QR Codes: An Emerging Marketing Trend

What is a QR code anyway?

A Quick Response code (QR) is a two-dimensional barcode, read by smartphones and other camera phones or by dedicated QR code readers. The codes are encoded with text, URL, phone numbers or other data. The QR code technology is already pretty common overseas (imagine that!), especially in Japan where it originated.  The concept is still emerging here in the States as a new marketing trend, but seems to be catching on quickly. The use of QR codes is free of licensing, so the technology is available to use by any company. The codes are being used on menus, magazines, business cards, coupons, t-shirts- basically anything that can be scanned. The user scans the QR code and, through their phone, can automatically dial a phone number, visit a specific social media site or home page URL, set their phone calendar with an event (complete with alarm for a reminder), set the phone GPS with a physical address, just to name a few ideas.  I love the concept because it incorporates design with technology and has a specific, user-generated purpose.

How are they being used?

These codes are popping up in marketing campaigns, both in traditional and interactive media partly because they allow marketing professionals to easily track response rates. They are being used in tradeshows, billboards, direct mail pieces, coupons and contests, and in guerrilla marketing campaigns.  Use these codes to drive traffic to exclusive online content, offering prizes or other incentives. The majority of consumers may not being using these codes on a regular basis yet, but curiosity will make them check it out. Those that are already using them will be tech-savvy and more likely to visit your website, or be influenced by your social media campaign.

Well-known companies are using QR codes in various ways. Pepsi prints QR codes on bottles to direct customers to their website.  Designers are using them on their mailers to give customers exclusive online content like runway videos and limited edition collections.  Restaurants are using QR Codes to list product nutritional information on its packaging. Real Estate agents are using them on signage to provide details about the house for sale. The codes are also being used in unusual ways-food suppliers are using them to show where their product is grown and when it was harvested, an English version of “The Amazing Race” reality TV show is using the codes as part of the treasure hunt, and Japan has even put them on tombs to give background on the interred (creepy!)

So how can you use these codes for your small business?

You can drive traffic to your website by offering exclusive contests or discounts for QR code users.  Track traffic to your website by using different codes on different marketing pieces, therefore knowing which piece has the best ROI (return on investment). Thank customers for their patronage and put one on receipts to offer a discount on their next purchase. Encode one with a Google map for your store location. Encode one with product reviews and information or price comparisons. Send the user to YouTube to see your online commercial. You can make it part of your campaign by placing them on t-shirts, business cards, billboards, or magnets.  Or get creative, like Lego who made one out of lego blocks, and make the QR code the central part of your campaign.

If you still aren’t convinced about the future of QR Codes in your business marketing, let your customer tell you- In a recent study commissioned by ad agency MGH, 72 percent of smartphone users indicated that they would be likely to recall an ad with a QR code. Check out the whole study here: http://mghus.com/qr-code-survey-results. You can generate a QR code using a site like Kaywa, iCandy, or Stickybits. Kaywa will also provide the code reader for your phone, so will Barcode Scanner.  You can install the app on your phone with ease.

KC Hart is the Director of Marketing & Communications for the Asheville Home Builders Association.

Regulatory Reform

One of the most common complaints about the state of the homebuilding industry is regulation proving burdensome on small businesses.

Builder (and sub-contractor) experiences come from field work, not a classroom theory, so those experiences need to be shared with our Representatives.  Maybe you feel like the current Steep Slope regulations should be a local matter. Maybe you think that Green Building requirements or Fire Sprinkler Systems mandates are too strict to make your business profitable and homes affordable. You need to share your personal experiences that are based on the effects of regulation on your business so that our legislators have real-world experiences to help plan reform.

Last week, several local builders traveled to Washington D.C for the annual Legislative Day conference where representatives from the National and State Home Builders Associations meet with our elected officials to discuss homebuilding issues. Each year, we have the opportunity to meet with our NC Representatives as well, by traveling to Raleigh for the NC Legislative Conference.  There is also a unique opportunity coming soon where the Joint Committee on Regulatory Reform is traveling across the State to hear directly from locals the burdens of regulations on our businesses.  They are holding six total sessions, one being held on April 15 in Hendersonville.  If you can't make it to this meeting, public input on regulatory reform may be sent to the following email address: RegReform@ncleg.net. You are invited to participate in all these direct avenues for contacting your representatives.

