QR Codes

How to use smart QR codes on campus: 5 ways

January 15, 2025
5 min read

More and more higher education institutions are wising up to the merits of mobile technology on campus. Not only does it reach students where they’re most comfortable—their smartphone—but it’s adapted to modern lifestyles. 

In particular, QR codes have taken center stage in the last four years. These scannable black-and-white squares are highly flexible. Users can seamlessly transition from offline to online experiences, and they appeal to younger generations. Half of Gen Z and millennials use them at least once a week.

That’s why they’re increasingly popular at educational sites. Smart QR codes combine the power of personalization with the dynamism of updated destinations. To help you implement smart QR codes in your student outreach, here’s everything you need to know about how to use them on college campuses.

How smart QR codes optimize the user experience  

First, let’s explain what smart QR codes are. A smart QR code looks and scans like every other QR code, but stands out with these key features.

  • Targeting metrics for personalized outreach: Smart QR codes allow creators to implement various targeting metrics such as timezone, device language, user location, and more. These parameters direct users to web pages that resonate with their specific interests and behaviors.
  • Dynamic destination updates: Smart QR codes can direct users to different destinations depending upon the administrator’s input. This flexibility extends a QR code’s functionality since it can direct users to various relevant web pages over time. 
  • Trackable insights for attribution: Each scan of a smart QR code relays key metrics such as the time of day scanned, the referral source, country of origin, and device type. These insights allow administrators to learn more about their demographics—as well as measure the success of ongoing campaigns—so they can learn and make relevant changes for future ones.

These features integrate perfectly with the QR code’s growing popularity and relative ease of use. By optimizing the user experience, smart QR codes boost engagement, increase conversion rates, and deepen the relationship between end users. 

Ready to learn more? Here are five use cases for smart QR codes on campus. 

#1: Transitioning students from offline to online content

It’s no secret that college students love their phones: One study estimates the average college student spends eight to ten hours a day on their device. Colleges can lean into that trend by using smart QR codes to transition students from offline to online content. 

Simply install them in key locations such as outdoor landmarks and banners, or print them on relevant materials like flyers and admissions pamphlets. When users scan, they’ll receive information on the site of interest, the institution and its history, its admission process, or other pertinent knowledge. 

Dickinson College even runs a self-guided QR code tour. Each scan reveals different information on notable spots on campus. Users can access multimedia content such as videos, photo galleries, and links to learn more. 

#2: Bridging the language barrier between nations

When scanned, smart QR codes can pull up web pages in the preferred language of a user’s device. This feature is especially helpful for international students who don’t speak English as a first language but need to access essential information.

It’s easy to design this type of smart QR code. Administrators simply set that parameter in the online portal. When scanned, the smart QR code will relay the web page in the preferred language of a device’s browser. Administrators can also personalize a smart QR code to relay content specific to people from certain countries. 

This feature can be used for orientations, graduations, or any event where attendees speak different languages. That includes conferences that invite contributors from all over the world.

#3: Streamlining student events

Student events often require participants to fill out forms before, during, or after the event. In these instances, smart QR codes are helpful tools for organizing and gathering key information.

Administrators can create a smart QR code that directs people to a landing page with an intake form. Event participants scan the code, fill out the required information, and hit submit. Event organizers immediately receive their response. They also gain insights into key metrics such as when the smart QR code was scanned, where it was scanned, and how many people scanned it. This helps them understand participant behavior and organize future events.

While this feature can be used for anything, it’s especially beneficial with large events. Instead of having people wait in line to fill out a form, they can scan a smart QR code and submit the required information where and when it works best for them to do so.

#4: Expanding educational opportunities

Because students spend so much time on their phones, it only makes sense to incorporate smart QR codes into educational materials. Instructors can add QR codes to course syllabuses or install them in an easy-to-see place in the classroom. When scanned, students can access course materials online. 

This feature makes it easier for students to stay organized. It also creates more flexibility than traditional methods—such as printing and handing out papers—because smart QR codes are dynamic. That means the scanned destination can be changed over time. 

