How to change inventory tracking and management in QR code?

QR code is what you often use in products, menus and marketing Material. These two-dimensional codes are revolutionizing the way you get work, access information, and more. The key areas where they perform well are inventory management and tracking. In this blog post, you will learn about the impact of QR (Quick Response) code on business inventory tracking and management.

Inventory Tracking Challenge Before QR Code

Managing inventory has always been a crucial but challenging task for businesses, especially small businesses. Prior to 1950, they were used to manually track and manage inventory.

In 1952, two students from Drexel University invented the barcode (source).

This invention was very big and was quickly adopted by supermarkets at that time. They started using it to track their products. At the beginning of the day, it proved that barcodes are very beneficial and are still used in today’s market. But as time goes by, people begin to face limited difficulties.

For example, a barcode (1D) can hold limited information, mostly less than 100 characters (source). Apart from that, they also need precise alignment to scan. A little distortion in the code failed to scan.

But then QR (2D barcode) was invented in 1994 by Masahiro Hara and Takayuki Nagaya of Denso Wave (source). This is where the world of inventory tracking and management begins to change.

How does QR code simplify inventory tracking?

QR codes simplify inventory-related tasks by eliminating the limitations of 1D barcodes. This is their change.

1. Store more information

Unlike barcodes, QR codes can have more information. You can easily embed items, such as:

• text
• Number value
• URL
• image
• video

As mentioned earlier, the barcode can hold less than 100 characters of information. But the quick response code has much more information than that. Here are the limitations of the data they can store easily (source).

• Number characters – up to 7089
• alpha numeric characters – up to 4289
• Binary characters – up to 2953
• Chinese Character Characters- Until 1817

2. Faster and easier to scan

Unlike 1D barcodes, these 2D barcodes do not require perfect alignment. Also, there is no need to read their special scanning devices. You can scan the QR code to access internally embedded information using any smartphone.

Also, if the simple 1D barcode is corrupted, it cannot be scanned. However, in fast response code, do you need not worry about whether the code is partially corrupted. They can still scan and access information.

3. Reduce errors

QR code minimizes errors in inventory management by automating various tasks. They provide real-time updates and allow quick and easy access to information. This helps save valuable time for employees.

We have seen that when businesses switch to QR code for inventory tracking, they report a lot of time. Instead of spending hours recording inventory, you can redirect that time to growing your business.

How do enterprises implement rapid response (QR) code?

Any business that wants to integrate fast response code into its inventory tasks, i.e. management and tracking, needs to follow some basic steps. To make your implementation process easy, below, we organize these small steps into sequence.

1. Assess your needs

First draw the inventory workflow. Identify what you want to track, i.e., IE, products, raw materials, etc. Next, look for software that is compatible with QR code features, e.g. SquareUp for retail or Inventory Used for tracking.

2. Get QR code generator

Next, you need a QR code generator that will let you embed information, IE, product name, code, etc. in your code. Don’t worry about payment. Simply put, use Imagetotext.info’s QR code generator, Because it’s completely free and unlimited.

To use the tool to generate code, just follow the steps listed below.

1. Once landing on the tool, first select options between URL, text, email, etc. according to your needs.
2. Next, select the type of frame you are interested in from the sidebar.
3. Align the colors or add the business logo if you want to personalize it.
4. Finally, click the Download button.

This is how easy it is to generate code.

3. Make sure the code works properly

The last step before adding code in your inventory management software is to make sure they work properly. To do this, you need one QR code scanner, It is also available as a free tool on Imagetotext.info.

To check if your code is working properly, consider uploading it to a tool or scanning with your smartphone. After scanning, if the tool has no errors and displays information in the output box (in the image below), it means your 2D code is working properly.

Once you make sure that you work, add them to the software and resume routines. Soon, you will begin to feel that they add positive changes to inventory tracking and management.

Bottom line

QR codes are revolutionizing the way small businesses handle inventory tracking. From reducing errors to saving time, these small squares will be inefficient.

If you still rely on outdated methods, now is the time to move. Using easy-to-use tools, adopting QR codes is no longer just an option. This is an opportunity for future business.

So, test the waters and see how some strategically placed squares change your inventory management.