Qr Codes

i thought about the spray paint idea, but i also don't like the idea of going to jail. since it leads right to my page and graffiti is just wrong.


---Mike Savad

I've ordered gloss cards from Vista Print. Later I got matte finish of the same card for free. They will keep sending new offers for the same card. The gloss cards have a richer color. I found the type harder to read on my matte finished cards. It has dark purple type over a light purple background which looks great on the gloss card. I've also ordered stickers and will now look into the option of having a QR code printed by them so I can put it on the back of my cards.

Mike, rather then a rubber stamp you could get a stencil made and get some spray paint, tell people you're Banksy and get them to pay you to advertise.

its that little box with static in it, UPS used it for years.

what i may do in addition, is to get a QR code rubber stamp. this way i can punch it on anything. though i'm not really sure what i'll punch with it. that post it idea is neat, but pricey. if i can make my own version maybe that will work also. the only thing i can see failing is the post it falling off or getting wet, etc and ending up on the ground as trash, and we have enough of that already.


---Mike Savad

the QR code, is this like the one that is visible on our pdf Artwork pages (from FAA)?
this is something entirely new for me, got a few pages bookmarked and will do some reading.

As for business cards, I print up my own ... front side is standard with info, 2nd side had my artwork on it.
I do up 10 of each artwork at a time, and always have a variety in my pocket, sow hen I am talking to people, I give them a few (showing the artsides) and tell them to pick their favourite. they always end up picking a few more, which I then ask them to hand out. works well.
Easy enough to do in a standard printer, with pre-perforated heavier sheets.
~ nana
ps ... will be following this thread, for more great tips on this QR code ... great read

how big did you make yours? they say it should be 3/4" but that takes up a bit of space on a card.


---Mike Savad

I had my business cards made from Vista Prints and added my QR, I wish I had made it larger. They work but very small it can take someone many scans before it clicks in. My QR code leads folks here to FAA and my artworks...........very cool tool and free..........

I did mine at Vista Print. The glue is only the top phalf of them. I paid 4.99 for a pack of them.

the post it notes, is the glue across the whole back? or just the top? wondering how well they stick when it's breezy - and where did you get them printed? thanks


---Mike Savad

I actually got the stickers with my logo on it and not the qr code. Personally, I think the qr code is a nice novelty but it doesn't really get your name out there nor any sort of subliminal visual recognition (maybe with some slick design you might). IMO, there may be a few who would scan your code just for the novelty of it all. I just may be old school in my marketing and branding.


-W

With good stickers, they can be applied to clothing also. The next time you see a policeman directing traffic, you can slap one on his back. Or while at the beach, slap one onto someone's bikini. Just tell them you're marketing a business, and it's nothing personal. Just make sure you have good running shoes on!

Places to stick them:

Street signs (NOT THE SIGN), the post holding them up
Fire Hydrants (watch out for the dog urine)
Cars
Elevators
Parks
Playgrounds (if you do child portraits, otherwise it is creepy)
On the umbrella stand on an outdoor table at a coffee shop or restaurant


There are so many more places. But be respectful when you post them.

You can post them just about anywhere you can think. If you go to an art show that is outside you can post them on light posts, street sign posts, cars (but I do not like doing cars), caution tape, road block cones. The stranger the place you put them the more interested people are in them, and the more likely they are to scan them, or take them (for coupons).

I did see someone one time had a LARGE QR code on the back window of their car. I could (and did) actually scan it from the driver seat of my car with my phone.

I just got my shipment of vistaprint stickers with my logo on it yesterday. Now I just need to think of best return for the buck places to stick them.



-W

Since I use post it notes qith QR codes on them and not actual stickers I am not damaging property there for no criminal mischief is performed (I was a cop, I know this law very well). I have respect for businesses though, I do not post them inside stores or on their buildings, maybe a time or two with elevators. I just post them all over the place. I do not obstruct street or traffic control signs. I actualy get a lot of business from them. I got clients for weddings, portraits, and even it a Sheriff's office emplolyee portraits from it. I also made some post it notes that are not QR codes, but discount coupons (25% off and 50% off). Those work really well. I should start making them qith QR codes that link to my FAA Artist site.

Yea, vistaprint can bite you every step of the purchasing process, if you select any additional options they tend to increase the price (sometimes you might even select an option by mistake). But for the price I mentioned, it got me exactly what I needed, glossy, front side color image print with text, back side b+w text and logo, all on decent paper weight stock. The large postcards I put one of each image in a binder for a binder booklet (I have about 100 different image postcards from the days when they were free).

-W

i looked on vistaprint, they seem kind of expensive. they told me that besides the base price, they also charge a certain amount for artwork and more for the second side.

i found this place http://www.uprinting.com/business-cards.html the prices seem better but i don't know if they are any good. i just emailed to find out if they have hidden costs also.

are there other places that print cards that people trust? i need it to be two sides. thanks


---Mike Savad

Vistaprint used to give away 100 standard size postcards and 50 large size postcards for free, you just pay the shipping and depending on how long you can wait for the cards, for 2-3 weeks shipping, you would only pay about $8 for the whole shipment. Of course the faster the shipment the pricier. You couldn't order more than the aloted amounts for any one order, but you can place one order and then place it again and again. I got a basement full of postcards from that, still trying to give them out. Those free days are gone though, now you only get the 25% and 50% discounts which is still good, but you end up paying about $20 for the same previously $8 order. The same goes for tshirts (I used the tshirts as stocking stuffers) and return address labels and stickers and whole lot of other products that may not be as useful.



