This alternative to quick response codes turns printed content into a range of available links.
Although QR codes have been gradually growing in their popularity over a range of different uses – from mobile marketing to m-payments – they do contain certain drawbacks that have made it challenging for advertisers to create the type of interactive and print ads that they would like to be able to achieve.
Many companies have been coming up with their alternatives to these barcodes, and the latest is Clickable Paper.
The company behind the Clickable Paper technology is called Ricoh. Their expertise is in electronics and imaging, and now they have taken on the effort of trying to pick up where QR codes are typically known to leave off. The concept behind this new technology is to be able to click on an image without having to zoom in on a barcode or logo, first.
That said, the images are used in a very similar way to QR codes in that the device is the directed to options.
The scans of the images allow a user to receive a number of different types of options, based on what the advertiser has decided to associate with the scan. This could involve a link to a YouTube video, a redirect to a product on Amazon, or sending a user to the homepage – or specific page – of a company’s website.
The scans can also allow a user to be able to share the information on Facebook or tweet it on Twitter. Those features are a step up from what quick response code scans had made possible in the past and could mean that a number of social media marketing tools could suddenly become available to mobile marketing companies.
The company initially launched their alternative to QR codes a couple of years ago, but the more recent development are the mobile apps that are required to actually access clickable paper. They were brought to the United States last year. Japan has had a similar app available since 2012, which underscores the strong interest that country has in mobile devices and technology.