HarperCollins Publishers and Melbourne-based mobile marketing firm QMCODES have launched a mobile marketing tool to close the gap between the print and digital worlds. The initiative, which is being piloted with new releases L.A. Candy and The Amanda Project, plus the paperback release of best-seller Freakonomics leverages 2D (Quick Response or QR) barcodes, mobile websites, social networking features, mobile video and SMS. HarperCollins says it is designed to enable the publisher to connect directly with their increasingly mobile-savvy readers.
The promotion kicks off in the US, Canada, and Australia, with L.A. Candy, by Lauren Conrad, which goes on sale on 16 June. To access the L.A. Candy content, users download a barcode reader from http://m.harpercollins.com to their phone and scan the 2D barcode with their phone's camera. The codes will be located on the back of book jackets and on marketing materials, and will link to a mobile site with exclusive content about the author and the book. Fans can access a video featuring Conrad, read a Q&A with the author, or share the new site with their friends via SMS. The site can also be accessed directly from a mobile device at http://lacandy.mobi/pr
We are excited about the potential of 2D barcodes for the teen market, says Susan Katz, President and Publisher of HarperCollins Children's Books. Teens use their mobile phones for everything from texting to updating their Facebook pages; this is one more way we can offer them content to share with their friends. HarperCollins is committed to reaching readers where they are, regardless of the device or platform, and a mobile marketing platform is a natural next step.
Working with QMCODES, HarperCollins will create a dedicated mobile website for each book in the pilot program. The code for the paperback version of Freakonomics, on sale August 25, will include exclusive content related to the book and to the autumn  publication of its follow-up title, Superfreakonomics. Additionally, HarperTeen's The Amanda Project, a collaborative, interactive series that is both printed book and online adventure, will incorporate the codes to further extend the experience.