Digital marketing: Wine retailer offers lesson in how to use QR codes

It used to be, if you had a question about which foods paired well with a particular wine, you had to ask someone. Preferably a sommelier (if you had access to one), or your wine snob brother-in-law, who would talk your ear off about the intricacies of Spanish wine and how “rosatos are the new pinot noir.”

Then came smartphones, which allowed you to do a quick Google search to learn more about your wine choice, but even that was time-consuming and tricky. Moore Brothers Wine Company understands that, and has begun attaching QR code labels to every bottle of wine they sell. A scan of the code instantly informs buyers about which meals go best with that particular wine (or the ingredients to purchase if they’re doing the cooking at home).

Although QR codes are wildly popular in Japan, Bloomberg Businessweek recently reported that just 5 percent of Americans scanned a QR code last summer. That reluctance is partly due to the uninspired usage of the codes by marketers, as consumers see no real value in scanning most codes.

However, if more marketers use QR codes the way Moore Brothers Wine Company does, those numbers will surely be on the rise.

MARKETING LESSON: QR codes need to be used effectively – not just as a shortcut to a company’s website – and provide a clear benefit to consumers.