But, you are (hopefully) busy working these days, and may not have time to fight the good fight on behalf of your fellow homebuilders.  That's okay! The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) is one of the largest lobbying groups in the country. Here in North Carolina, we have the largest state Association in the country- therefore we have a powerful voice when discussing national homebuilding regulatory reform and economic growth.  We are also lucky to have a legislative staff at the North Carolina Home Builders Association (NCHBA) who are well respected by their peers and legislators both on the State and National Levels.  Two staff (Mike Carpenter and Lisa Martin) were recently ranked among the most influential lobbyists in the NC General Assembly. Their job is simple, as listed on the NCHBA website: to protect the affordability of housing while enhancing the economic and social benefit to the community.  They do this for the folks in our industry, every day! You can contact them anytime to voice your opinions on current legislation, get a deeper understanding of the issues, or suggest ideas for reform. They will represent you well and fight on your behalf to make sure that homebuilding issues remain a priority in Washington. 


Donate to Build-PAC- you can do this at a National level, State, or through your local HBA.  These dollars are non-partisan, going to the candidates who will best represent the interests of our industry.  They must be personal contributions, but this is an excellent way to support the industry that supports you and help lead the way for reform in our industry through legislation.


Remember, if you don't care, no one else will either. Whether you like it or not, government has a direct impact on your business.  You are the first step in regulatory reform for the homebuilding industry.

Loyalty, Integrity, Honesty

In a time of economic instability, continuous natural disasters, and political strife, the business values of loyalty, integrity and honesty sometimes become precious commodities.  In trying to survive, we often lose sight of the character traits that made our businesses successful in the first place.  By holding true to our business ethics, we will not only outlast the hard times, but continue to build and thrive during the uplift of the recession when other companies will struggle to repair damaged reputations.

Loyalty-

So maybe your company has always worked in cooperation with Company A with successful results- great turnaround time and quality work, but Company B comes to you one day promising lower prices, and you decide to use Company B instead.  Not an issue, right? They have lower prices and you need that in these troubling times, right?  Maybe.  But what if you need to go back to Company A because Company B didn't deliver?  But now Company A no longer has the same trust in you- previously, they may have jumped through hoops to get your order through quickly as you were a valued customer, they may have worked harder to find the best quality products for you at the best prices because they knew you valued their time and relationship- I wouldn't count on that anymore. Be further aware that the word will quickly spread that you aren't a loyal customer, hurting your reputation as you now try to build a brand new relationship with another company. Have open and honest conversations with your business partners- if you want to go with a company to stay in business and have a good reason to do so, then take the time to explain your decision. There may be something Company A can do to keep your business, considering what a loyal customer you are!

Integrity-

Undercutting the competition's bids just to snag the customer isn't good business- it not only hurts your bottom line, but hurts the industry as a whole. In our industry, some unethical builders will outbid quality builders by promising lower pricing- then as the project continues, the price creeps up as the "extras" the homeowner wanted - originally quoted by the quality builder but conveniently left out of the bid by the  unethical builder. Yes, the homeowner should have looked at more than the bottom line, and yes, they should have asked more questions about inclusive details, but doesn't the builder have responsibility here too? Keep in mind that offering a lower bid isn't bad business- but offering it at unrealistic building prices knowing that it won't fulfill the needs of the client is. 

Honesty-

This may be the most important value yet. If you can't provide lower prices and still maintain product integrity, then say so.  If you find that placing your marketing dollars in one avenue isn't as effective as participating somewhere else, then say so.  If you are not going to be able to meet the needs of your client- then say so!  And above all- if you do say so- then make sure you do exactly what you said you would.  Keeping an open conversation with your clients and business partners will keep them loyal to you.  It will also help establish long-term relationships and a great reputation.  On the other hand, dishonesty will turn your clients and business partners away fast.  It is much harder to fix a bad reputation than maintain a positive one, and one bad ethical decision can stay with your company name for a long time.

In the homebuilding industry, these values not only bring repeat customers, but also build invaluable relationships that will make us stronger as we outlast these troublesome times. Yes, the homebuilding industry has been hit hard the last couple of years- but so have many other industries- so you can believe that your clients are having a hard time too.  How you handle your business now will have lasting impressions when our economy stabilizes and homebuilding is again on the rise. There will be a new homebuilding industry and you might not make the same profit on the same item that you sold previously- but if you make the right ethical decisions now, your business will succeed in the future. 

One last thing - support the industry that supports you by using members of your local homebuilders association.  Members care about building a business (and a home!) together, so be sure to Do Business With A Member!