From Heinz Ketchup to The Weather Channel, almost every
brand today has a QR code that allows viewers to interact with their brands
directly from smartphones. For those of you living under a rock, a QR code,
short for quick response code, is a barcode located on virtually anything that can be scanned with an iPhone, android or other camera-enabled smartphone. Once
the code is scanned, a URL that is embedded into the code appears. This unique
coding system has allowed companies to expand their brands greatly and has
created a new trend in spreading brand awareness. Not only allowing a viewer to
see the website, a QR code can also allow customers to have access to certain coupons
and special deals or events for that brand as well; there is no limit to how a QR
code can improve a brand.
The latest QR code to make an appearance may come as a
surprise to many. Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest, in honor of
National Condom Week, is attempting to make safe sex as comfortable as possible. In doing so, the company distributed 55,000
condoms to local college students in western Washington. What was unique about these condoms was a QR
code sticker located on each wrapper. This QR code isn’t just a website for facts
about staying safe; this code takes the condom user to a website titled www.wheredidyouwearit.com. Yes, that’s right.
You can now “check in” to where you just had sex. The objective of this website is to show
sexually active young adults that using condoms is more common than they think.
Once entering the
site, users can click the button “check in,” which is similar to foursquare, users
can tell the world anonymously where they just had sex.
This banner appears on the check in page followed by these questions; an
approximate address, city, state, gender of you and your partner, age, type of
relationships, why you use condoms, how the safe sex was and even where the sex occurred, for example the kitchen or a hot tub. Once submitted a “Thank You” page appears.
Planned Parenthood thanks the user for using Where Did you Wear it, “but more
importantly thank you for practicing safer sex.” Users can then click on the map and see their
sex location as well as the location of other safe sex users.
The purpose of the site is to show young adults that safe
sex is being used everywhere and to also spread the word of how condoms are 98
percent effective in preventing STDs as well as unplanned pregnancy. It is
hoping to make safe sex users proud of their actions. According to abcnews.com,
Nathan Engebretson, PPGNW’s new media coordinator, said the site has already
had 65,000 visitors and 4,500 check-ins, with 20 percent of the traffic coming
from mobile devices. He says the site isn’t intended for bragging, it is about
giving these young adults the sense of how many people, like them, use condoms. Products and brands of all sorts are using these types of social media tools to spread their brand message why shouldn't Planned Parenthood?
By: Carlie Fair
By: Carlie Fair
