I’ve talked about QR codes before. QR codes are a type of barcode that can be encoded to store text such as contact information, URLs, you name it. I stumbled across a service called Spotlike that lets you generate a QR Code poster for your store that links to your Facebook page. Spotlike makes the process extremely simple. Just enter in the URL of your Facebook page, hit “Print it”, and Spotlike will generate a PDF file you can print out and hang up. I generated one for Cosby Sweaters and scanned it. Instead of being directed to the CS Facebook page or given a link to the CS Facebook page, I was shown a unique URL that resides on the Spotlike domain that took me to the CS Facebook page. Right now there is no reason for it to redirect through Spotlike. I can see the need if they were to offer analytics that allowed the creator of the QR code to see how many people were actually scanning the poster, but they don’t. Pretty stupid given you are dependent on Spotlike’s servers to ensure you are correctly driven to the Facebook page you intend to get to. Aside from the simplicity of the service, I find it lacking and can easily be duplicated with better execution and an expanded feature set.
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