Although they’ve been declared dead time and time again, QR codes are in the midst of a small renaissance. They’re popping up on more and more posters, at bus stops, and in advertisements. For some people they’re eyesores; others think they’re printing errors. Yet more and more people are pulling out their smartphones and “scanning” them. Websites and short messages are encoded in these little squares – and apps like barcoo can display them in a browser within a split second. Since you don’t have to type in any URLs or web addresses, you save precious time and can even access them later.

Here at barcoo we’re also assisting publishers of QR-Codes. We’re creating print templates for the German Yellow-Page conglomerate and are offering an interface for evaluating scans and accessing websites.

Kabel1’s ad campaign with QR codes generated by barcoo (detail)

The following list contains some valuable tips on gaining and securing customers using QR codes.

Success factors:

• Get people excited. Offer more: It’s not enough to just print the company website as a QR code. Potential customers will only scan it once at the most. Link it up to background information or a special product page.
  It’s best to display QR codes at bus stops and train stations. Many people pass the time in those places with their iPhones or Android phones. Once they scan your QR code, you have their undivided attention.
• Offer clear instructions: Make the customer want to scan your QR code. Make your message clear and meet their expectations. Keep in mind that a poster’s essential information should be visible at first glance – because many customers don’t know what to make of the QR codes. If necessary, include short instructions and recommend an appropriate QR code-reader. Since barcoo has a market share of 85% of all barcode-scans in Germany, there’s already one less hurdle for customers. Depending on how the customer base has been established, it may be useful to print an additional abbreviated URL.
• Track scans and requests: Every campaign requires its metrics. A QR code’s success is particularly easy to track. That’s why you shouldn’t refer directly to the target URL, but to a redirecting URL that tracks how many people have accessed it. QR-generators like barcoo automatically offer this function. Each poster can be tracked individually, if desired.
• Don’t neglect design and usability:QR codes do not necessarily need to be black and white. As long as the colors provide a strong enough contrast, the codes can also be other colors. Small design elements like logos can also be placed inside. When printing a QR code, it’s important to make sure it’s within easy reach. Customers probably don’t want to stoop down or contort their wrists to scan a poster at the bus stop.When printing QR codes, it’s important to note the minimum printing size. The rule of thumb, regardless of a barcode’s complexity, is: the scanning distance divided by 10 is the minimum size.
• Print once – check twice: Even though you can always change the target URL later, it’s still better to use your smartphone and physically test all QR codes yourself when using a URL redirection service like barcoo.

Common mistakes:

• Making QR-Codes overly complex and large: Several companies save very long URLs with parameters as QR codes, which is a bad idea because QR codes then get more detailed, require more printing space, become more difficult to scan, and take longer to recognize. barcoo’s QR service prevents this by shortening the URL, but you can also use a service like bit.ly.
• Linking to non-optimized websites: Even with average connection speeds, target pages should load quickly on any standard smartphone, e.g. iPhone, Android, and Samsung bada. Videos should only be in standard formats and not exceed one minute. Flash is a no-go!
• Using incorrect encoding: Special characters in URLs are considered taboo because they aren’t always compatible. All QR codes should use the international, UTF-8 encoded characters.
• Directly encoding addresses or dates: This is only supported by a limited number of QR-reading apps. On top of that, QR codes are getting too complex. It’s better to offer a mobile landing page that recognizes the device and then potentially offers to import an address or a date.

Feel free to contact us whenever you have questions about QR codes. Our research shows that we have a market share of 85% of all barcode-scanning in Germany, which means that the chances are very high that barcoo will be used to scan your QR codes anyway.

Aside from keeping product and price information as up-to-date as possible, barcoo also strives to keep the application’s technology on the cutting edge. In recent weeks, we treated barcoo’s core to an upgrade to Ruby on Rails 3. While our programmers primarily reap the benefits of the upgrade, you’ll profit from it, too, since we’ll be providing you with several significant new features in data security and performance.

Current security standards for barcoonauts

Reports about hacker groups like “Anonymous” or “LulzSec” are popping up more and more frequently in the media. Such groups have made it their duty to break down the security measures of existing server systems and then publish stolen customer data on the internet. By using new technologies (on the server’s and client’s ends alike), we are already keeping our security measures as strong as possible: it’s too often the flaws that have been around for years in outdated server systems that hackers end up exploiting.

