Concerns about QR Codes

Good points.    I had not known that some of this data was always gathered.   We did formally tesgrt the use of QR codes in store to get information about products being purchased.   But at the time things like location data were not captured.  Thinking back, would have been easy to do that.  And as mentioned in a previous comment here:  'Location data is always personal'.   Good example below.

QR Codes Are Here to Stay. So Is the Tracking They Allow.   By The New York Times, July 27, 2021  in the CACM

When people enter Teeth, a bar in San Francisco's Mission neighborhood, the bouncer gives them options. They can order food and drinks at the bar, he says, or they can order via a QR code.

Each table at Teeth has a card emblazoned with the code, a pixelated black-and-white square. Customers simply scan it with their phone camera to open a website for the online menu. Then they can input their credit card information to pay, all without touching a paper menu or interacting with a server.

A scene like this was a rarity 18 months ago, but not anymore. "In 13 years of bar ownership in San Francisco, I've never seen a sea change like this that brought the majority of customers into a new behavior so quickly," said Ben Bleiman, Teeth's owner.

QR codes — essentially a kind of bar code that allows transactions to be touchless — have emerged as a permanent tech fixture from the coronavirus pandemic. Restaurants have adopted them en masse, retailers including CVS and Foot Locker have added them to checkout registers, and marketers have splashed them all over retail packaging, direct mail, billboards and TV advertisements. ... 

QR codes can store digital information such as when, where, and how often a scan occurs. They can also open an app or a Website that then tracks peoples personal information, or requires them to input it .... 

From The New York Times 

View Full Article

QR Code Comeback?

We were very early experimenters and appliers, so this caught my eye.  Good story in current context, With further expert opinion in retail.   Will it last post-pandemic? 

How did QR codes go from DOA to killer app?  by Matthew Stern in Retailwire

About a decade ago QR codes were looking like a hot new technology, popping up on billboards throughout the U.S. and enticing smartphone users to scan. But without a pressing use case and with minimal customer adoption, within a few years of that they became something closer to a running joke.

In the past few years, brands have begun taking another look at QR codes and some experts are now adding them to the list of technologies that the novel coronavirus pandemic has helped turn into a part of daily life.

Contactless payment, pulling up digital menus, self-serve ordering, touchless shopping and contact-free returns are but a few of the pandemic-era uses for QR codes that Ad Exchanger senior editor Allison Schiff cited in an article from late 2020.

The technology has been leveraged by businesses of all sizes, too. Small companies have been using the technology with pop-ups to let customers arrange delivery or pickup for products not available on hand. Big chains like CVS have begun allowing the use of QR codes for payment. ... " 

Nestle and Carrefour Track Baby Milk

Another tracking and safety identification example.

Nestle, Carrefour Extend Blockchain Tracking Effort to Baby Milk   By Daniel Palmer in Coindesk

Nothing is more important to new parents than the safety of their infants, and food giants Nestle and Carrefour aim to use blockchain to help appease that instinct.

Following on from a previous food tracking effort by the two companies, based on IBM’s Food Trust platform, Nestle and Carrefour will track baby milk products and provide consumers with data on their origins and movements “from dairy to shelf.”

Specifically, the GUIGOZ Bio 2 and 3 infant milk range will be traced on the blockchain platform as a means to provide consumers with more information on the milks origins and transparency on product checks, Carrefour said in an announcement on Thursday. Customers will be able to scan a QR code on the milk’s packaging to access a range of information.  ... " 

QR Codes Have Considerable Value

Someone recently mentioned to me, in a discussion of brand package identification, that QR Codes had disappeared.   I knew that was not the case, but did not have a good set of examples.  And then came this.  Here a very extensive look about how they are being used effectively in China.  Including illustrative pictures. Very useful if you are looking for examples.   I passed this along.

Remember QR Codes? They’re More Powerful Than You Think     by Avery Segal in Andreessen Horowitz

China’s mobile payment ecosystem, the largest in the world, is built upon QR codes. But that technology extends far beyond shopping to ease friction throughout daily life. On a recent trip to China, I personally interacted with QR codes 42 times in a single day—to ride the train, to book a workout, to charge my phone, even to buy a round of drinks for a stranger’s birthday.

Companies in the US have been slow to adopt QR codes, but those who dismiss them as having “been around forever but never taken off” underestimate their wide-ranging potential. Camera-based solutions like QR codes (or facial recognition, for that matter) can make traditionally clunky user experiences seamless and intuitive. QR codes connect our online identity to the offline world, allowing users to essentially log in to physical locations—and bring their data with them. This delivers a number of benefits: brands learn user preferences, while customers gain a more tailored and social experience, as well as perks like automatic loyalty programs built into every transaction.

