Segerstrom Center for the Arts showcases a wide variety of major national and international music, dance, and theater productions for the people of Southern California.

The Center presents a broad range of programming each season for audiences of all ages, including international ballet and dance, national tours of top Broadway shows, intimate performances of jazz and cabaret, contemporary artists, classical music performed by renowned chamber orchestras and ensembles, family-friendly programming, free performances open to the public from outdoor movie screenings to dancing on the plaza, and many other special events.

Social Media for the Arts

They’ve done a phenomenal job of keeping fans up-to-date via social media: Their Facebook page has over 17,000 fans; their Twitter account has over 3,000 followers; their YouTube channel has nearly 300,000 total upload views; their Flickr account has over 90 sets of photos; and their blog boasts regular behind-the-scenes insight to show rehearsals and more.

As a subscriber, I recently received their latest brochure in the mail with information on the upcoming season.

What caught my attention as I first started flipping through was the inclusion of QR Codes throughout. I hadn’t seen them used this way before and found it fascinating that a venue of this magnitude would recognize the value of QR codes in mobile marketing.

How to Use QR Codes

QR Codes are basically barcodes that people can scan easily with their cellphones. They’re typically square and take users to a specific website you choose. Many mobile apps can scan QR Codes, including free options. As soon as you open the app, it detects whether it’s looking at a QR Code and begins reading it. The purpose is to simplify visiting a website from a mobile device.

Rather than opening a browser and finding the desired website, a user can scan the barcode and be taken directly to a relevant page. For the arts venue, clicking the corresponding codes takes you to a YouTube channel featuring a trailer for the corresponding show or performance.

This is awesome because fans can learn more about artists they may not know and/or get a sample of a Broadway show they may be considering. Because it’s a printed brochure, people may not be sitting at their computers while sifting through it, and thus being able to grab their phone (rather than the computer) and swiftly scan the code simplifies the “research” process.

Have you seen any other venues using QR Codes in creative ways?