An instructor can update the smart QR code’s destination to reflect changes to course material. One week might educate students on the course syllabus; the next might include a homework assignment. The possibilities are both limitless and easy to implement. 

#5: Curating student life

Students live busy day-to-day lives. From the dining hall to the library, the dorm room to the student center, they are involved with many different activities. This makes it easy for them to lose track of things—including their student ID.

Many institutions require student ID to access key places on campus. But what if students could use their phones instead? This would simplify day-to-day activities and also allow administrators to gather key insights, thanks to the trackable metrics provided by a smart QR code.

Smart QR codes can also be installed in common areas to provide essential information. For instance, they can be placed next to dishes in the dining hall so that students with food allergies can scan and see a list of ingredients. Or, a QR code on a building entrance can list hours and special events so students stay informed. Once again, the options are endless.

SiteDetour makes it easy to integrate smart QR codes on campus. Our easy-to-use platform empowers you to design a smart QR code campaign in minutes. Users can implement 28 targeting metrics, such as time of day, device type, preferred language, and more to create targeted, personalized campaigns. This ensures that each campaign delivers relevant content to appropriate users, boosting engagement and conversion rates.

Want to learn more? Get started today with a demo or a free trial

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URL Redirect Link Management
QR Codes

How to use smart QR codes on campus: 5 ways

April 3, 2023
5 min read
QR Code Image

A redirect is a tool used by websites for “rerouting” or sending a visitor to an alternative webpage. An example of a redirect would be when you type “example.com” in your web-browser, but are taken to a different website, like “new-example.com.”

URL redirects are an extremely common practice employed by webmasters and content managers to ensure visitors to their website are reaching their desired content.

When would I use a redirect?

  1. A page has been relocated within your site
    Let’s say your website has a page by the path “/t-shirts” – The “t-shirts” page has been a part of your website sitemap for years, and is one of your most frequently visited pages. Suddenly, you need to build out a more general page on your site that has t-shirts, and dress shirts. Your goal is to have the new page be accessible by a shorter, more general path, like “/shirts”. In this situation, you would want to use a URL redirect to ensure that traffic for the page “/t-shirts” is successfully rerouted to the new “/shirts” page of your website. Without a redirect in place, you could run the risk of visitors still accessing the old /t-shirts page, even though you want to drive all traffic to the new /shirts page. Due to the nature of SEO, it’s possible that there are many links throughout the Internet that still point visitors to the old URL, and it is the job of the URL redirect to ensure visitors still make it to the appropriate page.
  2. Your domain name is changing!
    Changing a website’s domain name is a drastic decision which must be handled with the utmost care. Let’s say your website has always been www.abc-brand.com. Due to a rebranding effort, you are changing your brand from “ABC” to “XYZ”, and thus your website’s URL will need to be adjusted to reflect the change. In this scenario, it would be critical that you 301 redirect all traffic requesting “abc-brand.com” to the new and improved “xyz-brand.com”. Furthermore, you would want to ensure that all pages within the abc-brand website are also redirected, like abc-brand.com/my-page being redirected to xyx-brand.com/my-page
  3. You have alternative domains that you wish to serve as “shortcuts” into your website
    It is a common practice for businesses to buy dozens of domain names that:
  • Are spelled similarly to their business name – consider “gogle.com” that redirects to google.com
  • Are variations of their name that visitors may otherwise know them as – consider “joes-tees.com” that redirects to the main business website, “joes-shirts.com”
  • Are shortened, easily typed versions of the primary domain name – consider “shirtsale2019.com” redirecting to “joes-shirts.com”. It is common to find this shorter, more memorable URL variation on physical advertisements because people are more likely to remember them. As such, a URL redirect would be used to reroute the alternative domain name to your primary domain name of your website.

How does a redirect actually work?

When you request a web-page from your browser, there is a server somewhere on the Internet that is receiving your request and responding with the appropriate content. Fundamentally, a redirect occurs when a web-server's response contains a special piece of data (an HTTP response header) instructing the browser to reroute the visitor to an alternative location.

