Why Do Consumers Scan One Product but Ignore Another?
A QR code is easy to print on a product. Getting someone to scan it is a different challenge.
Walk down a supermarket aisle and you will see packaging covered in messages, product claims, promotional offers and digital codes. Yet consumers do not interact with every code they encounter. Some catch their attention, while others go unnoticed.
Why?
The answer goes beyond the technology itself. Consumers make decisions based on what they notice, what interests them, what they trust and what they expect to gain from an interaction.
This is where psychology, design and connected packaging come together.
In its webinar, The Psychology Behind the Scan: How Design, Behaviour and AI Drive Connected Packaging Success, Appetite Creative brought together three perspectives on the question of what motivates consumers to scan: behavioural science, packaging design and connected packaging technology.
Featuring Patrick Fagan, Co-founder and Chief Science Officer at Capuchin Behavioural Science; Christel Morival An, CEO of LAMARQ International DMCC; and Jenny Stanley, Founder and Managing Director of Appetite Creative, the discussion explored how brands can turn a simple scan into a more meaningful consumer experience.
The central challenge for brands is not simply making QR codes available. It is giving consumers a compelling reason to use them.
1. Consumer Psychology: Give People a Reason to Scan
Before a consumer scans a QR code, they make a quick decision: is this worth their time?
That decision may happen almost automatically. A clear offer, an intriguing message or a relevant piece of information can encourage someone to interact. A code without an obvious purpose may be ignored.
For connected packaging to work effectively, brands need to understand the motivations behind consumer behaviour.
Curiosity creates the first opportunity
People are naturally interested in discovering something new, particularly when the potential reward is relevant to them.
Packaging can use this curiosity to introduce digital experiences that go beyond the information printed on the label.
For example, a food brand could invite consumers to discover a recipe, explore the origin of an ingredient or unlock a limited-time experience. A beauty brand might offer a personalised product routine or a tutorial tailored to a particular product.
The key is to make the invitation specific enough that consumers understand why scanning could be worthwhile.
A generic instruction such as “Scan here” communicates an action, but not its value.
A message such as “Scan for recipes inspired by this product” gives consumers a clearer reason to continue.
Rewards can encourage participation
Promotions, competitions, loyalty benefits and exclusive content can all provide incentives to scan.
However, the reward must be appropriate for the audience and the product. An experience that appeals to one consumer group may have little relevance to another.
Brands should therefore consider what their customers genuinely value before designing an incentive.
The objective is not simply to generate as many scans as possible. It is to attract meaningful participation and create an experience that reflects the brand.
Relevance matters more than novelty alone
An unexpected digital experience may attract initial attention, but novelty does not guarantee continued engagement.
Consumers are more likely to find value in an interaction when it relates to the product they have purchased, their interests or the situation in which they are using it.
Connected packaging gives brands an opportunity to make that interaction relevant to the moment. The digital experience can extend the product’s usefulness rather than interrupt the consumer journey.
2. Packaging Design: Capture Attention Before the Scan
The decision to scan often begins before a consumer picks up a product.
Packaging communicates through colour, typography, imagery, layout and messaging. These elements influence what people notice and how they interpret the product.
A QR code must work within this visual environment.
Make the call to action clear
A QR code should not be treated as a standalone feature that automatically attracts attention.
Its placement, surrounding message and relationship with the overall design all matter. If the code is difficult to find or its purpose is unclear, consumers may have little motivation to interact.
Effective packaging design gives the QR code a clear role without allowing it to overwhelm the product’s visual identity.
The accompanying call to action should explain what happens after the scan. Consumers should not have to guess whether they will receive product information, enter a competition or access a digital experience.
Build trust through clear communication
Scanning a code takes consumers from a physical product to a digital destination. That transition introduces questions about safety, relevance and privacy.
Consumers may hesitate if they do not recognise the destination or understand what they are being asked to do.
Brands can reduce uncertainty by communicating the purpose of the experience clearly, using recognisable branding and ensuring that the destination delivers on the promise made on the pack.
If registration is required, explain why. If personal information is requested, be transparent about its purpose and handling.
Trust is not an optional addition to connected packaging. It is part of the experience itself.
3. Connected Packaging: Turn a Scan into an Experience
Connected packaging uses technologies such as QR codes and NFC to link physical products to digital content and interactive experiences.
Instead of limiting communication to what fits on a label or carton, brands can provide additional information and engagement opportunities through a consumer’s mobile device.
This creates possibilities across the customer journey.
Extend product information
Consumers may want more detail than the packaging can reasonably accommodate.
A scan can provide access to product information, usage instructions, ingredient details, recipes, sustainability information or relevant educational content.
