When I read a  MobiAds post stating Google Puts QR Codes On 100,000 Stores, I got an intuitive flash  QR Codes could be the missing link to social media monitoring attribution, the one we’ve been looking for.

QR Code for Webmetricsguru.com

We know 2010 is said to be the year of Mobile according to EMarketer, or was it 2009, with a statement that ..

… The fusion of mobile and social and the appetite for apps (among both consumers and brands) will continue unabated. In fact, location- and social-aware apps and utilities will be a key avenue for brands looking to engage consumers on the go. Cheaper smartphones and smarter feature phones will help marketers bridge the gap with consumers, but the onus is still on marketers to provide consumers with a measure (and measurable degree) of utility, relevance and entertainment.

Enter Google’s Local Business Center which every business ought to sign up for AND an interesting factoid that is not generally known ….

….In a move to link online content to real world locations, Google has launched a new QR-code based Favorite Places on Google program.

Google has identified the top 100,000 most searched stores in the US, and has sent them a window decal that includes a unique QR code. When consumers scan the code with their phone, they go directly to a Google mobile web Place Page about the business.

…. After a company is registered in the LBC, Google identifies the most popular by keeping track of how often consumers search for that business, how often they ask for directions, etc.

Periodically Google will send out an additional wave of window decals to a new set of “most popular” businesses. There is no way for a company to request such a decal, it has to be earned though consumer interaction.

Consumers can then interact with the Place Page in various ways. For example, they can read reviews to see what other users think about the business, they can find any coupons that the business may be offering, or they can leave their own review of the business.

Video Introduction of Google’s Local Business Center

This program, which is currently running only in the US, is based around Google’s Local Business Center. Companies that have registered and added their information to the LBC are eligible.

When I read that – immediately, I saw it’s potential to link back to the Social Media ROI, the part everyone wants to have using that QR code.  I’ve maintained for years that technology isn’t really an issue, the means exist to track just about anything you want, now, in full technicolor details,  including cross channel conversions, and even, engagement.

If it’s possible to track Social Media ROI, why haven’t we?

It’s hard.   You have to agree with what you want to measure and set up your tracking for every possible circumstance ahead of time – and who is willing to do that?     Most people aren’t aware of all the things it’s possible to track, much less how to track them using Analytics.

With the QR codes linked into the Local Business Center – where you can also add a lot of your business information and list coupons, you now have a way of tracking Social Media, if you want to think strategically.

I also think Google should let every business listed generate it’s own QR code and link it into Google Analytics, as it appears to be doing for the 100,000 businesses it has already generated codes and decals for.

The issue isn’t really reading the QR Codes as most mobile phones are capable, with the right software, of doing so.  Since Mobile Phone adoption is so widespread, it seems likely that Social Media ROI will be plugged into Mobile Phone and Mobile Application growth – meaning that the two will converge and have been with applications like FourSquare.  According to MobiAds …

… One current barrier to adoption is that a consumer has to have a barcode reader installed in their phone in order to scan the code. However, with the proliferation of App stores and free barcode reading apps, this should not be a problem at least for owners of smartphones.

So how would it work?    How could you take a brick and mortar business, say a local restaurant chain, and turn it on to Social Media ROI using Google’s Local Business Center and QR codes?

A local restaurant (as shown in the introduction video) can list menu items, hours and coupons (all which are tracked by built in Google Analytics, based on what I’m seeing in the video).  Since Google is now including Twitter‘s real time feed into Google’s Search Results AND is trying to do the same with Facebook (to the extent that privacy settings allow for updates to be published) the analytics in Google’s Local Business Center should be able to co-relate community advocacy with social media activity driven by it.

When the customer prints out a coupon from Google Local Business  Center … OR … shows up as the resturant for a meal … and uses the QR Scanner on … say, the menu items, or a special offer … they will be tied in directly the promotional efforts and ROI from the Social Media activities will be established.

All we needed, then, was a way of working, of conceptualizing how to tie Social Media and the enabling technology to tie in the actual act of taking part in Social Media – of being influenced to show up at try a meal – all of that, I think, can be tracked using the QR codes.

Now, that doesn’t mean most businesses are doing that now – they aren’t – but they could.      The answer is not technology by itself, but strategic thinking AND technology together.

Now .. what we need are some use cases …. and I will work on producing one or two this year – one that can be shared with online community.

Right now, we need to go and try it – let’s see what happens when we think up of a program we want to track and get the pieces in place .  While Google doesn’t generate the QR codes for 99.9% of the businesses that need them, you can still generate QR codes easily on your own with QR Generators such as QR Stuff.