11 Must-Know Use Cases of QR Codes in Ecommerce in 2024

In a market saturated with tons of shopping options, the need for “ease of shopping” has become a necessity for individual brands to stand out. A single bad experience in delivering can ruin the entire customer journey.

Customer loyalty, which companies used to bank on, has become highly volatile now and can change with each purchase.

The reality is that customers are no longer satisfied with quick deliveries when it comes to ecommerce. They crave convenience at every step of their journey. This shift in consumer behavior has put pressure on businesses to adopt QR Codes as a solution to broaden access, open the door to convenience, and stay ahead of their customers.

QR Codes in Ecommerce: A Necessity or Just a Nice-To-Have?

QR Codes in ecommerce have rapidly evolved from being a mere convenience to a necessity today. QR Codes or quick response codes, as the name suggests, stand up to the expectation of offering quick service to customers.

QR Code effortlessly bridges the gap between the physical and digital shopping worlds. Customers can simply access product information, add reviews, contact support, and even make purchases instantly by scanning a QR Code. 

It's important to note that its benefits extend beyond customers. For businesses, QR Codes offer valuable insights into consumer behavior, allowing them to align marketing strategies and simplify inventory management. This helps them save costs and optimize the operations. 

Especially after the pandemic, QR Codes became more viral and useful, playing an important role in modern ecommerce.

But how? We will answer this in the next section.

11 Best Use Cases of QR Codes in the Ecommerce Industry

The ability to store information and facilitate quick data retrieval makes QR Codes invaluable, particularly in the ecommerce landscape. Here are the top 11 examples of how to utilize QR Codes in your ecommerce business,

1. Contactless Payments

The pandemic has turned the payments industry upside down, with a prediction of global spending through QR Codes reaching $3 trillion by 2025. With people becoming more careful about cleanliness and germ spread, QR Codes emerged as the most viable solution. 

You can use a QR ecommerce code to allow customers to make secure transactions in your business. By scanning a printed code with their mobile devices, customers can pay via banks online (e.g., Apple Pay, Google Pay, or a banking app), eliminating the need for cash or physical cards.

Moreover, with millennials and Gen-Z leading the way in shopping habits now, the user-friendliness of QR Codes simplifies their experience where making payments is just a tap away on their smartphones.

📌 Note: Not only payments but cash withdrawals as well. Read on to learn how to withdraw cash from online banks.

2. Order Tracking and Delivery

Customers nowadays prefer to track their orders in real-time. Ecommerce companies can include QR Codes on order confirmation emails or within customer accounts that link directly to the order status page. This improves the post-purchase experience for your customers. 

Ecommerce platforms can generate unique QR Codes for each order, which customers can scan to access detailed status updates and shipment tracking. You may use a QR Code generator for bulk generation. 

This transparency reduces customer queries while building trust and satisfaction, as shoppers can expect when their packages will arrive. Moreover, delivery staff can use QR Codes for proof of delivery, guaranteeing accuracy and accountability in the last stage of the delivery process.

3. Marketing and Promotions

QR Codes have also become effective in driving marketing and promotional campaigns. Retailers can embed QR Codes in their advertising assets, such as flyers, posters, or digital ads, to engage customers with various incentives. 

These QR Codes can link to 

• Discounts
• Exclusive offers
• Email sign-up forms
• Loyalty program registration

You can provide customers with special offers or carry out unique marketing campaigns. 

For example, Burger King partnered with Lil Yachty to share a Whopper discount and 2021 VMAs ticket giveaway with the use of QR Codes.

This level of interactivity and convenience boosts conversion rates, enabling businesses to gather valuable customer data for future targeted marketing efforts.

4. Feedback

QR Codes offer a convenient means for ecommerce businesses to collect product feedback directly from customers. Brands can place the QR ecommerce business code on product packaging or within order confirmation emails, linking to surveys or review forms that are specific to the purchased item.

This direct feedback loop helps companies gain insights into product performance, identify areas for improvement, and refine their offerings to meet customer expectations. You can also incentivize customer feedback using discounts.

This is one convenient approach for prompting customers to share their experiences and opinions. 

5. Customer Support

76% of people will stop doing business with a company after only two poor customer experiences. QR Codes simplify customer support processes and take your customer experiences up a notch in ecommerce by providing quick access to resources and assistance. 

Online retailers can place QR Codes on their websites or within user accounts. When scanned, connect customers to a range of support options. These options may include live chat, FAQs, video tutorials, or even direct access to customer service agents. 

This reduces the burden on customer support teams and also enhances the overall customer experience by providing timely and suitable assistance.

6. Returns and Exchanges

QR Codes can also facilitate returns and exchange processes for both ecommerce businesses and customers. Companies can include a QR business code for ecommerce on the packing slips or order confirmation emails, allowing customers to initiate return requests without any hassles. 

When scanned, the QR Code can direct customers to a dedicated returns portal. Here, they can specify reasons for returns, select replacement items, and generate return shipping labels. This not only simplifies the returns process but also reduces the administrative workload for the company team, resulting in quicker resolution and greater customer satisfaction.

