A QR code works when it removes a step someone was already going to take, and gets ignored when it asks them to start something new. That single rule explains most of the difference between codes that get scanned and squares that get walked past.
The three rules
- Say what it does. A bare square is a question. "Scan for the wine list" is an answer. Adding a line of text reliably lifts scan rates more than any design change.
- Put it where a phone already is. On the table, on the receipt, on the packaging in their hand. Not above head height or behind the counter.
- One code, one job. A code that might mean three things gets scanned by nobody.
In a café or restaurant
- Table menu. The obvious one, and it still works — but point it at a plain menu, not at your homepage with the menu three taps down.
- The WiFi. A static WiFi code on a table card ends the single most repeated conversation in hospitality.
- Leave a review. On the receipt or the bill folder, at the moment someone is most likely to be pleased with you.
- Today's specials. A dynamic code on a table tent, repointed each morning — no reprinting.
In a shop or studio
- Window code, after hours. Your opening times, current stock or booking page, working while the shop is closed.
- Product care. On the swing tag — washing instructions, ingredients, provenance. Cheaper than printing it and easier to correct.
- The thing that is out of stock. A code on the empty shelf edge that takes them to the online order instead of out of the door.
- Behind the scenes. On the packaging of something handmade, pointing at a video of it being made. This is the one that gets shared.
For services and trades
- On the van. Large, high contrast, and pointing at a booking page rather than a homepage.
- Business card vCard. A static code that saves your details to their contacts without them typing anything.
- After the job. On the invoice or the leave-behind card — review, warranty registration, next appointment.
- Event and market stalls. One code per event, all pointing at the same page, so you can finally tell which markets are worth the stall fee.
That last one is the real trick
Most businesses use one code everywhere and learn nothing. Use a different code in each place, all pointing at the same destination, and your scan counts become a map of what works. The window versus the receipt. Saturday market versus Sunday. The flyer versus the poster.
It costs nothing extra and turns a vague feeling about which channel works into a number. Name them after where they went — "window Q4", not "QR 7" — because you will not remember in March.
Two things that will sink you
Printing static codes on anything that might change. Use dynamic codes for anything going to print, so a changed destination is an edit rather than a reprint.
Not testing the printed article. Print one at final size on the real material and scan it with an ordinary phone, from where people will actually stand. Gloss laminate under a spotlight defeats a camera, a code across a fold is distorted before anyone tries, and codes scaled up from small images lose the crisp edges scanners need.
Create your first codes free — five dynamic codes included, scans counted by time, country and device.