Alec Bradley Cigars Adds QR Codes to Marketing Mix

in their advertising and point‐of‐sale material, Alec Bradley Cigars, the makers of such highly‐rated cigars as Tempus, Prensado and Family Blend, is the first company in the cigar industry to add this powerful new tool to their marketing efforts.

These 2 dimensional, state‐of‐the‐art barcodes will allow consumers who own mobile devices with QR code readers to link to more information about Alec Bradley cigars, accessories, swag, promotions and more ‐ instantly. QR codes, (internet‐speak for Quick Response) are used to take a piece of information from a variety of media and connect to it via the camera in mobile phones. The media can be anything from website links, to text, photos, videos and more. Their primary advantage over regular bar codes is that they can store exponentially more data.  Alec Bradley Cigars is using QR codes in their ads, shelf talkers, T‐shirts, and other merchandise, giving mobile device users the ability to go directly to their website in seconds.

For example, a consumer can scan the QR code on a shelf talker in a cigar store or other retail location. The code takes them to a link where they can then see key details about that particular line. To accomplish this, Alec Bradley has created a mobile‐optimized site for their Select Cabinet Reserve (SCR), Family Blend, and Prensado selections. Other lines will be added. "We've always paid great attention to detail when creating cigars,” said Alec Bradley Cigars president, Alan Rubin. "In applying the same kind of detail to our advertising and point of sale material, we've seen a very positive response to the technology.  In a very traditional industry, it is important to see how technology can be a powerful tool to enhance our customers’ experience, and this is only the beginning.”

To take advantage of Alec Bradley's new QR code scanning capability, a mobile device user must have a QR code reader on their mobile device's camera.  For more information visit http://www.alecbradley.com.