The technical details aside, a browser works by requesting a URL and rendering the page that is returned by the website. If the website wishes the user to be redirected, the server will respond differently than if it was serving a page; it will send an extra piece of data indicating that the visitor should be redirected to a specified location.

Without going into too much of the technical details – a redirect is a behavior performed by a web-browser whenever it receives a response containing a flag (an HTTP header) to do so.

What are the types of redirects available?

301 Redirect

Commonly referred to as a “permanent” redirect.

Indicates to search-engines and web-browsers that the requested page has permanently relocated to a new location.

Note: permanent redirects are often cached by web-browsers like Chrome and Firefox. Therefore, it may be tricky to retroactively update a 301 redirects target location once it has been established. Any visitors who have already received the 301 redirect response for a URL will likely be served a cached response from their web-browser when visiting the same URL again.

Suggestion Only use a 301 redirect when you know that the target location will not change.

Common Uses

  • A 301 redirect is appropriate when a website is changing it’s domain name. In this scenario, the site should be 301 redirecting all traffic for it’s old domain name to the new website URL.
  • Another common use-case for a 301 redirect is for pages within your website that have been permanently moved to a new URL

302 Redirect

Commonly referred to as a “temporary” redirect.

Useful for general-purpose redirects within your website, where you do not want visitor’s to cache the redirect response permanently.

Suggestion Use 302 redirects for pages that have changed URL, but are subject to be updated in the future

Common Uses

  • A page is temporarily being moved to a new URL
  • Conditions where the destination location of the redirect is subject to change
  • Navigating the user away from a page during an error

307 Redirect

Uncommon due to legacy browser support

Used for technical scenarios when a visitor’s HTTP request method should be persisted when they are redirected. For example, if a user submits a form, the browser normally issues a POST request to the form’s action URL. If the server responds with a 302 redirect response, the client’s web-browser would typically issue a GET request when handling the redirect. However, if the server responds with a 307 redirect response, the client’s web-browser will POST request to the redirect destination. Please note, form-data is typically lost when redirecting via POST request.

When do I need a redirect?

The most common use-cases that would require a redirect are:

  1. Changing your domain name
  2. Restructuring website pathing, resulting in URL changes for content within your website
  3. URL shortening – having a shorter, more memorable alternative to your primary domain name.
  4. Sending traffic from additional/alternative domain names (Example: gogle.com redirects to google.com)
  5. Sending traffic from your DNS zone apex / naked domain name to your “www” sub-domain (Example: domain.com 301 redirects to www.domain.com)

Important considerations when redirecting a URL

  1. Ensure your URL supports HTTPS connections! Otherwise you may have visitors who are receiving broken links.
  2. When redirecting a specific path within your website, you may want to match paths based on a pattern or Regular Expression, as opposed to a single path.
  3. Seriously consider whether you should use a 301 or a 302, based on the information above.

More and more higher education institutions are wising up to the merits of mobile technology on campus. Not only does it reach students where they’re most comfortable—their smartphone—but it’s adapted to modern lifestyles. 

In particular, QR codes have taken center stage in the last four years. These scannable black-and-white squares are highly flexible. Users can seamlessly transition from offline to online experiences, and they appeal to younger generations. Half of Gen Z and millennials use them at least once a week.

That’s why they’re increasingly popular at educational sites. Smart QR codes combine the power of personalization with the dynamism of updated destinations. To help you implement smart QR codes in your student outreach, here’s everything you need to know about how to use them on college campuses.

How smart QR codes optimize the user experience  

First, let’s explain what smart QR codes are. A smart QR code looks and scans like every other QR code, but stands out with these key features.

  • Targeting metrics for personalized outreach: Smart QR codes allow creators to implement various targeting metrics such as timezone, device language, user location, and more. These parameters direct users to web pages that resonate with their specific interests and behaviors.
  • Dynamic destination updates: Smart QR codes can direct users to different destinations depending upon the administrator’s input. This flexibility extends a QR code’s functionality since it can direct users to various relevant web pages over time. 
  • Trackable insights for attribution: Each scan of a smart QR code relays key metrics such as the time of day scanned, the referral source, country of origin, and device type. These insights allow administrators to learn more about their demographics—as well as measure the success of ongoing campaigns—so they can learn and make relevant changes for future ones.

