How many people in your immediate circle have read a book, start to finish, in the past few months? Unless you’re surrounded by students of literature, the answer is probably a few.
More people are drifting away from books, more so physical ones, and instead opting for other sources of information, such as videos.
How do you improve readership? Simple: by making books more interactive. And we have just the right tool—Quick Response (QR) Codes!
Adding Bitly QR Codes to print media gives readers instant access to the broad digital world, allowing you to connect with tech-savvy audiences.
Here, we look at how QR Codes can make publishing more interactive and accessible.
What do QR Codes mean for the publishing industry?
QR Codes are becoming commonplace in books and publications as they help offer better reading experiences. Further, they carry vast amounts of information despite their small size and can easily entice audiences into taking desired actions—a quick review of QR Code call-to-action examples will show you just how impactful they can be.
Why are these tools important for the modern publisher? Well, audiobooks and e-books have been giving physical books a run for their money. In fact, according to the Pew Research Center, 30% of Americans read e-books. While a majority still prefer physical books, publishing houses have to contend with the fact that they’re losing part of their market share to digital book formats.
QR Codes allow them to compete more favorably by acting as the link between physical and digital formats. This allows authors to capture both readers who value the touch and feel of physical books and tech-savvy individuals who enjoy both formats.
Benefits of QR Codes for publishers
Still skeptical about the importance of QR Codes in publishing? Read on for some of the benefits these four-sided innovations offer publishers:
Enhanced reader engagement
QR Codes boost reader engagement by providing access to more than just plain text. With QR Codes, readers can open a wide range of interactive media content in just a few seconds—all it takes is a scan.
Publishers can redirect audiences to author interviews to help build connections between writers and readers, related books and video content to provide context or additional information, and even discussion forums to allow people with the same book preferences to share their thoughts. The more engaged readers are, the more likely they are to keep up with new books and recommend them to other readers. This is evident from the trending BookTok community.
Additional content layers
QR Codes act as gateways to digital versions of books and related content. People who like to read or listen to books on the go can scan their physical copies for instant access to e-books and audiobooks.
Further, students can easily access additional resources, such as quizzes and detailed book analyses, to help with learning. This enhances the reader experience, which ultimately improves publishers’ competitiveness.
Improved accessibility
Modern publishers must accommodate diverse groups of individuals to remain competitive. QR Codes allow them to do just that. They improve accessibility for people living with disabilities like vision loss or poor eyesight by linking to audiobooks and large-print formats. They also link to different language translations, helping publishers reach global audiences.
Easier marketing and distribution
There’s a lot of competition in the publishing industry, not only from big-name publishers but also self-publishers. In 2021, authors self-published nearly 2.3 million books in the U.S. alone. How do you maintain or increase your readership and reach in a competitive market? By marketing your books and improving reader experiences.
QR Codes allow you to do both. They serve as bridges between physical and digital mediums, elevating marketing campaigns. You can use them to link to exclusive content, promotional videos, or sneak peeks to generate interest in publications before their release dates. You can also use QR Codes to streamline distribution by offering instant access to book purchase and download sites.
Access to reader analytics
QR Codes can help you understand readers’ behavior and preferences. You can use QR Codes to link to landing pages with survey forms. This is a great way to seamlessly collect opinions to determine what’s resonating with your audience, allowing you to focus resources in the right places.
Potential ideas that showcase different ways to use QR Codes in books
You can incorporate QR Codes into books in various ways. Here are some potential ideas on how to use these revolutionary 2D barcodes.
Note: The examples below were found during our online research while writing this article.
Interactive quizzes
Quizzes help elevate the interactive experience by allowing readers to test their comprehension. Enhance your books’ engagement by providing the quizzes through QR Codes. This way, you get to provide an interactive experience without using too much space or abruptly interfering with your audience’s reading.
QR Codes linked to interactive quizzes are especially suitable for children’s and young adults’ books, as they allow readers to gauge their understanding. They’re also ideal for mystery and detective novels as they encourage out-of-the-box thinking.
Virtual book tours
Some readers want to feel a connection with authors. How do you cultivate that bond? Through QR Codes.
Using QR Codes, you can connect readers to online book series events, live Q&A author sessions, and virtual book tours. This way, they get to interact with their favorite authors from the comfort of their homes. Link your QR Code to a calendar of upcoming events and a registration page to allow your audience to set reminders for virtual tours and facilitate seamless registration.
Cooking demonstrations
QR Codes have also made their way to cookbook publishing houses. They help boost engagement by giving food enthusiasts access to detailed recipes in mediums such as audio and video.
Include QR Codes linked to video demonstrations, additional cooking tips, or alternative recipe variations to deliver high-quality experiences. You can also go further by linking codes to mediums that allow readers to share unique recipe adaptations and photos of their creations—these can be anything from social media platforms to your website.
Some authors are already using QR Codes for cooking demos. One such author is Molly Baz in her book “Cook This Book.” The book contains QR Codes that lead to short videos, allowing anyone with a passion for food to prepare their favorite recipes.
