Last year, after the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, Coca-Cola altered its freestyle beverage dispensers to enable consumers to hold their smartphone’s camera to the machine’s display. The camera auto-scans a QR (quick response) code, and that connects to the cloud, which brings the Coca-Cola Freestyle user interface to the phone screen with a full menu of more than 100 brands and flavors. After the customer makes a choice, the machine pours the selected drink, all in a contactless manner. Earlier this month, Lego and Universal Music Group collaborated to sell Lego Vidiyo, a new toy that allows kids to create online music videos starring physical Lego characters. Buyers snap a picture of their Lego figure via a smartphone app; then, using augmented reality (AR) technology, the figure comes to life on the screen, dancing and singing to pop music. After initially building and scanning the figure, kids can play almost entirely on the augmented reality video game. QR-code technology is relatively inexpensive and easy to implement, while AR technology can be quite expensive and complex.
Though very different, both technologies are being used to bridge the physical and digital worlds at a time when consumers have elevated expectations that companies will provide omnichannel capabilities and access to information and content, and they expect those services wherever they may be and whenever they want them. The pandemic provided new momentum for QR codes and AR because both technologies can facilitate contactless commerce, but it is the way they are used to align companies’ offerings with digitally trained consumers’ desire for convenience, speed, access to information and novelty that will keep the momentum going after the pandemic has passed.