QR-Codes are a networking tool as are business cards. Lets join them together.. and elliminate the paper...

[Adam Chant]

 

I have been ranting about QR codes for months now on our weekend podcast for socialnomics 101 and to local business owners in the community. Now it's time to take it up a notch and start implementing the concept into everyday work. By just placing a QR code on the back of your printed business card you are presenting digital contact information to your customers.  By eliminating the printed business card all together you are freeing up your options and saving the environment. This sounds a little impossible, but let me explain how it all works.

The first step would be to add a QR-Code to the back of your printed business cards. This QR Code could be as simple as your website address (landing page) or even a vCard that adds all of your contact information to contact list of the reading smart phone. There are many sites on the web that can produce a vCard QR Code of your information. This makes it much easier for the consumer to save your contact information and increases your chances of being recalled when your business is needed.

 

The fact of the matter is once the QR code is read by the consumer your printed business card becomes a useless piece of scratch paper or if you are lucky a post lunch-meeting dental pick. Then it is discarded to the trash or tossed into a desk drawer never to see the light of day again. If there was only a way to eliminate the printed business card all together not only would you save the trees, but it would save you money by not having to constantly buy new business cards. With just QR Codes and some creative thinking one could offer up the QR Code instead of a printed business card to all smart phone users.

 

The second step would be to get rid of the printed business card all together. Post cards or table tents could be used where one would normally see misc business card stacks. Rather than leaving 10 business cards on a table or counter each week (only to be used as a dental care substitute ), leaving 1 acrylic post card or table tent with your QR code and business information is more environmentally friendly, costs less time and money on your part. For direct networking contacts you can have a much smaller number of business cards that include your QR code to hand out to those people in the dark ages and a laminated business card for smart phone users to scan. Even if you cut your business card purchasing in 1/2 over a year the savings would really add up.

 

The third step is where it really gets amazing. I'm talking about a way to connect businesses with consumers and track those contacts in both directions. By removing the business card from the business owner's hands and placing it in online it becomes a living document. Anyone can access it at any time so the information it contains should never be obsolete and contacts can take place in both directions. The mechanics of it are simple in the ever evolving world of the internet. Functionally an individual would have an app on a smart phone that acts as a contact list or business card viewer. This app would be used to exchange business card information by way of the QR codes. You could display either your printed style of business card, just contact information or the QR code to exchange with another smart phone user. By reading the QR code you add that business card contact to your contacts app and the same can be done in reverse. Since everything would be hosted online any out of date information can be updated by owner thus allowing the viewer to always see the most up to date contact information.

 

The fourth step would be for businesses to regularly update the contact information with additional details like promotions and discounts. Offer all of the people who have saved your business card in their contacts app a limited time discount, special sale or even personal invite to an event. The possibilities are endless and the nodes of communication are too.

 

While I have found both sites and smart phone apps that implement some of these features I have yet to find one that integrates them all. It's only a matter of time before this is taken to the nth degree of social networking and business marketing.

But you heard it here first..

 

[Graphic Experience 945.1718]

Brilliant ! I've got to get out of the "dark ages", slowly but surely. I can barely keep up ! As long as I know people like you and Jim, there is hope for me!

 

[Jim Greenleaf 310.218.2714]

This is great Adam