A bite into transparency: Mr Apple uses QR Codes to connect with consumers
"QR Codes have revolutionized how we connect with consumers," says Jo.
Mr Apple, like other global retailers, is compliant with PLU (or price look-up: the little stickers you see on fruits sold in stores). Jo realized that these stickers are the company's most visible and consistent form of marketing.
QR Codes also drive traffic to Mr Apple's social platforms during offline events like in-store tastings or in-market events and provide additional information at store point-of-sale. By including QR Codes on PLU stickers, Mr Apple can maintain a direct line to consumers, no matter who.
Beyond the sticker: Overcoming key challenges
Here’s a breakdown of the challenges Mr Apple faced and how they solved them with Uniqode:
The challenge: Maintaining end-consumer relationships in a wholesaler-retailer model
Since Mr Apple functions on a B2B model, it was challenging to maintain a direct relationship with end-users as an apple producer.
“Because we are not a direct-to-consumer company, we need to sell our apples to wholesalers or retailers in-market, who then on-sell our apples to the end consumer,” Jo tells Uniqode.
“This makes it harder for them to maintain a relationship with the end consumer as they have limited control over that relationship.”
💡 QR Codes on PLU stickers provide a direct line of communication to consumers, regardless of where they purchase the apples. “By including QR Codes on our PLU stickers we can maintain a direct line to consumers, no matter who they purchase our product from,” Jo explains.
The challenge: Language and localization
With a global market and non-English speaking consumers, Mr Apple faced difficulties directing consumers to language-specific and localized content from their PLU stickers. This was impacting the consumer journey and engagement.
💡 “Multi-language QR Codes help direct consumers to language-specific and localized landing pages, improving the consumer journey and increasing engagement, addressing the challenge of language and localization,” Jo says.
The challenge: Low participation in offline events
Traditionally, engaging consumers at offline events such as in-store tastings or in-market events can be difficult. Mr Apple struggled to “give the consumer access to more information about a specific selling point, or about Mr Apple as a company,” Jo recalled.
💡 With QR Codes for events as the primary method of interaction, Mr Apple observed increased participation at offline events. “We also use QR Codes to drive traffic to our social platforms when we hold offline events (...),” according to Jo.
The combined effect of these successes is evident in the impressive outcome: over 50% of Mr Apple's website traffic now comes from QR Code scans from PLU stickers.
This indicates a significant shift in consumer engagement and brand awareness, directly attributable to the effective implementation of QR Codes as a core marketing strategy.
Jo says, "Integrating QR Codes into our marketing channels has exceeded expectations."
“QR Codes opened the door to customized, global marketing”
The recent shift in Mr Apple's marketing strategy, involving the integration of QR codes, has yielded impressive results. This new approach, as revealed our interview with Jo, has unlocked a new avenue for delivering personalized and localized marketing experiences.
The familiar nature of QR codes, readily accessible through most smartphones, has also proven to be a game-changer, effectively bridging the gap between the brand and its target audience. This has led to increased engagement, potentially resulting in greater brand awareness, customer loyalty, and ultimately, a boost in sales and brand advocacy.
