QR Codes: The Silent Killer of Your Brand

Thirty-three and counting…and so far, none of them are working. While the printer’s promotion I received definitely could have benefitted from the help of a seasoned designer, the overuse of QR codes ultimately caused its swift demise.

But worse than 33 QR codes, the first five I tried didn’t even work (under any lighting condition) and caused the promo and thus the printer’s reputation to take its mighty fall.

This couldn’t happen to you, you say. You test your QR codes thoroughly. Admirable as this may be, you still may not be out of the woods.

“About 80 percent of the time, I’m disappointed that I scanned [the QR code],” Michael Hellesen says in a BusinessWeek article. And Michael is not alone.

QR code fatigue
We’ve reached a point where even fruit in the grocery store is sporting a QR code...at least my strawberries, blueberries and raspberries are. The QR code on the package says, “check us out.”

I’m nothing if not curious (and ever one to follow the beckoning trail of a mysterious QR code) so I decided to see where this one would lead me. Happily, the code actually worked. Sadly, I ended up in the land of disenchantment. Here’s why.

1. Bad pick-up lines make my eyes roll.
As cute as my berries were, they should have said something a little more alluring, more original than “Check us out.” Pretty lame—right up there with naked QR codes (those that have no call to action at all.)

But I still had hope and scanned anyway. I arrived at the mobile page, and my strawberries invited me to like them on Facebook. Really...maybe I’m behind the times a bit here, but why would I like my groceries? Wouldn’t it be better to show me a delicious recipe I could make?