Three weeks ago Domex Superfresh Growers introduced two-pound cherry bags and clam shells with QR codes printed on each package. Since then the retailer has tracked 2,000 hits to its mobile website via scans of the QR codes. The company has learned much about its customer base as a result, says Loren Queen, marketing and communications manager.
"The highest numbers of hits have come from the Far East by a significant percentage followed by the Pacific Northwest, Canada and the West Coast of the United States." The codes on Superfresh Growers cherry packages lead consumers to the Superfresh Growers mobile website where they can access information about different varieties, nutrition facts and receive answers to frequently asked questions
But Rich, Young Males Use QR Codes, Not Teenagers
Marketers are always eager for data about their customers, and increasingly they are realizing much can be gleaned from a QR code campaign. At the same time, the industry is also studying who exactly is most apt to take the trouble of scanning a QR code. Interestingly, some - but not all - of the latest data about QR code use suggests groceries, typically a woman’s purchase, may not be the best product to sport such technology.
comScore reports that the people more likely to scan a QR code are male (60.5% of code scanning audience), skew toward ages 18-34 (53.4 percent) and have a household income of $100,000 or above (36.1 percent). They also are more likely to scan codes found in newspapers/magazines and on product packaging — and do so while at home or in a store.
Another study, by Ypulse, meanwhile finds that younger people are not so likely to take the trouble. Fewer than one in five students have ever used them and nearly two thirds of students have no idea what they are. Some 6% have seen them but can't figure out how to use them. “We think of teens and college students as being so tech savvy that they can figure out anything, but QR codes have them somewhat baffled,” said Melanie Shreffler, editor-in-chief of Ypulse.
