Coca-Cola Launches Its First U.S. QR Code Program

Millions of Coca-Cola cups circulating this month will sport QR codes for a program that supports the brand’s holiday mascot, the polar bear.

The brand is partnering with the World Wildlife Fund for the initiative, which aims to help conserve the polar bear’s Arctic habitat. Consumers who scan the codes, which appear on cups distributed by 7-Eleven, will download a Snowball Effect by Coca-Cola app for the iPhone and iPad platforms that turns into a Facebook-connected, snowball-throwing game. Those who generate the most points in the game will win prizes including iPads (80 total will be given out) and a trip to the Arctic for two. The program runs through March.

The app also leads to a site where consumers can donate to the WWF’s cause. Coca-Cola will match each $1 donation up to $1 million (it also donated an additional $2 million). The brand’s association with polar bears goes back to 1922, when Coke first used one in a French holiday ad.

Though Coke has run other QR code programs in Japan and Germany, this is the first time the brand has executed one in the U.S., says Peter Callaro, group director of integrated marketing content at Coca-Cola. The company worked with Scanbuy, which ran a QR code program for Taco Bell in August. Mike Wehrs, president and CEO of Scanbuy, says creating readable codes on cups is a challenge.

“Rounded with condensation running down it is incredibly difficult,” he says, noting that Coca-Cola wanted a QR code solution that would “work across the board.”

Callaro says a QR Code program using cans may be next. “We’ve started to look into it,” he says. “It’s a very involved process.”

Coca-Cola Launches Its First U.S. QR Code Program