Pepsi uses QR Codes – Are you for real?

I stumbled into the realms of mobile advertising almost by accident several years ago and was privileged enough to be part of the team responsible for launching Blyk.

 

Under the guidance of internationally renown thought leaders such as Pekka Ala Pietila, Antti Ohrling, Leif Fagelstedt, Jonathan MacDonald, Tom Gutteridge, Marko Ahtisaari and many, many others (it would take me an eternity to mention everyone but you know who you are J) we set about reshaping the perception that a respectable portion of 16-24’s in the UK held about advertising on their mobile.

 

 Until Blyk, the general consensus about commercial communications on your phone was overwhelmingly negative but we had plans to change this permanently.

 

Two years later, all evidence would suggest that Blyk has succeeded in altering this perception, just check out the latest responses from the 200,000 strong member base– The majority now consider the ads they receive as a benefit rather than a hindrance to the service. Who would have thought that changing the mindset of such an opinionated yet fickle audience was possible at all? The Blyk team did it in 12 months – Kudos to all involved.

 

Enough about Blyk… at least for the time being. I only mentioned the achievement because it stands as a fantastic case study showing what can be achieved when you apply a little research and mountains of logic to your actions – This is in absolute contradiction to what Pepsi have just launched as their latest on-pack promotion.

 

Now, before anyone accuses me of being some kind of Pepsi brand saboteur or Coke-fiend (as in the drink , I am not. Instead, I am just a massive advocate of using the latest technology coupled with user research and common sense.

 

Pepsi are adding QR (Quick Response) Codes to cans of drink, which in theory is a brilliant idea but in reality is not very bright at all, considering their objectives.

 

Before I explain why Pepsi have not thought through the idea properly I will give a few words on how QR technology works:

 

Invented in Japan, QR technology was devised to allow consumers to interact with the objects in the real world which carried a 2D barcode, otherwise known as a QR code, think billboards, print adverts, flyers etc.

 

The user needs a camera phone, then they need to install the QR software, open the program on the handset and take a photo of the QR code, the software should then automatically open a web browser and direct you to whatever digital destination the QR code relates to.

 

 

A QR Code looks something like this:

 

 

 

This all sounds cool, very cool and there are already cases where QR codes have worked extraordinarily well for advertisers, here is a great example:

 

 

 

 

 

 But here’s the thing, and if it wasn’t for what I’m about to write next then I’ve no doubt Pepsi’s QR campaign would be an outrageous success… but it wont.

 

1. In order to interact with the QR code you need to have a compatible phone.
2. Then you need to install the software on the handset.
3. After downloading you need to open the application EVERY time you wish to interact with a QR code.
4. Then you need to get a steady shot of the QR graphic.
5. At last… you will be ‘effortlessly’ guided to the final destination.

 

 In reality, what it actually means to the consumer is this:

 

1. Only the most recent generation of camera phones are potentially QR compatible, even then there are those that aren’t.
2.  Installing the software on to the handset is not so simple. You need to find a source to download the software, which means accessing the internet, which in turn incurs data charges. Let’s assume that after searching for and downloading the app you have consumed 200k of data and that your network bills you at £1 per MB. In other words, it just cost you 20p to download a tool needed to interact with Pepsi.
3. Now, you must remember to open the application every time you want to interact with QR technology.
4. Take a photo (without wobbling or your QR code won’t be recognised).
5. Now you have access to some content. You don’t know what it is yet, but at least you can get some (hopefully) quite cool stuff on your phone…. and you are only paying £1 for every MB of data you’ll consume, not that you’ll have a clue how much data you are actually using.

So, the major barriers are compatability, access to software, lack of knowledge of content available, cost of data.

 

Pepsi have managed to create so many barriers to consumers interacting, most probably all in the name of a ‘media first’.

 

I have made this all sound doom and gloom so far but I do have some very simple suggestions.

 

For starters, instead of using cutting edge technology that NONE OF YOUR CUSTOMERS ARE USING, why not communicate through means which is most familiar to them - SMS/MMS.

 

Once you’ve established contact, don’t force feed them content that they might not want, JUST ASK WHAT YOUR CUSTOMERS WANT AND PROVIDE IT TO THEM.

 

Most importantly, ALLOW YOUR CUSTOMERS TO COMMUNICATE WITH YOU AND CONSUME YOUR BRANDED CONTENT FOR FREE – How arrogant can you be to assume that users want to pay to consume content they know nothing about just because it has your branding associated with it.

 

All this can be achieved working with people just like Blyk or a myriad of online partners.

 

Obviously I am not going to detail exactly how to achieve these objectives on this blog, free of charge – If you would like to know more then feel free to contact me – I wont charge you and the content of my response will be personalised to you .

 

After all this, I still think Pepsi has a brilliant brand image and the peeps at the various different agencies who work bloody hard to steer away from situations like these are rockstars (Graphico, MindShare and the rest of the WPP crew).

 

Ultimately, it’s all about building awaress, encouraging interaction, driving engagement and boosting sales – If your campaign does not do at least one of these things (which the Pepsi QR campaign does not) then you should head back to the drawing board.

 

Rant over. Onwards and upwards.