sxc marketing

1. A QR Code is just a link. I will not use QR Codes on webpages and in email or email signatures. I will look stupid if I do because all someone would have to do is click on them. So why would I use a QR Code? I would just make a link that someone can click on. [Exception for website with QR Code to download their mobile app]
2. I will not use QR Codes in subway stations with no connectivity as no one will be able to scan them and go to a link. [Exception for cities and countries where Subway stations are wired]
3. I will not put QR Codes on clothing as I do not want people to be creepers chasing around someone trying to scan their butt or their chest.
4. I will not put QR Codes on anything that moves fast; cars, car license plates, trucks, towed behind planes, OR on static objects you drive quickly by; outdoor billboards on highways. This is a tragically unsafe use of QR Codes.
5. I will not put QR Codes on my ads in in-flight magazines, as 30,000 feet up in the air does not have good cell reception, and honestly not enough planes have wifi to justify the usage. [Exception for Virgin America]
6. I will not put QR Codes on curved surfaces like pillars, straws, or balls when they stretch around the surface. Someone cannot easily scan them, and again, I do not want to be stupid. [Exception for when the code IS actually scannable as on bottles]
7. I will not design “artistic” QR Codes that cannot be scanned. If my art director, creative director, or other production artist makes an un-scannable artistic QR Code I have the full permission of the Digital Strategy Council on Foreign Relations to shoot or otherwise force my creative team to only work writing Search Copy for three months. [Most prefer being shot.]
8. I will not put QR Codes on rotating billboards, digital signage, and in TV commercials for less than the full commercial length as people will not have enough time to scan them.
9. I will not make QR Codes smaller than they can possibly be scanned unless I am specifically designing them to torture people.
10. I will direct QR Codes ONLY to mobile friendly websites that have no Adobe Flash on them. This includes stupidly linking directly to Facebook pages. Better yet, I will make a specific mobile website for the iPhone and Android devices.

When I do not do stupid things I avoid being stupid. I hold this stupidness to be self-evident. If I do not hire a good digital strategist I deserve to not only look stupid, but be reminded of my stupidness and shame for at least three months.

I understand that it is OK to ask questions when I do not understand a new piece of technology. That is not stupid. It is good to hire a digital strategist to assist me in understanding not only how a piece of technology works, but how I could use it to help me, my brand, and my agency connect to people in meaningful ways.