How DTC Brands with Shopify Stores Can Ramp Up Coupon Marketing using QR Codes

60% of consumers love to receive digital coupons, according to Invesp’s report. 

Consumers always love a good deal, and you can further win them over using digital coupons accessible from their smartphones. According to a report done by DontPayFull, 79 percentage of shoppers would give their email address in exchange of a coupon code

DTC brands that sell their products via Shopify stores can do more to elevate their coupon marketing and increase long-term loyalty. Moreover, giving coupon codes on Shopify stores can help brands in customer retention and upselling. If you are starting on Shopify, Shopify page builder will help you create your dedicated Shopify store landing page

In terms of consumer appeal, a mobile-first approach such as incorporating QR Code technology is the way to go. 

Combining the power of digital coupons and QR Codes gives us coupon QR Codes. All the consumer needs to do is scan, retrieve the code, and redeem it on their next purchase. 

Integrating Uniqode’s QR Code generator with Shopify via Zapier is a gateway to automate and enhance your DTC brand’s coupon marketing strategy. 

Why digital coupon marketing needs to extend to the physical world

Shopify indeed provides discount codes that shoppers can use at the time of purchase. But what would a coupon QR Code on the product’s packaging do to add value to the online shopping experience? 

Firstly, having a QR Code on product packaging enhances consumer interactions with the product and adds a personalized touch.

Epsilon’s research indicates that 80% of consumers are more likely to purchase when a brand offers personalized experiences. 

The best time to let consumers avail of a coupon code is once they’ve derived the product’s value during use, and this only happens post-purchase. Not to mention that if they’re happy with the product, they’ll want to purchase it again, that too with a discount. This drives the number of repeated purchases for your DTC brand and increases brand loyalty.

While DTC brands can significantly leverage coupon QR Codes to facilitate repeat purchases, enhancing the post-purchase journey with valuable upsells is equally impactful. Some Shopify integrations like Useamp’s upsell product allow for seamless post-purchase upsells, encouraging customers to make more thoughtful decisions and increasing their lifetime value without disrupting the initial purchasing intent.

Method 1: Set up a digital coupon marketing workflow using Zapier (no developer required)

Here are six quick and easy steps to automatically create a dynamic QR Code for every new paid order in your Shopify store. 

Once a consumer has paid for a Shopify order, a unique landing page QR Code will be created in the Uniqode dashboard. This QR Code can be added to the product’s packaging or sent via email to the consumer. 

Upon scanning, the consumer will be able to access their coupon code from the dedicated landing page. 

Step 1: Create a Zapier Account

If you don’t have a Zapier account, sign up using your email address or Facebook account. 

Please note that you’ll need to be on the Premium plan on Zapier to create this workflow. 

Step 2: Connect Uniqode to your Zapier account

Lo Zapier. This is where you’ll find your API Key and Organization ID, which is required to connect your Uniqode account with Zapier.

Click on ‘Add Uniqode to Zapier’. You’ll be redirected to the following page. Click on ’Accept Invite & Build a Zap’. 

Step 3: Create a landing page in Uniqode

Before we make a Zap in Zapier, you’ll need to create a landing page in the Uniqode dashboard. This is required for the QR Code landing page campaign type. 

Go back to your Uniqode account and go to Campaign Landing Pages. Click +Create to create a new landing page.

Select one of the predefined landing page templates or create your own custom template. 

Give your landing page a suitable name and proceed with writing the relevant content, as seen below. 

Next, design your landing page by either selecting one of the public themes or create a custom theme. Under the Customize tab, you can add your own CSS. 

Click Save once you’re done. Your landing page is now ready. 

Step 4: Create a Zap

Go back to your Zapier account and click on ‘Make a New Zap’. 

Select a Trigger

1. Choose App and Event – Shopify and New Paid Order.
2. Choose Account – Select your Shopify account.
3. Set up trigger – Select ‘Paid’ for the Payment status.
4. Test your trigger.

Select an Action

1. Choose App and Event – Uniqode and Create Dynamic QR Code.
2. Choose Account – Select your Uniqode account.
3. Set up action – Fill in the required fields (QR Code Name, Color, Margin, Campaign Type – Landing Page, Select Landing Page).
4. Test action to see if your Zap works.

Step 5: Turn your Zap on

It’s now time to turn your Zap on and activate your workflow. This is a vital step because your QR Codes won’t generate if your Zap isn’t on. 

Once your Zap is on, for every new paid order in Shopify, a landing page QR Code will be created in the Uniqode dashboard.

Step 6: Add QR Code to shipment

Print the QR Codes as stickers and paste them on the product shipment. Once the consumer scans it, they’ll be able to access the coupon code for future purchases. 

Method 2: Create coupon QR Codes automatically using QR Code API (requires a developer)

Besides the Zapier integration, you can also use Uniqode’s QR Code API to carry out this workflow. 

For every new paid Shopify order, you can use the QR Code API to create a unique coupon QR Code. You’ll need the help of a developer to carry out the following steps.

Step 1: Set up a webhook in Shopify

Create a webhook using the Shopify API. 

When the ‘financial_status’ of the Shopify order changes to ‘paid’, this event will trigger a cURL request using the QR Code API to create a unique coupon QR Code. 

Step 2: Download coupon QR Code

Once your coupon QR Code is created, you’ll receive a cURL response that contains details such as the ID of your QR Code. 

To download your coupon QR Code, you’ll need to send a cURL request passing the QR Code ID along with the specified image format in the request URL. 

In the cURL response, you’ll receive a URL for downloading the coupon QR Code.

If no format is specified, you’ll receive URLs to download your QR Code in all five available formats – PNG, JPG, SVG, PDF, and EPS. 

For more information, you can check out the QR Code API documentation. 

3 benefits of Uniqode’s Zapier integration for DTC brands

#1. Access to first-party data

Integrating Uniqode with Shopify using Zapier lets you acquire first-party data such as the number of QR Code scans, locations, and devices used. 

To run an in-depth analysis of your QR Code campaigns and collect more data from consumers, integrate your Uniqode account with Google Analytics. You’ll attain details such as the number of website visitors, the browsers used, visitor demographics, and so much more. 

The valuable data obtained helps you track and assess your coupon marketing campaign’s performance. Based on this, you can make the necessary modifications to your campaign to yield the best results. 

You can generate reports for your QR Code campaigns daily, weekly, monthly, or based on a custom range. You can export the same in XLS and share it with the relevant stakeholders.  

You can also use the first-party data for retargeting bounced website visitors using Facebook or Google Ads. 

#2. Automation to increase action-efficiency

Automating your recurring workflows gets rid of manual efforts. With the Zapier integration, you can create and update dynamic coupon QR Codes seamlessly based on specific trigger events. This prevents you from switching between multiple platforms and eliminates the hassle of redistributing updated QR Codes. 

#3. No coding required

There is zero coding involved in integrating Uniqode with Shopify using Zapier. You don’t need to be a coding expert to set up Zaps. You can easily create the workflows you need and increase productivity significantly. 

Uniqode’s Zapier integration is suitable for automating DTC marketing campaigns

Uniqode’s Zapier integration adds more functionality to your DTC marketing campaigns. Besides coupon marketing, you can execute multiple projects simultaneously and streamline your workflows. 

Suited for every business requirement, leverage the Zapier integration for your DTC brand. Generate QR Codes within seconds, attain the relevant data to monitor campaign performance, and make an impact with consumers.