Are QR Codes Making A Comeback Due To The Pandemic?

Have you noticed an increase in QR code usage? Maybe you’ve sat down at a restaurant table and found yourself looking for a menu only to see a laminated QR code. Perhaps your current boarding or bus passes have been accessible via phone in the form of a QR code. With new social distancing guidelines and safety restrictions, the necessity of QR codes have grown in this new touch-free world we find ourselves in; how are you planning to incorporate them into your business?

QR codes, or quick response codes, are intended to pass information quickly and efficiently to a consumer. You can hold your phone over any QR code and the link to the website or image will pop up. With no third-party app necessary, this is a quick and easy gateway to providing your customers with information. 

With the resurgence and acceptance of QR codes due to the pandemic, businesses can use these codes in ways that will help create strong relationships with customers. Some examples are:

Restaurants

With a quick scan, customers can call for servers, order and pay for meals, and leave insightful feedback for the restaurant. By removing physical menus, restaurants limit exposure - keeping both customers and workers safe.

Travel

According to QR Code Generator App Pageloot, “QR Code usage has exploded in the last few years, but the whole pandemic situation definitely took it to a whole new level. The main reason for this is that they provide faster and easier experiences while less touching and more distancing is involved.” Just as you can use them for your boarding passes, QR codes reduce contact between staff and travelers. 

Payment

One of the best features of paying through QR codes is instant payment. Many customers have their cards linked to their phones and with a quick scan of the code, can confirm the payment instantaneously. Paired with the ‘tap to pay’ method, the need for a pin number is immediately removed.

Marketing

QR codes make connecting with customers easy - by scanning your QR code, customers have access to a multitude of information and methods of contacting you. QR codes can be used for a direct line to your webpage, sending emails or texts to customers, directions to the location of your business, and taking traffic directly to social media pages.

Not only have QR codes made a comeback, as society has embraced their usage due to the pandemic, it looks like they are here to stay. How can your business include QR codes in the future in business operations and marketing? The pandemic has made QR codes shine with the increasingly, contactless society we are growing accustomed to. The rising success of the newfound technology has proven that QR codes are here to stay and will become imperative to business and life as we know it. 

Guest post by Olivia Nieto, marketing intern for Elkay Advisors, LLC. She is currently attending Cairn University for her Dual-Level MBA/Marketing degree. She aspires to work in fiction publishing or in a business administration role. In addition to school, Olivia works full time and is an upperclassmen on her university’s softball team.