Published on Tuesday, April 19th, 2011 by Peter Giffen

Toronto photographer Tyler Gray has created a self-promotion that stands out from the usual mailers and e-mail attachments. Represented by Westside Studio, Gray came up with  a QR barcode poster that a passing art director could scan with his smartphone and then be transported to the photographer’s site. Approximately 500 24-x-36-inch posters were placed around the city in heavy-traffic areas where ad agencies and bars are found.

“These barcodes have been used for a few years already in Asia and Europe but for some reason they really haven’t caught on here completely yet,” says Gray. “One can create pretty much any sort of interactive coding within the barcode, such as a simple date that when scanned automatically goes into your contacts list on your smartphone. Or you can be directed to an advertisement or a Website.  The crazy part about these codes is that they are free to create simply by going to a QR code generator on the Internet.

“The idea behind this promo is that it is a new way to reach out to creative professionals throughout the city without using traditional methods. Advertising to the people who create award-winning advertising can be difficult, so you have to be constantly evolving and thinking of new and different ways to get their attention.”

Gray also planned to create awareness about the promo campaign with blog posts and social media.

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