m-commerce, and QR codes – with mobile optimized websites, landing pages and emails. Integrate as much communication methods and channels you can and engage the mobile user.