ScanLife has a new app out [iTunes link] for iPhone - a scanning application that uses the iPhone camera as a link from products to websites. This application has been available on regular camera phones for some time now, but with the widespread usage of the iPhone, it’s possible that this could be the time for growth.
So what’s the point?
As a marketer, you can use ScanLife to create EZcodes to put on things like marketing materials, business cards, products, etc. People then use this nifty iPhone app to scan your EZcode when they see it, and voila, they’re back at your website buying a product, reading your blog, or just getting more information about you.
As a user, you can use the ScanLife app to scan these codes and buy products you see in magazines and on websites, sample songs from CDs, get reviews for restaurants you're at and even hear audio tours. And since the iPhone almost always has some sort of internet connection, this app works well.
Different ways EZcodes are being used in the real world:
- On New Year’s Eve 2008, there were EZcodes displayed on the Nasdaq/Reuters digital billboard in Time’s Square that directed you back to the Reuters website.
- Discovery Audio uses EZcodes on local landmarks in San Francisco to provide an audio tour and map of the area. CitySearch is also targeting San Francisco by linking to reviews for stores and restaurant.
- Sears uses EZcodes on their products and in ads to show product reviews of individual items. If Amazon was a physical store, you bet they’d be all over this.
- Car & Driver used EZcodes to display individual webpages for each of their reviews in their Car & Driver 2008 Buyer’s Guide. Pages linked to videos and more reviews.
- EZcodes are the main ingredient for contenders to get clues in the French TV show TreasureHunt.
The first time you use ScanLife on the iPhone, you’re taken to a survey page to hand over your demographics to Scanbuy. After that, you’ll automatically be taken to wherever the EZcode was assigned to bring you. I didn't encounter any errors with this app, even though I tried hard to break the rules by scanning codes in dim light and at severe angles.
Like any application, the more people use it the better it will become. When I can start using this app to instantly buy any product I see in magazine it will be both awesome and dangerous. There are several similar apps, so it's just a matter of who makes it big first.