Background

Earlier this month we operated on ourselves by hosting a group art show in our studio and assigning Stickybits barcodes to every piece of work. This allowed anyone with a smartphone and the free app to scan a barcode next to the image and then be entered into a micro forum of comments and rich-media segments provided by both the artist and the general public. You can simulate the experience by scanning the codes below (or by clicking on the artwork images).

Our take-aways from the experiment include a deeper understanding of user engagement patterns and a reinforcement of beliefs regarding user-generated content (UGC) and public behaviors. While it is understood that the large majority of people using online social networks are primarily onlookers with a very small number of people actually contributing comments, and even fewer creating original content …a recent Forrester report even suggests a decline in the creation of content for some regions.

Findings

The tenfour art show had a rather high barrier of entry to just access the digital threads of conversation on the Stickybits forums.

1. own a smartphone
2. have the ability to locate/download app
3. sign up manually or authenticate with Facebook Connect
4. launch the app
5. scan the code
6. browse content

Only after these steps were completed could an enthusiastic fan begin to comment on the work or others’ comments. We were confident that the targeted crowd would connect – and they did. The typical 5-10% of the crowd that uploaded original content (such as an audio note, a photograph, or a video) was reflected in the found measurement and analytics.

These results are consistent with other online participation rates; we estimate that 400-500 visitors attended opening night. Physical access to some of the art was limited at times by the crowds and we found that pieces within the main entry area were the most likely to get scanned. This is likely a combination of merchandising placement and tenfour staff sharing the concept with attendees as they entered the building.

Business Applications

Using Stickybits was a good fit for our goals of creating social spaces for artists and their fans to converse. That said, there are other ways to orchestrate similar experiences with less complexity. We have worked with many B2B and B2C clients to strategize creative ways of using mobile technologies (native apps, QR Codes, SnapTags, and [lowest common denominator] SMS text) to bridge and port offline experiences into measurable online engagements. When choosing a route, it’s critical to assess technographics (the audience’s familiarity with various technologies and preferences), motivations, and residual value that the interaction will provide to both them and your business (yes, in that order).

Reach out if you would like to hear more or discuss an idea you have in mind.

.dtwood

### please browse and support the artists below###

Works by Ryan Birkland

Works by Brandon Flores

Work by Spencer Gentz

Works by Shyama Helin

Works by Ashley Montague

Works by Dan Ness