Your app is live, and you want the people who walk into your shop or come to your event to install it. A QR code does that job well. Printing two of them, one per store, does it badly: people hesitate, and some give up.
The short version
One QR code can send iPhone users to the App Store and Android users to Google Play. Here is how it works, where to print it and what to test first.
A universal QR code holds a single web address. When someone scans it, that address checks which phone they use and opens the right store. You print one code, everywhere, and your app is one scan away for everyone.
Why one code beats two
Two codes side by side ask people to make a choice before they act, and some will pick the wrong store. One code removes that step. It also takes half the space on a menu or a flyer, and it stays the same on all your printed material, so you only design it once.
How does a universal QR code work?
The code itself only contains a link. The work happens when the link opens:
- On an iPhone or an iPad, the link redirects to your app's page on the App Store.
- On an Android phone, it redirects to your app's page on Google Play.
Any other device, a computer included, goes to the App Store page: the link only checks whether the device runs Android. An Android phone without Google Play is sent to Google Play all the same. If some of your customers use such phones, print your web app's address next to the code.
That is why the code is only useful once your app is published: the store pages it points to must be live. If your app is only on one of the two stores, the code sends everyone to that store, whatever their phone. iPhones read QR codes straight from the Camera app, as Apple's guide shows. Most Android phones read them from the camera, and the others from Google Lens, so most people don't need a scanner app.
How to get yours with GoodBarber
GoodBarber generates the code for you, in Publish > Promote > QR code. You choose between one code per platform and a universal code that sends each user to the right store, then pick a size and download the image or copy its HTML code for your website. The universal code points to an address on your app's domain: if you change that domain, generate a new code and replace the printed ones.
The Promote tools switch on once your app is live. Two things must be done first:
- Your app is marked as published, in Publish > Android App or iOS App > Versions.
- Its store addresses are filled in, in Publish > Android App or iOS App > Store URL.
The same menu holds the other ways to send people to the stores: download buttons with the official store badges and a widget for your website, sharing on social networks, and a pop-up that invites users to rate the app. Our help article walks through each of them.
Where to put your QR code
| Where | Why it works |
|---|---|
| Shop window and counter | People waiting have their phone in hand |
| Restaurant menus and tables | Ordering, loyalty or the next event, one scan away |
| Event posters, badges and screens | Attendees install the app before the program starts |
| Flyers, packaging and receipts | The code travels home with your customers |
| Your website, on computers | Visitors on a laptop scan it with their phone |
| Slides at a talk or a training | The whole room installs the app at once |
Add one line next to the code that says what people get: “Scan to get our app: menu, orders and loyalty card”. A code with no reason to scan it gets ignored. Once people scan it, your store page takes over, and its screenshots do the rest of the convincing.
Before you print
- Scan it with an iPhone and an Android phone. Each must land on the right store page.
- Print a proof at the final size, and scan it from where people will be, across a counter or in front of a poster.
- Keep a white margin around the code, at least four of the code's small squares wide, and dark on light colors. Readers need contrast and a quiet border to find the code.
- Put the official store badges next to it, following the size, order and spacing rules in Apple's marketing guidelines and on Google's badge page. Use the “Download on the App Store” badge, never the Apple logo. Apple's guidelines don't permit the App Store badge on food-industry disposable packaging or promotions, such as takeaway bags or cups: there, print the QR code with your own call to action.
- Wait until both store pages are live. A code printed before publication leads nowhere: check how long store review takes before you book the printer.
On your website, show a banner to mobile visitors
A QR code serves people who are not on their phone yet. Someone who opens your website on a phone is already there, so a QR code is useless to them: show them a download button or a banner instead. GoodBarber can show a Smart App Banner on your app's web version once the app is published and the web version rebuilt: when the site is opened on a phone, it suggests downloading the app from the store. On Android, the banner also requires a 512 by 512 pixel Apple Touch Icon in your back office, added before the rebuild. On another website, Apple's banner needs one meta tag, apple-itunes-app, in the page's head. Keep the QR code for visitors on a computer.
FAQ
Can one QR code work for both iPhone and Android?
Yes. A universal QR code contains a single link that checks the phone and opens the App Store on an iPhone or Google Play on an Android phone. An Android phone without Google Play is sent to Google Play too.
Can I create the QR code before my app is published?
Not with GoodBarber: the Promote tools switch on once the app is published and its store addresses are filled in. A code made elsewhere before launch leads nowhere until both store pages are live.
Does the iPhone camera read QR codes?
Yes. The Camera app reads them without any extra app. Most Android phones read them from the camera, the others from Google Lens.
Do I need a QR code generator?
Not with GoodBarber: the QR code is generated in Publish > Promote > QR code, as an image or as HTML code. Elsewhere, choose a generator that can redirect each phone to its own store.
Should I put a QR code on my website?
Yes, for visitors on a computer, who scan it with their phone. Visitors already on a phone should see a download button or a banner instead.
Print once, reach every phone
The universal QR code and the store badges are in the Promote menu of your GoodBarber back office, and the Smart App Banner can appear on your app's web version once the app is published. Start your app with the 30-day free trial, no credit card required.