Posted by

Barry Siskind

Community Manager

The Smartphone has taken barcodes to their next level. These “Quick Response Codes,” (QR codes), look surprisingly similar to bar codes but once accessed on an iphone, Android or Blackberry can link to product information, vote on the star of a sports match, receive a coupon or purchase a cup of coffee.

It is staggering to imagine the value QR brings to exhibitions. It has the potential of opening a whole new 2-way dialogue between buyers and sellers. It can help attendees better handle information overload and it can greatly reduce the environmental impact of an exhibition by reducing the amount of paper that is given away. Yet, very few organizers have adopted this new technology. With the proliferation of Smartphone’s and apps on the market I wonder why.

Is there a downside that I’m missing?

Let me know.