TrendWatch: Why SnapTags are replacing QR codes

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By Jeff Hayzlett on November 28, 2011 

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Glamour magazine recently included a SnapTag on its cover, resulting in more than 100,000 scans. Jeff Hayzlett tells us why we need to dump the QR code for the cleaner, simpler SnapTag.

Glamour magazine posted a SnapTag alongside a sequined Rinanna on their September cover. Users accessed the code either by scanning it with a proprietary SnapTag app, or by snapping a pic and sending it to the number printed in the image. The resulting response included over 100,000 code activations, 50,000 Facebook likes, and 500,000 interactions of some kind including code scans and peer sharing.



SnapTags are 2-D barcodes that include a brand's logo (or a Facebook logo) in a notched circle design. Contrasted with the familiar QR code, the result seems minimalist and polished. But it's not just a new design. The interactivity and analytics are updated, as well.



Here's Jeff Hayzlett talking about why he likes the new, cleaner SnapTags.



What brands are "getting it?" And what are the best places to use scannable codes? Here's our 4-minute interview with Jeff.

Conversation highlights
0:00 - Don't delete Facebook comments
0:00 - "If you suck offline, you'll suck online."
0:35 - PepsiCo, Macy's and other brands that are doing it right
1:00 - SnapTags
1:40 - The best places to use scannable codes
2:20 - Are users fluent enough to adopt SnapTags?
2:35 - Proving value to the CFO
2:55 - ROI = Return on Ignoring
3:25 - The power of mobile usage
Run time is 4:09

Jeffrey Hayzlett has been called a lot of things, most of them good. He has been described as a “CMO on steroids,” who parlayed what he learned running his own businesses into his position as Kodak’s CMO, where he helped revitalize one of the world’s iconic brands. Forbes magazine anointed him the “Celebrity CMO,” because of his countless media appearances, including on Donald Trump’s “Celebrity Apprentice.” And Advertising Age calls him “a new style of CMO,” especially for his social media skills that made him one of the top ten C-level executive Twitterers in the world.