Tag Archives: QR Art

Does the Look of a QR Code Really Matter?

Last week, a Twitter friend – Chris Augeri – asked me what I thought about “QR art,” specifically, QR codes that are actually designed. That is, QR codes that incorporate some sort of color and/or graphical element that makes it look a little bit more pleasing, perhaps enticing, than a black and white box. Something like this:

QR Code Art

My response was that I think QR art is an exercise in design futility. At least right now. I don’t think that the way the QR code looks has any marked difference in how many times it’s scanned.

I think people will scan if they a) like the brand/organization and are just generally interested in what they have to offer or b) perceive that there is some value behind the code. That’s pretty much it. Not because what the QR code looks like. Because of what they can get from it.

So, I offer this up to you. Are you more compelled to scan this?:

QR Code Art

Or this?:

Standard QR Code