It’s no coincidence that QR codes were popularized in China, where many consumers leapfrogged the PC and bought a smartphone as their first computer. As a result, many of China’s products are built first and foremost for mobile, a fact that was readily apparent on my recent trip to China. This list highlights just some of the ways QR codes enable a whole new set of mobile-first experiences: improving offline social interactions, promoting easy health monitoring, streamlining operational efficiencies, and establishing innovative shopping channels. Here are 16 (more!) ways China is using QR codes.  ... " 

Enhanced Packaging via Google Lens

Enhancing packaging with scans?  I thought this had been done already with QR codes, I still see it on packages.   Google lens can be found on IOS and Android.   You point it at a package, I assume anywhere on the package,  and you will be linked to their information.    We tested related watermarking ideas.  This also assumes you know about the linkage, probably from an ad.  But you could have done the same with a QR code. Difference appears to be that you don't have to find a QR to scan.

Uncle Ben's Adds Google Lens to Packaging      By Jacqueline Barba - 09/18/2019

Mars Inc.’s Uncle Ben’s has teamed with connected food platform Innit to launch an artificial intelligence-driven initiative that leverages the Google Lens visual search technology to connect digital information to physical products and unlock meal solutions.

The partnership makes Uncle Ben’s the first food brand to adopt Google Lens, an image recognition technology designed to let users access relevant information related to objects the device identifies using visual analysis and "search what they see," according to a media release from Innit.

In this case, Uncle Ben’s is using the technology to help consumers “cut through the clutter” of meal planning by instantly delivering recommendations, information and inspiration about physical products in stores and homes.

To activate, users open either the Google mobile app on iOS devices or the Google Lens app on Android devices, and point their device at Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice packages and retail displays. Innit will then instantly suggest meals that can be built around the product, along with ingredient lists, nutrition advice and step-by-step cooking videos.  .... "

QR Codes in China

Have not been using or reading about the use of QR codes of late, interesting how they are being used in China. See also links to previous pieces on QR.    Some good, straight forward examples. Key too is how ready the customer base is willing to scan them.

16 Ways QR Codes are Being Used in China
by Connie Chan,   In Andreessen Horowitz Blog

We’ve talked a lot about the rise of QR codes in Asia, but they may now finally be moving from being a “joke” to being more widely adopted in other places as well. Simply put, QR codes let you hyperlink and bookmark the physical world. Just as UPC barcodes allow machine-readable scanning of data (e.g., price) on items in stores, QR codes are a barcode-like vector between online and offline information. And unlike NFC (near-field communication), which is used for reading smart cards, keycards, and contactless payments, QR codes can be easily accessed by any phone in the world that has a camera. They enable everything from online to offline (O2O) marketplaces, which are huge in China, to augmented reality.

Some of the more obvious use cases for them include things like adding a WeChat friend in real life (IRL); subscribing to a WeChat official account (often representing media, stores, people, and others); paying a street vendor or at a convenience store; connecting to wi-fi in a shop; getting additional content from a magazine article; and learning more about styling or the brand from a clothing label. But there are also a number of less-obvious (or not as well covered) uses in China, which I share below, because they show the range of what’s possible everywhere when QR codes disintermediate existing use cases… and enable new ones.  .... 

QR Codes and Counterfeiting

In Retailwire: Using QR codes to eliminate counterfeit goods.  We examined a number of watermarking methods.

P&G's CoverGirl and Print Augmentation

Nice to see this happening.  Especially taking this beyond the now dated approach of QR Codes.  Note the mention of Blippar technology.  Which they say is: " .... a revolution for traditional print and marketing offering the power to turn every single piece of print or physical branding in the real world into an instantaneous digital, interactive experience. ... "

" ... Procter & Gamble's CoverGirl is experimenting with several different ways to leverage mobile to activate its print advertising in magazine, including QR codes, augmented reality and shoppable ads.

In Allure’s September issue, CoverGirl included a QR code on a tearaway that leads to a listing of CoverGirl offers, and in the tablet version, CoverGirl integrated a shopping feature into its ads. In Vogue, on the other hand, CoverGirl used a complex augmented reality feature via Blippar technology. ... " 

Information Insertion at Point of Need

From the BBC: What a good ridiculously simple idea, a sticker applied to Mercedes vehicles that contains a QR code, which directs first responders to rescue methods to extract people from a specific car model.  They have put the idea into the public domain.

Reminds me of related ideas of tattooing bar codes on people for medical ID .... Not far different from RFID capsule injection, now common in veterinary applications and some human systems ...

Unilever Mobile in Retail

In Mobile Marketer:  Quite an interesting experiment.  Note the scanning of the QR code and the building of a mobile database for future use.  Data mining is an obvious next step. " ... Unilever has teamed up with a Southern California grocery store chain for an in-store promotion that leverages mobile to make it easy for shoppers to track qualifying purchases and become eligible to win free concert tickets. 

