Sure-QR guide
QR codes for retail and shop signage
In a shop, the variable that breaks QR codes is distance. A code sized for a leaflet will not read from the pavement.
Size for the distance, not for the sign
The working rule is that a code should be roughly one tenth of the distance it will be scanned from. A shopper standing two metres back from a window needs a code around 20cm square. A shelf-edge label scanned at 30cm can be 3cm.
Getting this wrong is the single most common reason in-store codes go unscanned. People try once, nothing happens, and they walk on.
Window displays have their own problems
- Glare. Glass reflects the street, and a phone camera sees the reflection before it sees the code. Position away from direct sun and test at the time of day the shop is busiest.
- Reach. If the code is above head height or behind a display, nobody can hold a camera square to it.
- Night. If the window is lit after hours, a code is genuinely useful for closed-shop browsing. If it is dark, it is decoration.
Campaigns change; signage does not
Retail runs on campaigns. A code printed for a summer promotion is still hanging in September unless someone takes it down, and someone rarely does.
With a dynamic code the sign keeps working: point it at the promotion while the promotion runs, then repoint it at the seasonal collection, then at your general shop page. Same sign, new destination, no reprint.
This is also where scan data earns its keep. Knowing that the window code was scanned 340 times and the shelf-edge code 12 times tells you where to put next quarter's budget. Static codes cannot tell you that, because the scan never reaches us.
Frequently asked questions
- How big should a QR code be in a shop window?
- Measure the distance from the code to where a shopper would naturally stand, and make the code about a tenth of that distance. Two metres means roughly 20cm square. Err larger — there is no penalty for an oversized code.
- Can I use one code across all my signs?
- You can, but you lose the ability to tell which sign works. Separate dynamic codes for the window, the shelf and the till give you a scan count per placement while still all pointing at the same page.
- What should a shop code link to?
- Something that is faster than walking to the counter: current stock, sizes, a click-and-collect page, or a short sign-up. Linking to a homepage wastes the scan.
- Do I need to tell people what the code does?
- Yes. A code with no label is scanned far less than one with four words above it. Say what happens: 'Scan for today's stock', not 'Scan me'.