TOOLBOX: QR CODES

Key Takeaways

* Atomicat is a specialised ICT company that offers QR Code technology
* QR Codes are safe, fast, simple and very versatile
* QR Codes are useful in advertising, social media and especially payments
* QR Codes enables convenient, simple consumer payment solutions
* QR Codes have benefits for business payments including less fraud risk
* Banks, mobile operators, retailers and more can benefit from using QR Codes

Overview

A QR Code is a two-dimensional image made up of black squares on a white background producing a unique pixelated pattern. Similar to barcodes, QR Codes contain information, thought the information is much more diverse than only the identifying data contained in a barcode.

Consumers typically use their smartphone cameras to scan and read QR Codes. Current iPhones have a built-in QR Code reader in their cameras, most Android phones require you to download a dedicated QR Code reader. Some Apps, like WhatsApp, integrate QR Code reading functionality.

QR Codes can contain different types of data and are used in a variety of ways and for a wide range of purposes.

We are going to review some uses of QR Codes in Advertising, Social Media and Payments.

Advertising

Using QR Codes has proven to be a strategic way of overcoming two typical major barriers faced in advertising:

* limited space to display or share your message, and/or

* a preference by younger consumers for interactive marketing over more traditional forms (such as print and television)

QR Codes are extremely useful as an advertiser can link them to just about anything, including websites, images, text and videos. This makes QR Codes a versatile tool at their disposal.

Social Media

In January 2015 SnapChat introduced its own variety of QR Code after acquiring QR Code startup Scan.me. Users could now scan a special SnapChat-specific code to easily add friends or contacts to their profile.

Instagram offer a similar QR Code service where users scan another user's handle for a quicker and more convenient way to follow them.

Facebook added a QR Code option for its “pages” allowing page owners to promote their page using a QR Code. A page owner can can display this code on a brochure, poster, another website or wherever they get exposure and users and users will be redirected to their Facebook page when they scan it.

Consumer Payments

As the world is turning to credit cards, mobile apps and other cashless payment standards, QR Codes are regarded as one of the most valuable applications.

This is due to QR Codes being able to hold remarkable amounts of data, security that is safer than a credit card and the unmatched speed at which that content can be scanned.

In the last two years, India and Thailand have made a concerted effort to becoming a cashless society by demonetizing and removing an enormous percentage of cash from their respective economies. This global trend has led to an adoption of QR Code focused payment networks like VISA and Mastercard. With 70% of the world using mobile technology, the trend to make payment easier is only growing, and China is leading the charge in promoting the QR Code’s use.

The Walmart Pay Application uses QR Codes to initiate payment in the retail environment. Using their phones and the Walmart app, a consumer will scan the QR Code displayed on the checkout screen using the payment method they have already stored on their Walmart app. The QR Code conveys the purchase transaction information to the app on the mobile device where the payment is initiated. Because the process eliminates the use of a card, the payment information is not processed through a merchant’s store network, decreasing the potential for fraud.

QR Codes allow for an approach that is the opposite of how payments are generally presented and follows one of two broad types:

* Merchant-presented QR Code: Customer rings up the items for purchase, and the merchant’s point of sale system produces a QR Code for the customer to scan using a mobile device. This tells the customer’s mobile payment app or mobile wallet how much they’re being charged, and the customer’s device sends a payment for the total charge to the merchant.

* Customer-presented QR Code: Customers scan the purchases with their mobile device which then generates a QR Code on their device’s screen to present for scanning at the merchant’s point of sale system. The merchant would then request a payment for the total amount.

Business Payments

QR Codes are used regularly in the shipping industry to help manage inventory and track cargo, but they are also catching on in the payment space where they can be used to create and collect on invoices via mobile phones or tablets. Because QR Codes are more secure, they offer immediate and customizable solutions enabling vendors to create QR Codes that generate an electronic payment invoice in real-time.

The advantages of using a QR Code payment system for business include:

* Mobile: Cloud-based accounts receivable systems that collects funds via mobile devices using secure QR Code technology.
      
* Scan and Pay: QR Code included on every invoice which automatically initiates payment by Credit Card or Debit Card or any other sources you have available.
      
* Secure Transactions: QR invoice is secure and efficient eliminating theft, reduces payment processing fees and payment transaction time.

Our technology enables us to help banks, mobile network operators, retailers, governments, street vouchers, mobile monies, merchants and other stakeholders to design, develop, adopt, implement and use QR Codes for their own unique requirements.

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