New flexibility for more performance

The upgrade to Rails 3 is able to reduce the server load via its modular construction and by optimizing operations among the various internal processes. This enables us to process more new user requests at once, which is particularly important when the amount of requests drastically increases during a typical “rush hour” (e.g. Saturdays). While that may not noticeably improve the application’s reaction time at average operating hours, it affords us much more flexibility for new optimizations. One way we’ll do this in the future is to bundle many separate data packets into one big packet. That saves on key kilobytes and makes a noticeable difference in the performance of mobile terminal devices.

New basis for exciting technologies

Regardless of our company schedule at any given moment, our developers always have the possibility of exploring exciting new technologies. That’s reason enough for us to have a modern and open working environment. The members of barcoo’s team freely exchange their ideas about new technologies with each another all the time. In recent weeks, for example, we had presentations about Git, Prediction API, NoSQL/MongoDB, Reverse Proxy Caching with Squid and CoffeeScript. Only after discussing matters openly with one another do we decide about whether it’s possible to use such technologies for new features within barcoo. As the engine under barcoo’s proverbial hood, Rails 3 has brought our basic framework up to the highest technological standard. So we are looking forward to new challenges and solutions that will promote the further development of the app.

Are you a Web developer who believes in beautiful code? Then check out our current job openings. Our favourite activity is to sit outside on the grass at Engelsbecken (literally, “Angel’s Pool”) – just a two-minute walk from the barcoo office – in Berlin Kreuzberg and think about new technological and content-related strategies. Contact us if you feel like taking part one day!

We are often asked to what proportion the various mobile operating systems are represented by our users. The last statistic is nearly one year old, so it’s now time for an update. Below is the evolution of the various mobile platforms at barcoo:

You will have noticed the striking Samsung bada dent in the middle of last year. This is due to the fact that we supported bada from the start, that the Samsung devices sold well and that their app store was pretty empty. Therefore users downloaded most of the few apps available to them in the store. This temporary high market share could not be kept indefinitely. With a current overall market share of 5%, but nonetheless increasing steadily, the bada platform should still remain of interest to some app developers.

Nokia Symbian is a tragedy (see analysis by Tomi Ahonen). From August 31st, barcoo will cease supporting Nokia Symbian. It was a very painful decision: we’ve invested again and again in this platform, but now it’s enough. It’s all over.

In the graph, Windows Mobile and BlackBerry are hardly to be seen. Here also, because of the continued lack of use, we have been compelled to discontinue support for these platforms. We are currently not planning any WP7 or webOS version either. Anyone interested in detailed statistics will find the historical data in Google Docs.

The evolution of the current market share, compared to the average for 2010:

No surprises. It should be quite clear where we’re heading. Or not? Nokia will be (most likely) purchased soon. A lot is possible then: Maybe MeeGo after all? Exciting.

From day one at barcoo, our main goal has been to provide consumers with maximum transparency for all types of products. Aside from displaying items’ prices and evaluations, we also include a “food traffic light” and test reports from over 320 journals and the Stiftung Warentest (the main consumer protection agency in Germany). We also provide information on manufacturers’ sustainability and a product’s carbon footprint, along with the possibility of comparing it with other products in the same category.

And all of that is just a mere barcode scan away!

We also know that barcodes, with their charming knack for identifying products quickly and unambiguously, can do much more. On top of that, we’re aware that our users are very creative and have a ton of ideas about the kinds of practical and fun upgrades for barcoo.

For that reason we are thinking about enhancing the application and our interface so that you can design your own plug-ins that are then directly integrated into barcoo and made available to all other users.

That’s why we are inviting you to send us an e-mail at post@barcoo.de today with your suggestions for functions or features you’ve always wanted to see in barcoo. We also welcome you to design your own plug-ins. If we can gather enough suggestions, we’ll adapt our systems so that you can design your own plug-ins and have the ability to make them available to all of our users.

Your feedback-happy barcoo team.

Okay, so it’s still in an experimental phase. But it’s cool anyway, and that’s why all Android users can give it a try now immediately: We have integrated object recognition into barcoo in cooperation with Deutsche Telekom Laboratories. It’s only a limited test-run for now and works exclusively with drinks. That’s why we need your help. Object recognition is a great thing because all you have to do is hold up your smartphone’s camera to a product, which is then automatically recognized, thus rendering the search for the barcode unnecessary. When starting the Android app you’ll find the following little button on the bottom:

When you click on it, the camera window automatically appears, allowing you to search for bottled or canned drinks and to try and identify them.