Documentaries or virtual museums
QR Codes help deepen readers’ understanding by providing easy access to multimedia content. They can be helpful in books covering cultural studies, historical events, and topics that require visuals to strengthen comprehension. Consider using QR Codes that lead to virtual museum tours if you publish anthropology or art books, or documentaries if you produce science books.
Usborne Publishing is constantly looking for ways to engage with its readers. As such, the company has incorporated 180 QR Codes into its book, “The Usborne Science Encyclopedia.” These QR Codes lead to video content on animals in their habitats, science experiments, and animated lessons to help learners understand concepts faster.
Augmented reality world-building
Looking for ways to bring your sci-fi or fantasy novels to life? Use QR Codes to lead readers to augmented reality (AR) experiences where they can interact with each other and explore the fictional world in your books.
Find a reliable online platform where readers can view 3D maps of the novels’ settings and link them to your QR Codes. If you want to stand out even further, create AR scenes from your books and use QR Codes to allow readers to experience key story moments in more depth. Some of the platforms you can use for AR development include Google ARCore and WorldCast.
Step-by-step guides
QR Codes can enhance the effectiveness of instructional books by linking to additional resources. They can also boost accessibility by redirecting people who may be unable to follow written instructions, like the visually impaired, to audiobooks.
Incorporate QR Codes into your books if you publish anything from DIY to fitness and wellness guides. Link the codes to the most suitable resources or platforms for your target audience. For example, if you want to publish a wellness book and encourage readers to share their stories, create a QR Code that redirects them to a landing page that allows them to submit comments.
How to implement QR Codes in publishing in 5 steps
QR Codes will only benefit your readers and business if they add value. Consider things like the type of content your QR Codes will lead to and where to place them for an enhanced reader experience.
Here are some tips to guide you as you embed QR Codes in your books:
1. Identify what content would work with QR Codes
There are numerous types of QR Code solutions you can incorporate into your book. To find the right one, assess your content and put yourself in your target audience’s shoes. What would improve their reading experiences or enhance their comprehension and enjoyment? When you find the answer to this question, you’ll be a step closer to determining the best QR Code solution and content.
If you publish children’s content, your audience likely requires additional resources, like videos, to enhance comprehension. So, a Dynamic QR Code that links to a video URL can be a suitable solution. If your target audience is people who maintain an active lifestyle, then QR Codes may be ideal, as they can link to audiobook URLs, allowing them to enjoy your content even when on the move.
2. Design and create Dynamic QR Codes
There are two main types of QR Codes—Static and Dynamic. While Static QR Codes are functional, they may not be ideal for books and publications as you can’t edit their destination once they’re printed. This is quite restrictive, especially if you consider the fact that books can be in circulation for decades.
This is why Bitly offers Dynamic QR Codes. With these codes, you can update or change your content or destination whenever necessary. To generate your code:
- Log in to your account.
- Select Create New and choose your preferred type of QR Code.
- Fill in all the relevant details.
- Tap Design your Code to choose your preferred color.
- To customize your QR Code further, upload your business logo or desired image in PNG format.
- Select Create your Code and Download your QR Code.
Take advantage of Bitly’s customization feature, if your plan allows it, to ensure your QR Code matches your book’s aesthetic.
3. Integrate QR Codes into your layout designs
When you have your QR Code, the next step is to embed it into your book. Consider the size carefully—QR Codes should be large enough for easy scanning but not so large as to dominate the page. Opt for a minimum QR Code size of 2 cm x 2 cm for easy scannability.
Also, consider placement. Print your QR Code on a flat surface for scannability.
4. Test the QR Code functionality
Before you release your book or publication, test the QR Code to ensure it leads to the intended content, loads quickly, and is optimized for mobile viewing, as readers will most likely use mobile devices to scan the code. Test the QR Code with different smartphones to ensure it’s compatible with each one.
5. Help readers understand how the QR Code works
While QR Codes are popular, some people may be unfamiliar with them. Offer a brief tutorial on how to use QR Codes during your book launch or book signing events. Alternatively, you can include a call to action with every QR Code. Consider something like “Scan Me for a Discount” if you’ve created a QR Code that leads to a landing page with a coupon code, or “Scan QR Code for Additional Information” if you’ve linked your code to a site with supplementary materials.
Elevate publishing and boost reader engagement with QR Codes
With the world increasingly becoming digital, publishers must find ways to move with the times to maintain their readership. QR Codes are the perfect tools as they facilitate the seamless integration of digital content with traditional formats.
With Bitly’s QR Code generator, you can create QR Codes linked to a wide variety of content—such as AR experiences, informational videos, and exclusive interviews—to improve readers’ experiences. You also have access to analytics like the number of scans generated, giving insights into the content your audience enjoys.
Sign up today to attract tech-savvy digital readers, improve engagement, and boost content accessibility.