-W

i'm almost tempted to make a big cut out mask and spraypaint it on walls under other graffiti, but i will probably be arrested.

---Mike Savad

Perhaps Post Its on the restroom mirrors in the local art museums, theaters, restaurants and bars?

Nicholas, I like your idea a lot!

i think the google's augmented reality glasses can do that. it translates words and faces into files that can be looked up. neat, but headache inducing. though i could see the graphic thing - like a gear of a certain type would lead you to a steampunk site, or a linux penguin the same thing. but i can see that being kind of confusing as well.

---Mike Savad

but isn't posting stickers all over the place just another form of graffiti? or littering? i guess it's an idea, but people know who put them there since it links back to you. i wonder how many sales it generates....


---Mike Savad

I just watched a webinar yesterday about mobile design and marketing and they mentioned that within the next 18 months or so we will see a new program that can use pictures or words in place of a QR code. The information will link to a word or a picture instead of the QR code.

So I could use my reader on the words "Mike Savad" and it will take me to your website.

Could be cool.

so they took large images, and forced people to look at tiny screens.... kind of like a big, high quality HD movie, viewed on a small phone. i was kind of expecting to see the actual artwork after they shot the code. i did see that one ballerina so i guess they could have done that.


---Mike Savad

Mike. I actually use them, I like the B/W ones the best. The one that I made is a direct link to my website. But here is what I do with them. I made a few thousand stickers with them on it, and no other writing (post it notes actually), and post them all over the place. I put them inside elevators and on the elevator doors, windows, rantom sign posts around town. They actually generate a lot of traffic when you have no other writing on them, people want to know more, so they scan them.

The art of QR Code taken a step further.....



Or, how about this story on abc news

Digital QR Codes Offer Interactive Cemetery Experience

Although in this circumstance --the premise of ' QR ' (Quick Response) seems redundant. ;)

From what i can tell the recommended size for the qr codes is an 1" for the current phones...but is also dependent on the distance the photo is taken....

I got some matte cards from vista print recently...I really like how they look. Most of my card is darkly colored wood grain with some calla lilies on it and it looks very nice.

This site shows some extremely customized QR codes.

http://www.qr-codeworld.com/home.htm

Mike, not sure where you saw those prices, but VistaPrint is running a considerable discount here:

http://www.vistaprint.com/business-cards.aspx?txi=15627&xnid=TopNav_Premium+Business+Cards+(linked+item)_Business+Cards&xnav=TopNav

At these prices you could order both matte and glossy to see the difference firsthand.

I normally prefer matte cards but for printing a photograph the gloss might be better.

Personal preference -- have always found gloss cards a touch 'kitschy' -- matte's my preference.

slightly off topic, but it's my thread, which is better - gloss or matte paper for cards? vistaprint shows $35 for matte and twice as much for the gloss. i think it's a two sided card, but i better check. i would assume matte would actually be more durable. sometimes gloss scratches off. the theme of my cards will be steampunk so maybe matte will work out pretty well?


---Mike Savad

I forgot to add that some QR generating sites offer a paid service whereby if you wind up changing your url you can have their code redirect the reader to your new site.

I've been using them for quite a while on biz cards, resumes, flyers, my artist website at http://samuel-sheats.artistwebsites.com/ , stickers, etc. You can use different colors as long as they are contrasting. There are also sites where you can shorten the code; you enter your long form (like our artists' website codes here) and it converts it into something much shorter and presumably easier for a smartphone or tablet to be able to read. Some sites let you specify the degree of error correction, meaning if its on a biz card that gets rubbed or scuffed and is kinda dog eared it'll still be easy to read. This is also useful if you use QR codes outdoors, like on a wall.

Personally, I'd use the largest one I could get away with without looking too distracting. The back of a biz card is perfect for this. You can have them printed on garments, but I'd do it on a T-shirt sleeve or on the back. Strangers might be reluctant to put their phones right in front of your chest if you place it there....

By now there should be a ton of free sites and for a fee they'll include tracking and other little marketing tidbits.

You're welcome -- try either way with the reader.

Here's how I displayed it at my exhibition entrance -- grouped with the guest book & promo literature/brochures,etc.

Click on the image to view the Self-Similarity exhibition -- scroll to center of the page it links to.

@carmen, that should help with the tests, thanks. i wonder if i can upload the whole image it will be on, or if i should crop it to the square.


---Mike Savad

i plan to put them on business cards. anywhere where people will see it. i've seen then used to download music for phone promotions. one site recommends to get a unique url from google, then shorten it, then make a simple code so you can track it. but while i would do that, i don't like to rely on a bitly name because if they could end and i'll be stuck with all those cards. so i probably won't get fancy.


---Mike Savad

You can use this QR Code reader to verify

Lots of good information on the site as well.

Lyn.. QR Code -- acronym for Quick Response Code -- I had mine in a plexi stand on the display table alongside the entrance at one of my exhibitions. The code linked to my website.

I've been wondering about the QR codes. I've seen people posting them on their FAA pages but where else are people using them most effectively?

when i'm done with the card i'll probably post it here to verify.


---Mike Savad

You can actually alter them and they still work. You need a phone to play around with it.

You just have to be able to scan it with a phone. There use to be a threads long time ago.

Biz card size will work great colors are fine too.

oops crossed thoughts

Yes they work small.
Yes they can be coloured but you will need to check a phone can read yours.