Object recognition in barcoo

Since we can’t always find out the exact product immediately, a short list appears from which you have to select the appropriate product. When you do that, you’re helping improve recognition technology. The visual search doesn’t work with character recognition like our peers’ (cool) Goggles (for products) which would “only” iniate a Google search for “rivella” for the example above. When using barcoo, it’s only that specific product by rivella that gets identified. Have fun giving it a try!

At barcoo we aim to make independent product information available to consumers – no matter where. We specialize in combining and refining information from multiple sources and bringing it to the mobile screen in a matter of seconds – so that you are able to make informed consumer decisions right in the store. But since we expect most of you to spend time at home or in the office as well, we would like to bring the same kind of service to a bigger device that might be more adapted to these settings.

Therefore we have brought barcoo to the iPad! We took the existing iPhone version and redeveloped it from the ground up so that it adapts to the different usability and screen requirements. This results in a very different user interface even though both versions share the same core and are delivered in one universal package that can be downloaded in the iTunes AppStore. Most users will not hold an iPad with one hand but instead hold it on the lap or on a table – so one notable example is that navigation elements would rather be difficult to reach on the bottom of the screen, therefore being placed on the upper left corner for easy access. Also, you might not want to run around with it to scan in the store and search for information regarding a specific product, but rather use it to browse and discover products.

barcoo for iPad

However, for those who want it, barcoo supports scanning on iPads of second generation that have a camera. For everyone else, we made browsing and discovery very easy. Right after the start we show you the most popular product categories or what is being scanned in the area. To protect users’ privacy we strip the exact location and the user data from this map, but it is still fun to see in what city areas people are scanning what.

We also made our product guides easier to reach. They provide short but precise insights into important consumer topics – like what to keep in mind when choosing a wine to buy.

The new version of barcoo is already available in the iTunes-AppStore as a free download and also brings additional improvements for iPhone users. We look forward to your feedback.

Since barcoo’s inception in January 2009 (in Germany), we’ve made an insane amount of changes and developments in just about everything but our app’s design (the very format of the information), which has stayed more or less the same. But the ever-accumulating information on barcoo’s database too often ended up diffusing into endless snaking chains and word blocks, which became quite the eye sore.

Now, after having thoroughly analyzed barcoo’s usage, we’ve developed a whole new design that will enhance your usage of the app. Here’s what it looks like:

There are three so-called ‘tabs’ that structure all of the contents: information, prices and evaluations. The product information is preselected by default (with the food traffic light, the sustainability traffic light and lots of other background information). However, the core information of the other two tabs is still visible in the top righthand corner. This design is immediately available for each of the two million people who’ve already installed barcoo! Marcus is looking forward to your Feedback.

Sorry, this post is not available in English.

As we have mentioned, our goal is to offer the award-winning barcoo transparency to as many consumers as possible.
No matter what smartphone, it should be possible to access green, price and background information everywhere you want.

However, lately we have gotten a little behind on the promise concerning our loyal Nokia customers – but today that will change: A new touch-enabled barcoo version for Nokia 5800 (Express Music), N97, N97 mini and other S60 5th edition devices can be download for free from Nokia Ovi Store.

The new version speeds up scanning and simplifies the user experience. Price- and product information, for example food traffic light and sustainability information, and everything else are now shown directly in the app. Gone are the days of having to fiddle with jumping between the built-in browser and the scanner.

We are committed to further invest into the Nokia platform and are looking into specifically supporting the upcoming Symbian^3 devices such as the Nokia N8 and C7.

Business partners often ask us how the different mobile phone platforms perform on our service. Our strategy was and will be to deliver our services on any platform that is relevant.  Currently that would encompass seven platforms (although some primarily are kept for historical reasons). Through having more than one million installations, the numbers should be relatively representative (at least for Germany).  One cannot keep them uncommented, but when we share the distribution, we gladly share it with you.

Here is the distribution of scans using barcoo in September 2010:

Samsumg bada is extremely prominent. The success we experienced with the launch of barcoo on bada at the beginning of August nearly knocked our socks off. Certainly this is due to Samsung Apps not bustling with as many other high quality apps like other app directories. We are excited to see how this plattform will continue to develop.

Android continues to become stronger with every month and is slowly, but surely,  taking away market shares from the other players. We have had the advantage to be present on the German Android market from Day One in Germany and therefore to have obtained a dream position in this (not very agile) market.  We have neglected the Nokia Symbian platform but we are hoping it’s market share will rise again as soon as our new release (1.5 years after the last one) goes live at the Ovi Store. The new release will not only support more current models but will also greatly improve the user experience.

So much for the lastest information from barcoo metrics.