Quick Response Codes (QR Codes) at Airventure

[rv7boy]

I was listening to the Webinar for flying into Airventure 2012 the other night and heard them discussing QR codes. This year at Airventure, the Warbirds are going to have QR codes on their information cards so a visitor with a smart phone can scan the QR code and get more information about the airplane.

They said if it goes well with the Warbirds they would probably do this for other airplane groups in future years. Apparently the airplane owner has to set this up with EAA before Airventure begins.

Just wondering if any RV owners have done this at any other event, and if so, was it worth doing? Also, would you be interested in doing this at Airventure in future years? Any thoughts, pro or con?

My initial thought is that it is probably more appealing for the "show plane" than for us lowly airport bums, but I'd like to see how it works and am interested if anyone has any opinions about it.

P.S. If anyone who goes to Airventure uses the QR codes in the Warbirds area, I'd like to hear what you think about them...either in a post in this thread or a PM to me.

[humptybump]

I have done QR Codes at recent two events - one was a large conference (similar in breadth to AirVenture).

1. the target audience must have a device *and* the app *and* the knowledge of QR Codes.
2. the target of the QR Code must be optimized for the screen size of the device.

I was surprised just how small a percentage of the target audience in my cases had #1. Even with an overwhelming majority being tech savvy, less than 2% were familiar with and prepared to use the QR Codes.

It's easy to create a QR Code that redirects to a web page. If that web page is not optimized for a smartphone sized screen, then it is frustrating and a waste for the user.

BTW: I just tested one of the Warbirds QR Codes. The formatting and layout are pretty good for the smartphone but the images are definitely not optimized. A smartphone does not need image that are 2400x1600 pixels and 2.6mb.

[Louise Hose]

Ernie put QR codes on the RV-1 banners but I never saw a single person scan the code at Sun'n'Fun. Of course, maybe the time folks would like it is when no one is attending the booth/plane.

Glen's points are well-made. I'm with the 98% of the people who attended his conference. But, even if I had the app, trying to read a website in the bright sunlight on an iPhone or iPad isn't very appealing.

That all said, I applaud the EAA for trying something new that might appeal to the younger folks visiting the flight lines.

[humptybump]

The place I have found QR Codes and URLs to be helpful is with saving trees.

Before an event, I create a single, mobile friendly webpage with all the materials I expect people to ask me for - contact information, PDFs of papers, images, demos, videos, etc.

I create a QR Code for the site. Then, I create a business card with the QR Code, the URL, and a memorable picture (such as my Avatar, my airplane, my dog, etc - something that is relevant to the event and helps the person remember me). If a person asks for information and they can use the QR Code, great. If not, they get the card. Either way, it's a small piece of paper rather than a big bunch of materials.

For people flying into AirVenture, a pocket full of these cards is an easy way to share info about yourself, your build log, your airplane specs, your travels, etc.

You can even leave a big QR Code on your airplane so any picture of the plane, has the QR code in view

PS: for the tech savvy, I suggest you add Google Analytics to the webpage (its free) so you can see some statistics of how many uses, when, where, type of mobile device, etc.

[rleffler]

Originally Posted by Louise Hose

Ernie put QR codes on the RV-1 banners but I never saw a single person scan the code at Sun'n'Fun. Of course, maybe the time folks would like it is when no one is attending the booth/plane.

Glen's points are well-made. I'm with the 98% of the people who attended his conference. But, even if I had the app, trying to read a website in the bright sunlight on an iPhone or iPad isn't very appealing.

That all said, I applaud the EAA for trying something new that might appeal to the younger folks visiting the flight lines.

Of course that is also assuming that you can get any bandwidth to your smart device to display the website. I never had good luck at OSH with AT&T data. I'm back with Verizon this year, so hopefully it will be better.