Missing Links: Social Promos With Nothing to Click On
Links made the web great, so why are they missing from so many social posts where the person posting clearly has a book, or an event, or a course, or a product to promote? The category of post I'm thinking of may include a QR code or a lovingly crafted promo "poster" (sometimes with a URL embedded in the image) but not a simple link for me to click on if I'm interested?
Is not the point to make it as easy as possible for people to do the "right thing" by reading your article, signing up for your event, or considering your product?
How helpful is a QR code?
The QR codes mystify me as much as anything. To me, a QR code makes perfect sense as a way to direct someone to a URL without making them type in the address, particularly when conveying that message in a different medium such as print or TV. Wave your phone's camera at a QR code and get directed to the right address for the promotion, or the registration form, or the restaurant menu. I'm reasonably technical, but I don't know how to extract the URL from a QR code that pops up as an image in a social message stream on my web browser or my phone. It's not immediately obvious. I'm told there is a way to do it, but wouldn't it be simpler to include a link -- in addition to the QR code, if not instead of it.
Missing Zoom links
A variation on this puzzle is the webinar / online event promo that includes the Zoom meeting ID and passcode as text embedded in an image. The experienced Zoom user knows they can go to the Zoom website and enter those coordinates, but how helpful is it to make them retype that information when it could be included in the text of the post? Better yet, why not include the Zoom meeting link in the text of the post?
Legitimate issues: preview images and screen real estate
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