These features integrate perfectly with the QR code’s growing popularity and relative ease of use. By optimizing the user experience, smart QR codes boost engagement, increase conversion rates, and deepen the relationship between end users. 

Ready to learn more? Here are five use cases for smart QR codes on campus. 

#1: Transitioning students from offline to online content

It’s no secret that college students love their phones: One study estimates the average college student spends eight to ten hours a day on their device. Colleges can lean into that trend by using smart QR codes to transition students from offline to online content. 

Simply install them in key locations such as outdoor landmarks and banners, or print them on relevant materials like flyers and admissions pamphlets. When users scan, they’ll receive information on the site of interest, the institution and its history, its admission process, or other pertinent knowledge. 

Dickinson College even runs a self-guided QR code tour. Each scan reveals different information on notable spots on campus. Users can access multimedia content such as videos, photo galleries, and links to learn more. 

#2: Bridging the language barrier between nations

When scanned, smart QR codes can pull up web pages in the preferred language of a user’s device. This feature is especially helpful for international students who don’t speak English as a first language but need to access essential information.

It’s easy to design this type of smart QR code. Administrators simply set that parameter in the online portal. When scanned, the smart QR code will relay the web page in the preferred language of a device’s browser. Administrators can also personalize a smart QR code to relay content specific to people from certain countries. 

This feature can be used for orientations, graduations, or any event where attendees speak different languages. That includes conferences that invite contributors from all over the world.

#3: Streamlining student events

Student events often require participants to fill out forms before, during, or after the event. In these instances, smart QR codes are helpful tools for organizing and gathering key information.

Administrators can create a smart QR code that directs people to a landing page with an intake form. Event participants scan the code, fill out the required information, and hit submit. Event organizers immediately receive their response. They also gain insights into key metrics such as when the smart QR code was scanned, where it was scanned, and how many people scanned it. This helps them understand participant behavior and organize future events.

While this feature can be used for anything, it’s especially beneficial with large events. Instead of having people wait in line to fill out a form, they can scan a smart QR code and submit the required information where and when it works best for them to do so.

#4: Expanding educational opportunities

Because students spend so much time on their phones, it only makes sense to incorporate smart QR codes into educational materials. Instructors can add QR codes to course syllabuses or install them in an easy-to-see place in the classroom. When scanned, students can access course materials online. 

This feature makes it easier for students to stay organized. It also creates more flexibility than traditional methods—such as printing and handing out papers—because smart QR codes are dynamic. That means the scanned destination can be changed over time. 

An instructor can update the smart QR code’s destination to reflect changes to course material. One week might educate students on the course syllabus; the next might include a homework assignment. The possibilities are both limitless and easy to implement. 

#5: Curating student life

Students live busy day-to-day lives. From the dining hall to the library, the dorm room to the student center, they are involved with many different activities. This makes it easy for them to lose track of things—including their student ID.

Many institutions require student ID to access key places on campus. But what if students could use their phones instead? This would simplify day-to-day activities and also allow administrators to gather key insights, thanks to the trackable metrics provided by a smart QR code.

Smart QR codes can also be installed in common areas to provide essential information. For instance, they can be placed next to dishes in the dining hall so that students with food allergies can scan and see a list of ingredients. Or, a QR code on a building entrance can list hours and special events so students stay informed. Once again, the options are endless.

SiteDetour makes it easy to integrate smart QR codes on campus. Our easy-to-use platform empowers you to design a smart QR code campaign in minutes. Users can implement 28 targeting metrics, such as time of day, device type, preferred language, and more to create targeted, personalized campaigns. This ensures that each campaign delivers relevant content to appropriate users, boosting engagement and conversion rates.

Want to learn more? Get started today with a demo or a free trial