QR Code for Interactive Promotion of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
As one of tourist destinations, Bandung has many excellent tourism objects. Some excellent tourism objects among them are traditional snacks, handicrafts for souvenirs, as well as traditional and modern cultural tourism spots. Therefore, it is unavoidable that the UMKM grows rapidly with its various kinds of products in this city.
Unfortunately, the UMKM in Bandung still have some weaknesses in facing the global product competitions. The global product competitions have been started in the UMKM level along with the beginning of the Asian conomic Community (Masyarakat Ekonomi Asia, MEA). That is why, due to the existence of MEA, the UMKM should set not only regional or national markets but also the international markets as the target. However, the lack of human resource development and some other factors hinder the UMKM to prepare everything in facing this competition.
To reach a wider market target, the UMKM needs to do a more intense, systematic, and interactive promotion. However, because of some obstacles, the UMKM have not been able to conduct that kind of promotion. That is why promotion is one of the aspects that should be improved in UMKM and it is chosen as this research topic which will be conducted in two years.
Since 2000, Indonesia, especially in some urban areas, has been affected by the internet. The internet is also used by a number of UMKM to promote their products in addition to promoting conventionally. Some social media connected to the internet are used as the promotion tools, such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and many others. However, although these online promotional media are interactive, they have not been used systematically and integratedly.
This study strives to help UMKM in improving its product promotion competence through QR Code technology which is connected to the UMKM website and the product itself. It is expected to be an integrated UMKM promotional media through the use of QR Code technology that is attached to the UMKM packaging products. The QR Code attached to the packaging product is able to be captured directly to connect to the advertisement video describing the product on its website. The reason for choosing the QR Code as a solution to create a wider market target is due to the inability of some UMKM to make a product packaging which describes the product vividly on the package.
After conducting a survey to 80 UMKM, 3 UMKM have been selected with distinctive Bandung products; those are Cilok Pasundan, Kue Sagon, and traditional bamboo toy maker. The reasons for choosing these three UMKM were because those are durable products, Bandung typical products, as well as those are the UMKM with well-prepared technology, such as having their own website. This study is conducted to assist the government, especially in Bandung, in improving the quality of UMKM to be more sophisticated. Therefore, the UMKM roducts are expected to be expanded through the creation of the video advertising that is stored on the website in the form of QR Code.
QR Code stands for Quick Response Code in the form of a two-dimensional matrix that has the ability to store data. QR Code is an evolution of bar-code which is a symbol of the marking of real objects and it is made of black and white bars pattern for easy recognition by computer. QR Code itself can store data much larger than the bar-code. The use of QR Code has increased along with the increase of smartphone users.
In Indonesia, the use of QR Code has been spearheaded by Harian Kompas which is always put the QR Code that can be scanned to read more news connected to Kompas website. In addition, it also has been used by the Indonesian Council of Religious Scholars (Majelis Ulama Indonesia, MUI) for the service application on finding the halal restaurant for consumers.
Currently, the research is still on process and has just produced the video advertising for the three predefined UMKM products. The creation of QR Code and its website are also still in the process. In the meantime, the video advertising that has been created for those three UMKM can be used to promote their products through some social media or on their own websites. The Intellectual Property Rights (Hak Kekayaan Intelektual, HKI) of the videos has been registered as the property of School of Communications and Business, Telkom University.
This study is becoming a pilot project for the three chosen UMKM in Bandung. Its products are described through a video advertising, then stored in the form of QR Code attached in the product package. If the QR Code on the package is scanned, the UMKM website is being connected to show the video advertising promoting the product as well as the UMKM profile in detail. Therefore, it is unavoidable that in the future there will come an easiness of ordering a product directly through the website for consumers and resellers.
This QR Code can create an integrated e-commerce system that contributes to a significant impact for the UMKM. The creation of the integrated e-commerce system further will be the estuary of research on developing the UMKM promotion through the use of QR Code technology.
Although it was initially estimated that this study would last for two years from 2016, the preparation of product promotion using QR Code technology to become an integrated e-commerce system is estimated to take five years to complete. One of the challenges faced by the researcher during the process was doing a coordination with the UMKM. The reason was that the workers from the 80 UMKM with various products did not work in an office hour system. This is quite difficult for the researcher to conduct a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) to find out the content of the video advertising needed by the UMKM itself.
As the promotion by the UMKM so far was conducted conventionally or through online and has not been integrated (one to one), that is no wonder that mostly, the UMKM respond positively to the use of QR Code technology in promoting their products.
In addition to creating a video advertising, the researcher team also gives assistance to the UMKM, especially regarding a more effective product marketing. After the research, the changes happen, there is an increase in the sale and a strengthening of the brand. Based on the FGD result conducted at the beginning of the research, that mostly UMKM are still weak in terms of product development and promotion, such as the inability of making a good packaging design and an integrated promotion.
Because there are still many UMKM workers who are too focused on the production process, therefore the assistance on the product marketing is still becoming a focus of the research. The number of consumers who want to be resellers is rising time to time, thus the assistance process focuses on connecting the UMKM, and its products, with the consumers or resellers.
One of many ways to connect the UMKM products with the consumers or resellers is through the use of QR Code technology that can be scanned in order to be connected directly to its website. They can do a window shopping or make an order from this website. The video advertising currently is still in the form of product or brand description. Further, the content of the video will be able to be developed based on necessary. Another reason for using the QR Code as the UMKM promotional media is that the QR Code visual has been known anywhere that it will not cause any harm even though with different languages.
Excerpted from a research by Ade Irma Susanty, Ph.D.; Idola Perdini Putri, S.Sos., M.Si; Iis Kurnia, S.S., M.Hum; Dini Salmiyah Fithrah Ali, S.S., M.Si; and Indra Novianto A. Pamungkas, S.S., M.Si. entitled “the Study of the Development of Promotional Video using QR Code Technology as Interactive Promotional Media to the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (Usaha Mikro, Kecil, dan Menengah, UMKM) in Bandung”
