Use of "action codes" growing quickly among major U.S. magazines

The number of "action codes" (Quick Response (QR) Codes or similar) in use by magazines is growing dramatically. According to a study released by Nellymoser, Inc. (reported in Folio:), the number of magazine action codes rose 476%, from 88 in January to 507 in September, with 1,155 action codes printed in Q3. The study was based on data collected from the 100 largest circulation U.S. magazines.

Not surprisingly, advertising accounts for most of the growth; by September, there were 20 advertising related codes for every editorial one.

“No single category or reader demographic dominates the list of top magazines containing action codes,” the study says. “This indicates that editors and advertisers are using action codes to reach a wide audience. Women’s magazine titles, which focus on fashion, family and homemaking, continue to outnumber other titles as they did in Q2.” In total, tags in the beauty, home and fashion categories represent about 38 percent of all codes use in advertising.

The survey highlighted one magazine using the codes aggressively to build editorial following. Sports Illustrated uses action codes every week to drive readers to see a video featuring a Q & A with a selected athlete; readers can submit their own questions for future interviews.