4 QR codes that should be replaced with New Domains

QR codes, for whatever reason, seem to be sticking around despite their lack of mass adoption by consumers. Earlier this year, I wrote an article about the problems with QR codes and suggested a solution for simplifying navigation to specific landing pages—New Domains.

Rather than hoping that your audience has an app that reads QR codes (or worse, expecting someone to download one just to get to your landing page), companies should make it simple for anyone to access the page you’re trying to drive traffic to. Using a short, relative New Domain is a much more user-friendly way to get people to where you want to go. Not only is it easy for anyone with a smartphone to type the domain into their web browser, it’s also memorable enough that they can remember the address and look it up later when they have access to a computer.

To prove our point, we’ve tracked down four examples of QR codes that can easily be replaced with a short domain.

TSAPre.reviews

I love TSA Pre as much as the next frequent flier, but this is a little too much for me to stomach. When I’m dashing about the airport with my ticket in one hand and carry-on in the other, am I going to stop, pull out my phone, track down a QR reader, and scan this code? No. No I am not. Instead, TSA Pre could use the succinct domain TSAPre.reviews to encourage people to leave their thoughts about the program. Not only is it a solution that costs less than 20 bucks, but it’s also easy to remember—so if I decide to take advantage of the in-flight wifi once I’m on board, there’s a good chance that I’ll remember this web address and navigate to it to share my experience.

DIATrain.buzz

Seriously, what’s up with airports and QR codes? Board the train between terminals at Denver International Airport, and you’ll be greeted by this sign. While I could reasonably see this getting more of a response than the TSA Pre sign (considering that you’re stuck in a tiny compartment awkwardly trying to avoid eye contact with everyone else crammed in around you), I still think a domain is a better solution. Although there are several different domains that would work well in this situation, DIATrain.buzz is a solid choice. After all, DIA has always been on the quirky side.

UpdateYourPlate.online

Now this is an interesting situation: Central Parking is using not only QR code but also an actual web address to encourage its parkers to update their information on their website. The question is why? Why not stick to a single domain that’s simple to type into your browser rather than using that QR code as an alternative? For less than $10, they could be the proud owners of UpdateYourPlate.online and make everyone’s lives easier.

allison.social

This one is a little trickier because this particular QR code goes directly to the personal profile on my SXSW social account. But do you know how many people asked to scan that code when I was networking with fellow attendees? Zero. Instead, it would have been much easier to create a short domain that forwards to my profile so people could connect with me through that link. The domain allison.social is not only available, but pretty reasonably priced considering how many Allisons there are out there who could compete for the same domain.

Please. For the sake of us all. No more QR codes.