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Talk about making the game-winning play! Coinbase stole the show among Super Bowl viewers, driving 20 million website visits in just one minute with their commercial – nothing more than a floating QR code. Oh, man, don’t you wish you’d thought of that? Marketers and brand managers around the world are swooning with envy.
As one of our OneScreen.ai staffers admitted, “I hate myself for it, but I clicked on it!” You did, too, didn’t you?
Response was so overwhelming it literally crashed the company’s website. Of course, most people clicked on that code (if they figured out what it was) just to see what would happen next, with no real idea about the company or product. So while Coinbase certainly scored big in the Building Brand Awareness category and generated a landslide of free publicity, who’s to say how many genuine new customers they scored? Time will tell.
Marketing that sells
As a marketer, your primary goal is to engage with real prospects and existing customers to increase revenue. Cost-effectively, of course. Even if you missed the Super Bowl, you can’t possibly have missed seeing the Coinbase ad by now. It’s all over the internet and social media. Not only 20 million+ clicks right off the bat, but all the ongoing post-game coverage – priceless!
But here’s the thing. The ad was a rousing success thanks to its overpowering sense of intrigue, but what spawned that tingling desire to engage? The QR code. If you’ve been pooh-poohing QR codes as old-hat tech that never caught on, well, oops! It’s time to rethink just how cool QR codes really are.
Versatile + portable
You can take them anywhere, not just online and on TV but out of home into the real world to tantalize and engage your target audience, no matter where they are, outdoors or inside. QR codes are enjoying a renaissance because they have what it takes to pique interest and deliver a right-now experience. Coinbase gets it – not only the QR code angle, but OOH in all its marketing glory.
Here are three more of our favorite examples.
Coinbase paid about $14 million for their 60-second Super Bowl ad, but you don’t need a super-sized budget to reap exceptional rewards in reach and response and ROI when you blend out-of-home advertising with your digital campaigns. How? Get the playbook here.
No copycatting allowed!
Examples are for inspiration. With your own unique take on out-of-home ad design and placement, your brand will stand out smartly and boost both customer engagement and sales. QR codes may open doors for your next campaign, but they won’t work if viewers don’t know what they are or what to do with them. Viewers who didn’t recognize the symbol for what it was missed out, and some of them may have been good prospects.
No doubt millions have now been educated, thanks to the Coinbase commercial’s extravagant publicity, but keep your audience in mind as you consider using this fun “new” technology.