The following article appeared in the online edition of Daily Herald Business Ledger on June 22, 2011.

By: Richard R. Klicki, Director of Content Development

You see them everywhere, from the advertising inserts in your Sunday paper to banners hanging in the windows of Chicago museums.

They look like a simple maze or something you’d see on the walls of an Aztec temple.

But they’re the newest tech fad in marketing and advertising, and experts say they are one of the best ways to link your customers between your brick-and-mortar world and your online one.

They’re called Quick Response, or QR, codes, a two-dimensional bar code that, when read by a scanner, providesadditional information or a link to an endless list of online possibilities. QR codes have actually been around since the early 90s, originally developed in Japan by a Toyota subsidiary to track parts during vehicle manufacturing. While they’ve been common in the Far East for more than a decade, they’ve only found their way to our shores in the past couple of years.

In the past year alone, QR codes have boomed onto the scene as they evolved into a portal between traditional marketing avenues and virtual venues.

Julie Barcelona, president of Barcelona Creative Group in Palos Heights, is an advocate of QR codes. She notes that although the are just finding acceptance among consumers now, they will become a bigger factor as more people adopt mobile technology into their lifestyles.

“It’s a good way to carry your customers from print to online,” Barcelona said. “As digital becomes more important in lives and businesses, QR codes present some really good possibilities.”

QR codes are read by a scanner available for smartphones at no or little cost. When a customer scans a QR code with their phone, it will direct them to a website, video, photo, coupon, chat room, or whatever the business owner wants the customer to get, she added.

Barcelona notes that experts see mobile phone traffic exceeding PC traffic within the next 5 years, which puts QR codes in a prime position to help connect those users to a business’ products or services.

QR codes don’t necessarily have to focus on what you’re selling. Barcelona notes they can be just as important in establishing a relationship between your business and your customers.

For example, her company worked with C.J Erickson Plumbing in Alsip in its sponsorship of the Southwest Half Marathon earlier this year. Erickson had QR codes placed on a postcard that was inserted in a runner’s “goody bag.” The code took the runner to Erickson’s website, where they could sign up for a $10 gift certificate from a fast-food restaurant.

They had 35 takers for the gift cards, she said, which was about the same expected response if they had used more traditional methods, such as direct mail or email blasts. Barcelona admits that since the technology is still new here, many may not have known just how to use the code.

“There’s still some mystery on how to use it,” she said.

Nonetheless, she added, Erickson plans to use QR codes for future sponsorships and at trade shows. One plan in the works is to create a QR code that links customers to a video of the company’s plumbing showroom they are currently building.

Small businesses can create their own QR codes and Barcelona noted that there are several online sites that can walk someone through creating the codes. However, she notes, just building a code that links customers to your website’s home page is not going to be effective in today’s marketing world.

“Just linking to your home page gets old real fast,” she said. “QR codes are good only if you have a good website.”

She also points out that the codes are part of an overall marketing strategy that involves listening to your customers, as well as talking to them.

“Businesses are still missing the boat that this is just part of the message,” she said. “And that message needs to be focused on the customer.”

Just telling people what you have to offer won’t work, she said. You need to tell customers what problem you can solve for them and what makes you different from the others.

“Using a QR code is a good way of getting to know your customer and what makes him tick,” she said.

Fore more information go to barcelonacreative.com — or scan the QR code printed with this column.