A MeCard representation is more compact than a vCard. As a QR Code is growing due to it’s coding content this makes MeCard format more popular for 2D encoding.

 

What’s inside the MeCard?

The first characters (‘MECARD:’) tells the decoding software the type of encrypted data.
Then you can specify your address information. Note, that no field is compulsory, it’s is possible to skip fields or repeat each field. However, your decoding app will be accept more than one phone number but it could cause problems to set multiple names.

 

The data fields are as follows:

Property	Description and specification
N:	contact name (designated as text string OR if comma separated: LASTNAME, FIRSTNAME)
SOUND:	contact name in Japanese(Kana), same specs as N:
TEL:	phone number
TEL-AV:	videophone number
EMAIL:	eMail address
NOTE:	memo text
BDAY:	birthday (YYYMMDD)
ADR:	address (designated as text string OR if comma separated in order: PO BOX, ROOM NO., HOUSE NO., CITY, PREFECTURE, ZIP CODE, COUNTRY)
URL:	website
NICKNAME:	display name

Full specifications and compatibility information are available at:
http://www.nttdocomo.co.jp/english/service/developer/make/content/barcode/function/application/addressbook/index.html

Now the data fields are concatenated, each separated with a semicolon.
The resulting MeCard can look like:

MECARD:
NICKNAME: EVE;
TEL:+1111111111;
TEL:+2222222222;
EMAIL:kk@EVEnX.com;
URL:http://qlkhachsan.vn;

If you take the time to look deeper into the code you can see the potential problems with the MeCard format. There is no indication, which type a phone number is, and so the reading app cannot distinguish between WORK, MOBILE, FAX and HOME. That’s why they could be all set as standard numbers and you have to manually set them to the right type after reading.

QR Codes provide quick and comfortable access to online resources.

But how to measure the success of a QR Code campaign? You have to generate a QR Code, that contains a link with tracking ability to get information about the response.

This embedded link has to be a unique entry to your site. Then you can refer to the origin of the website access. Your clients scan this code and are directed to the specified URL. This allows you to get detailed information on how your QR Code campaign appeals to your audience and helps to measure the success of your click-through campaign.

 
There are 2 approaches to create a traceable link:

1. Use intern redirection

Create a QR Code that contains a link to a campaign name on your website, i.e.     qlkhachsan.vn/ad/XJx5 The campaign name redirects to a target you want, i.e.     http://qlkhachsan.vn/?p=1581 This allows you to change the target. As many QR Codes are printed, this variability can save a lot of time and money, if there are changes afterwards. To track the access and get helpful statistics you can use Google Analytics.

2. Use extern URL-shortener

You can use URL-shortener like http://goo.gl or http://www.bitly.com shorten this URL:     http://qlkhachsan.vn/?p=1581 and get the shortened URL beyond:     http://goo.gl/4NSes Generate a QR Code, that contains this shortened URL. If someone reaches your site through this URL, you can analyze the access via the built-in analytic tools the URL-shortener provides, i.e.     http://goo.gl/#analytics/goo.gl/4NSes/all_time Additionally you can use Google Analytics so see the referrer link stats. The approach of using URL-shortener can result in a smaller QR Code because of the short URL, that has to be encrypted. But the recipient of your QR Code would be more solicited to open the content, if his reader shows clear, to which website he will be directed.