Marketing professionals have recently developed an interest in a phenomenon that has been popping up on billboards, print ads, and websites alike: QR Codes. While those who aren’t familiar with them may dismiss them as a benign curiosity; as with many successful, up-and-coming marketing strategies, they are sure to increase in popularity as the general public becomes more aware of them.

Quick Response codes, or QR Codes, are two-dimensional, pixilated barcodes containing data that can be retrieved via a mobile phone’s built-in camera. Using a barcode scanner application, a user can “scan” the barcode with their phone in a way similar to how a supermarket clerk would scan UPC codes on groceries. The barcode scanner application would use the data encoded within the barcode to display information to the user like text, Web pages, contact information from vCards. QR Codes have been in widespread use for years in countries like Japan, and are rapidly gaining popularity stateside, as they are now commonly seen in magazines, signs, public transportation vehicles, and practically anywhere that users may need to retrieve additional information.