QR codes are now widespread in event organisation, because they quickly established themselves as practical, convenient tools. Their use, though, often goes no further than letting attendees, speakers and sponsors reach the event website, parts of it or other useful sites quickly and without mistakes. That is the basic function of a QR code, but it is certainly not the only one.
Inside a small graphic square, if you know how to do it, you can pack a whole set of powerful, high-performing tools for anyone organising an event: tools that save time and money in organising and monitoring a great many activities, and that also increase the ROI of many others.
Let us look at how, starting from what a QR code is and how it works, and then setting out three concrete cases where it can be very useful.
WHAT IS A QR CODE AND WHAT IS IT FOR?
1. THE QR CODE FOR SPEED AND SAVINGS
The first saving every event organiser aims for, especially when their events are large, is the one that comes from managing spaces, people, activities and time. Making these aspects efficient becomes strategic when you want to optimise processes and cut the costs that follow from them. The QR code can be an excellent tool for achieving that: it can help to manage attendee accreditation independently, quickly and automatically, reducing — or even removing altogether — the need to staff that function. It can also supply real-time data on how rooms are filling up or emptying, and on the flow of people through areas, zones and spaces. This makes it possible not only to keep every flow that matters to your activities under control, but also to organise those flows better, offering support where it is needed (for example by sending staff only where they are required) and making optimal use of space. Think of modular rooms and the option of expanding or shrinking them according to how many people are actually there.
2. THE QR CODE FOR MARKETING AND PROMOTION
We have already said that any QR code can be used as a bookmark for — practically — anything. Putting these tools in the hands of sponsors and exhibitors means giving them ways to promote content, materials or even their own appointment diary, so that they can set up meetings and personalised demos. It can let them personalise parts of the experience they want to offer their audience, and even create engagement and participation experiences tied, for example, to gaming. They can also be used to create reserved routes, areas and activities — and therefore exclusive ones — for particular audiences or individuals, right through to promoting activities and services in a personalised, one-to-one way.
3. THE QR CODE FOR DRIVING ENGAGEMENT AND NETWORKING
Great power in a small space: that is what QR codes offer, and in practice the only limit is the imagination — and the needs — of whoever wants to use them. The three examples above are only some of the possibilities, and they are ones we have built with our clients over the years. Because, as often happens, tools are more powerful than people assume, once you know how to make them serve your objectives. Starting from those objectives is the only way not just to discover what these tools can really do, but also to solve a great many problems.
So, if you would like to tell us about your objectives for your next event, we can work out together which tools, QR codes included, will get you there. Or you can request a live demo and we can start building the ideal platform for your next event together.