The promotion is taking place inside 36 Northgate Gonzalez Markets with the goal of driving mobile engagements for brands such as Axe, Dove and Ragu, raising awareness for two non-profits and helping the retailer build a mobile database. Mobile users can text in or scan a QR code to receive personalized shopping recommendations and product information, with those spending $50 on Unilever products receiving two free tickets to a Reyli concert on May 17 at the Honda Center in Anaheim.

“We wanted to create an opportunity for Unilever and our grocery partner that could track both the spending patterns of their credit card and cash customers,” Jonas Hudson, chief operating officer at CausePlay, Manhattan Beach, CA .... ' 

QR Codes on Book Covers

QR codes showing up on all book covers of some publishers.  Like Simon and Schuster.   Not unexpected as more consumers are getting used to seeing the codes in many places.    Makes sense to continue to re-market using the devices of the newly empowered consumer.

Junaio Augmented Reality Update

Junaio has updated their mobile App capabilities for commercial augmented reality.  Full report accessible here.  Also see a short video explaining mobile augmented reality.  New capabilities include scanning images, barcodes and QR codes.    With an easier to use interface.  I like the idea, but it depends heavily on accessible content, and there isn't much available in my suburban location. Even the Web was not impressive until you had sufficient value to search for.

IBM Tests Augmented Reality Shopping App

In Adage:  Have not seen IBM involved on the shelves of retail for a while.  This is an interesting effort of theirs in testing the experience of in-store interaction.  We worked with their early use of kiosk and checkout experience.   " .... Marketers have tried targeting consumers in stores with QR codes and barcode scanners that so far have gotten limited traction. Now IBM is testing a new approach, dubbed augmented reality, which is a bit like applying search or a personalized version of Google Goggles to the world of physical store shelves.

The prototype app, being tested with some yet-unnamed large retailers in the U.S., can be downloaded by shoppers in-store at the onset of a shopping trip or beforehand to their smartphones or tablets. It lets them describe what they're looking for in terms of ingredients they want more of (e.g. whole grains) or less or none of (e.g. gluten or lactose). It also lets them input that they want biodegradable packaging or say what ingredients or products they want to assemble for a meal.... " 

QR Code Failures

Instructive examples of where the use of QR codes failed for specific brands.   " ... review of hundreds of 2D-based campaigns, for every one campaign that does deliver something (i.e., value, relevance, meaning, benefit, or a real interactive experience for the consumer) via the code, there are three campaigns that don't and fail in part or altogether. ... " 

Use of QR Code

Using QR codes as a time station:   The simple check-in idea has become more common.   Simple is often good to build upon.  Via Walter Riker.

Wal-Mart and P&G Team for Mobile Shopping

In a unique and novel approach a faux food truck in NYC and Chicago is decorated with QR codes.  Allows the walking shopper to buy an assortment of popular consumer package goods.  Similar to some of the virtual stores reported on here lately in transit passageways. " ... giving residents an opportunity to scan QR codes with their mobile phones to order P&G products from Wal-Mart Stores. Similar QR codes will be on display at bus shelters in Chicago. "People have yet to really adopt buying consumables online," said P&G spokesman Tim Marrin. "We think having free delivery, and getting this message out to urban shoppers who don't have access to Wal-Mart stores, is a great first start."... "
And more from AdAge.

Lexus RFID Enabled Print Ad

An NFC enabled print ad for Lexus in Wired Magazine.   Readable from NFC enabled phones or other devices.  Why this versus a QR code?  I have not tried the phone-enabled NFC lately, but likely it is easier to connect than a QR code read with a smartphone camera.  Is that enough of a reason? 

Beauty Packaging to Link Real and Virtual Worlds

This was an area we explored at length.   During a visit to China in 2003 I saw a remarkable number of examples in retail spaces.   Now QR codes and smartphones combined can produce 'virtual spaces' anywhere the shopper is, removing some of the privacy considerations we encountered.  Multiple sensory interactions, including immersive 3D and sound are also possible.  Packaging can become a portal into aspirational experiences ... 

"  Beauty packaging that increases interactivity between virtual, real worlds through embedded sound, video and QR codes is set to increase globally in coming year, according to new market forecast ...  ... There is growing use of tablets and screens at point-of-sale to personalize the in-store experience. Korean brands in Myeongdong were some of the first to adopt screens and video at point-of-sale while Clinique introduced iPads for client consultations in-store. In the US, RiteAid is trialing an in-store kiosk that performs anonymous video analytics to determine the age and gender of customers standing in front of it. The Reward Centre then dispenses vouchers and customized promotions. ... "

QR Codes for a Timeclock

Colleague Walter Riker sends along an interesting application for QR codes. Using them as a contactless time and attendance system.  Simple idea.   See the Timestation Site.

QR Codes vs Mobile Visual Search

Are QR codes days numbered?   The suggestion that MVS will take over from them soon is suggested.  People have just become trained in using QR codes, so I doubt it.  They still have to know there is something there, and the QR is a good target.