SpaceNK, a beauty brand, uses QR Code-enabled returns to provide their customers with convenient returns.

7. Digital Receipts

42% of consumers said they prefer receiving paper receipts. QR Codes can also act as an eco-friendly alternative for delivering digital receipts to customers. Instead of printing paper receipts, ecommerce businesses can generate QR Codes that link to digital copies of receipts and email or text them to customers upon purchase confirmation. 

These digital receipts not only reduce paper waste but also make it easy for customers to access their transaction details, facilitating record-keeping and expense tracking. Moreover, you can also include QR Codes in the digital receipts that link to related products, promoting cross-selling and upselling opportunities.

8. Product Authentication

Customers want original quality products. ecommerce brands can include unique QR Codes on product labels or packaging, allowing consumers to verify the legitimacy of their purchases. 

When scanned, these QR Codes can lead customers to a verification page, confirming the product's origin, ingredients, and authenticity. In fact, 57% of consumers have scanned a QR Code on food packaging to get more information. 

This allows consumers to make informed purchasing decisions and builds trust in the authenticity of the products they buy, especially in industries where counterfeit goods are a concern.

9. Mobile App Downloads

Mobile apps have evolved to become modern shopping stores. QR Codes can be utilized to promote and boost mobile app downloads for ecommerce businesses. 

Companies can include a QR ecommerce code on their websites, promotional assets, or even within physical store locations. When scanned, the code takes users directly to the app download page on their respective app stores (e.g., Apple App Store or Google Play Store). 

This approach not only increases app adoption rates but also provides a seamless user journey, reducing friction in downloading the app. Furthermore, the mobile app enables you to stay connected with your customers.  

37% of people are already aware of this use case and are comfortable with adopting QR Codes to download applications.

10. Store Locators

QR Codes can simplify the process of finding physical store locations for ecommerce businesses with a brick-and-mortar presence. 

Likewise, you can include QR Codes on the websites, social media profiles, or marketing assets. It will instantly inform customers about nearby store locations, including addresses, hours of operation, and contact details. In addition, customers may receive a map with directions to the nearest physical store.

This user-friendly approach encourages online customers to visit physical locations and potentially make in-store purchases.

11. Inventory Management 

Last but not least, QR Codes can assist with inventory management for ecommerce businesses by attaching QR Codes to products or storage bins, with each code representing a unique product SKU or inventory location. 

When scanned by employees using mobile devices, these QR Codes provide real-time access to inventory information, including stock levels, warehouse locations, and restocking requirements. 

The backend system can automatically update the inventory database, ensuring accurate stock levels. This reduces the risk of overstocking or stockout, leading to improved operational efficiency and better meet customer demands.

Examples of Ecommerce Businesses That Cracked the (QR) Code

It's your turn to get inspired by real-life examples of ecommerce brands that have successfully implemented a QR Code for a shop or a large-scale store. 

1. IKEA’s Buy-Back QR Code

IKEA, the Swedish furniture brand, also uses QR Codes to make it convenient for their shoppers to return any Ikea item they no longer need. 

The IKEA Buy Back policy allows customers to return their purchases in exchange for an in-store gift card, which can later be redeemed for their next IKEA purchase. To do this, they must scan a confirmation QR Code to generate a referral number. This referral number can then be presented to the Ikea staff to return the item. 

This successful adoption of QR Codes by IKEA makes their business even more customer-centric.

2. Amazon’s Story Boxes

Amazon India launched a unique marketing campaign wherein Instead of conventional boxes, customers received their orders in unique QR Code packaging known as ‘StoryBoxes’. Upon scanning the QR Code, customers were directed to a dedicated section on the website/app known as "seller stories."

These stories were about the backgrounds of small and medium businesses that are thriving through the use of Amazon's platform. By spotlighting some of these remarkable stories, Amazon connected customers with the human side of ecommerce. 

3. L’Oréal Virtual Makeup Try-on

L'Oréal Paris has successfully incorporated QR Codes into their cosmetics shopping experience, digitizing how customers explore and select cosmetic products.

In response to the pandemic, L'Oréal Paris removed physical testers from their stores to prioritize customer safety and cleanliness. Instead, they introduced a QR Code in-store for each product linked to specific SKUs.  These allow customers to scan the ecommerce business code or the QR Code with their smartphones and virtually "try on" the cosmetics immediately.

This innovative use of QR business code for ecommerce improved the consumer journey and reduced the safety concerns attached to COVID-19.

QR Codes + Ecommerce – Your Blueprint for Success

As we move forward in a more digitized ecommerce industry, QR Codes hold the potential to drive businesses toward their north-star metrics. As you have just read, businesses have started to leverage these codes to make the shopping experience more accessible. 

If you also want to get started, carry out a thorough research. You must choose the best QR Code generator for your ecommerce store. Determine if you need a paid QR Code generator or the free one can do the job. Ultimately, the QR Code generator you choose should align with your business objectives and contribute to your customer experience, setting your business on the road to success.