Are QR Codes Still a Viable Marketing Element?

Techcrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/01/31/website-snapcodes/

Remember QR codes? They're sprinkled through the latest edition of my Marketing Plan Handbook and they therefore date the book to a period when QR codes were everywhere. Then apps became ubiquitous and many experts declared QR codes a thing of the past.

Not so fast. In fact, QR codes have new life among social media sites! Snapchat, for instance, invites businesses to create Snapcodes that are QR codes. Updating the QR code for the Snap generation, in other words.

Pinterest is also updating the QR code idea, with its object-recognition lens that can understand a QR code and then open the website associated with that code. No special app, just use Pinterest.

Facebook recently tested a QR code reward program, geared toward retailers and their customers.

Google Allo can also work via QR codes to quickly expand a user's friend base or share chat functions. QR scanning is easy and convenient.

So the answer is YES--QR codes are not only viable, they're trendy. Again. Watch for creative marketing with QR this year.