Mobile Chat App Kik Appeals to Brands

Kik, the Ontario, Canada-based messaging app uses usernames, not phone number, as the basis for the accounts. Recently, the platform has begun to increase the range of interactions available through the app, in an effort to appeal to brands.

Last year, Kik implemented promoted chats to allow users to opt-in and connect with brands in a more engaging way. Several brands including NBC News and MTV, have created accounts and post popular stories, quizzes and relevant for consumers who opted in. For NBC, Kik users will send a message with a relevant keyword like "politics," to receive news updates from the publisher (see example below).

Furthermore, Kik users can use promoted chats to identify brands that are currently running promotions, and strike up a conversation with the brand. Allowing for one-on-one marketing, Kik now allows brands to participate in chat-style dialogue with the consumer. Through these new updates, Kik's value is in the earned media produced when users share content - an engagement study shows that Kik messenger sees as much user engagement as Facebook.

Kik continues to create opportunities for brands to connect with consumers. Most recently, the company has ventured into the realm of QR Codes in the hopes of bringing WeChat's success in China, to the U.S. QR Codes hope to provide context for a relationship between the brand and consumer - providing relevant promotions, information 

Kik isn’t just focused on connecting brands — though that’s where most of the revenue potential lies. The company introduced music-themed communities last month, and Kik Codes will help users connect with other users in the same way that Snapchat, WeChat and other chat apps use QR codes to add friends.

Beyond just connecting, QR codes also provide context for a relationship — for example what kind of a code did that person scan, and what location did they scan it from. Using that context, a Kik bot operated by a brand can send the right response to a user. That could mean providing a pizza discount, directions to a store, exclusive tickets, or more. More importantly, it opens a dialogue for future opportunities, too.


Read more: http://techcrunch.com/2015/09/08/chat-app-kik-introduces-qr-codes-to-connect-users-and-brands/
http://www.clickz.com/clickz/column/2403229/3-reasons-why-brands-are-flocking-to-chat-app-kik

QR code is extremely popular in China but why not in the U.S.?

Following the China Digital Marketing Group on LinkedIN, I came across one discussion about QR code a few days ago. Then I suddenly realized that I have not scanned a single one since I came back to U.S. after my summer vacation in my hometown---Shanghai, China. When I was in Shanghai, I used QR code very frequently. I would add my friends on WeChat by scanning their QR code ID. I downloaded apps and requested subscription and push service by scanning QR code on posters, computer screens and advertising boards on subways. Every time I came to a restaurant, the first thing I would do was to scan the QR code on the small advertising board stood on the table to follow the official account of the restaurant on WeChat. And then I could get coupons, free drinks or discounts as a first-time customer.  I even made payments by scanning the small square which would directly connect me to the interface of AliPay ( an app like Paypal). All I need to do then is to confirm the payment amount and click "Pay", without typing in any digits. But since I came back to U.S. in late July, I only used QR code for two or three times to board the airplanes. 

After doing some research, I find that there are two big reasons pushing up the popularity of QR code in China. One is WeChat and the other is the growing number of Chinese mobile internet users. 

In September 2012, Huateng Ma, the CEO of Tencent (company that owns WeChat), emphasized the huge potential of QR code in O2O (online to offline) and the company's strategy to push QR code on China's Internet Conference. Later, the QR code scanner function was built into WeChat. Being the most popular social network and an all-purpose mobile platform in China, WeChat definitely promoted the QR code's usage and commonality as users can now interact with the various functions such as making payment, getting information push service etc. in WeChat with those little squares so easily. It is more personalized and customer-oriented. You don't have to type in anything. You won't be bothered by switching among different apps or webpages. The high usability and network externality brought by WeChat make QR code a mania in China.

The other powerful hand is the huge population of mobile internet users. According to the China Internet Network Information Center's (CNNIC) 35th "China Internet Development Statistics Report", by December 2014, about 85.8% of internet users, which is about 557 million, connect the Internet through mobile devices.  And among the 1.29 billion mobile users, by February 2015, about 48.8% of them are mobile broadband (3G and 4G) subscribers (Data via Sina Tech).  Network externality has grown exponentially along with the widespread coverage of Internet and increasing number of mobile internet users, which has made QR code a very powerful and involving tool in people's life. 

Finally, back to the question why QR code has not become popular in U.S. I think a key reason is that none of the popular social network apps in U.S. has incorporated or emphasized the QR code scanner function. There are some QR code scanner apps available in Android market and IOS App Store. But as a separated application, the most exciting power of QR code---easing interactions with various other platforms, is limited. Breaking the barrier to network externality is important for QR code to become popular in the U.S. market. 

Reference: 

http://www.cac.gov.cn/2015-02/03/c_1114237273.htm

http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/03/world/china-internet-growth-2014/

http://www.cac.gov.cn/2015-02/03/c_1114237273.htm

Coca Cola's US QR Code Program

Coca Cola’s newly launched US campaign to preserve the Arctic (home of the polar bear : Coca Cola’s mascot), uses QR codes printed on cups, which enable customers to download an iOS game app, which in turn connects to Facebook, allowing the user to play against friends. http://mashable.com/2011/11/11/coca-cola-qr-code-program/
The campaign in partnership the World Wildlife Fund and 7-Eleven (distributors of the cups with the QR codes) is a clever integration of some of the most popular digital platforms currently in use. The game, (Snowball Effect by Coca Cola), which can also be downloaded directly from the App Store, is a simple snowball throwing game, in which you challenge your friends to earn points. Points are also earned by checking in to a 7-Eleven and from the QR codes. As points are earned larger snowballs are unlocked making it easier to play the game.
In order to start the playing the game one has to challenge a Facebook friend, which inevitably leads to a wall post, the idea being you help spread the word. To fully engage with the game, the app has to be given access to the user’s Facebook account, and the device must have location services enabled. Although the game itself is not very entertaining, the interaction among the different digital platforms is interesting in that it gives Coca Cola access to their customer’s social media personas under the guise of social responsibility. According to the article printing the QR codes on cups posed a series of difficulties, yet Coca Cola hopes that in the future they will be able to be printed on cans.