How To Generate QR Codes for FREE | Canva.com
QR Codes are popping up everywhere! From restaurant menus to promo codes on billboards, to vaccine passports, you won’t get very far without seeing one.
QR (quick response) codes are pixel-filled, two dimensional squares that can be printed on just about anything. Static QR codes can contain contact information, a website’s url, your wifi network password, or a promo code for an upcoming sale. Dynamic QR codes link to an online landing page, or website, where the information can change and be updated indefinitely.
QR codes can be read by any smartphone. Most phones have a QR reader built into their camera. The user points their camera at the code, and the phone navigates to the embedded url, or adds the information to it’s contact list, or performs whatever other action is needed to utilize the information contained within the QR code.
If a smartphone doesn’t have this functionality built in, it’s easy enough for a user to download a free app to do the same thing. That’s what makes QR codes so versatile.
Using QR Codes for Church Ministry
The number of ways that you can use QR codes for ministry are limited only by your imagination. Here are a few ways we’ve put them to use:
– Scan to Check In for Contact Tracing (QR code contains name and phone number)
– Scan to listen to audio clips describing the story of Easter at the stations on our outdoor Easter walking path (url directs to a podcast episode)
– Scan to download the Bible (url directs to a pdf Bible stored in a Google Drive folder)
– Scan to Sign up for a Group (url directs to a Google Form)
How to Generate Simple, Static QR Codes for Free
As complex as they may look, static QR codes generators abound online, and are generally free. My favourite way to generate codes is by using Canva.com.
1. Create a free account at Canva.com and Log In.
2. Click Create a Design, and select Instagram Post.
3. Click More on the right hand side of the screen.
4. Scroll down until you see QR Code.
5. The field that appears will say URL, however, you can type anything into this field, whether it’s a url, phone number, promo code, or whatever. Please note – for more complex QR codes (like wifi passwords or contact cards), use https://www.qrcode-monkey.com. It is still free, and has more options for the type of QR code.
6. Click Generate Code.
7. Download your QR code in whatever format you prefer, and use it as you like!
That’s all there is to it!
If you’d like to see one of the ways that we use QR codes in action, watch this video:
How would you like to see QR codes utilized in your church or ministry?
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