The experience should answer questions consumers actually have rather than simply repeat the information already visible on the pack.
Create interactive experiences
Connected packaging can support quizzes, games, competitions, polls and other interactive formats.
These experiences invite consumers to participate instead of passively receiving a marketing message.
For example, a beverage brand could introduce a campaign-related game, while a food brand could help consumers discover new ways to use a product.
The format should serve a clear purpose. Interactivity is most valuable when it makes the experience more useful, enjoyable or relevant.
Build ongoing relationships
Traditional packaging communication is often limited to the moment of purchase and the information printed on the product.
Connected packaging can create a continuing digital touchpoint. Depending on the campaign, brands can refresh the content, introduce new activities or connect consumers with relevant follow-up experiences without necessarily changing the printed packaging.
This creates an opportunity to extend engagement beyond a single transaction.
The important distinction is that a scan is an entry point, not the final measure of success. Brands should consider what consumers do after they arrive and whether the experience provides enough value to encourage further interaction.
4. AI in Connected Packaging: Making Experiences More Relevant
Artificial intelligence is creating new possibilities for digital marketing, including how brands develop and deliver connected packaging experiences.
When used thoughtfully, AI can support more relevant content, help brands interpret engagement patterns and inform how digital experiences evolve.
More relevant digital content
Different consumers may have different questions, interests and preferences.
AI-assisted experiences can help organise or deliver relevant information based on the context of an interaction and the data a brand is appropriately permitted to use.
For example, a consumer exploring a product’s ingredients may need a different information journey from someone looking for recipes or product-use guidance.
Personalisation should make the experience more useful, not more complicated.
Learn from engagement patterns
Connected packaging can provide measurable information about how people interact with a digital experience.
Depending on the implementation and applicable consent requirements, useful metrics may include scan volume, engagement time, repeat visits, interactions with specific content and completion rates.
These measurements can help marketers identify which experiences attract attention and where consumers stop engaging.
AI-assisted analysis may help teams identify patterns in this information, generate hypotheses and improve future campaigns. However, brands should validate insights against reliable data rather than treating automated interpretations as definitive conclusions.
Keep privacy and transparency central
Personalisation requires responsible data practices.
Brands should be clear about what information they collect, why it is needed and how it will be used. They should also collect only the information necessary for the intended purpose and comply with applicable privacy requirements.
A sophisticated digital experience will not create lasting engagement if consumers feel that their information is being used without adequate transparency.
The aim should be to create value for both sides: a useful consumer experience and meaningful insights for the brand.
5. Measure What Happens After the Scan
Scan volume can indicate whether consumers are interacting with connected packaging, but it does not tell the entire story.
A campaign may generate many scans without delivering a useful experience. Another may attract fewer people but encourage deeper interaction, registrations or repeat visits.
Measurement should therefore reflect the campaign’s objectives.
Depending on the experience, brands can consider:
- Scan rate: How frequently consumers scan relative to an appropriate measure of exposure or distribution.
- Engagement time: How long consumers spend interacting with the digital experience.
- Interaction rate: Whether consumers participate in games, quizzes, polls or other activities.
- Conversion rate: How many consumers complete a desired action, such as registering or redeeming an offer.
- Repeat engagement: Whether consumers return to the experience.
- Content performance: Which pages, features or activities attract the most interest.
These metrics should be interpreted in context. For example, a short session may be positive if a consumer quickly finds the information they need, while a longer session may indicate deeper participation in an interactive experience.
The right metrics depend on what the campaign is designed to achieve.
By connecting campaign objectives with relevant measurements, marketers can make more informed decisions about design, content and future investment.
6. How Brands Can Encourage More QR Code Scans
Understanding consumer psychology is useful only when it informs practical decisions. Brands planning a connected packaging campaign can use the following principles as a starting point.
Start with the consumer. Identify the audience, their needs and the reason they might want to interact with the product.
Make the value clear. Explain what consumers will gain from scanning rather than relying on the presence of a QR code alone.
Integrate the code into the design. Make it easy to locate and pair it with a clear, relevant call to action.
Reduce friction. Ensure the digital destination is mobile-friendly, loads reliably and makes the next action easy to understand.
Deliver on the promise. The experience should match the invitation on the packaging and provide genuine value.
Test and improve. Evaluate engagement data, identify potential barriers and test changes to the messaging, design and digital journey.
Respect consumer trust. Explain data collection clearly and make privacy an integral part of the experience.
These principles help shift connected packaging from a technology-led exercise to a consumer-led strategy.
Conclusion: Design for People, Not Just Scans
A QR code does not create engagement simply because it appears on a product. Consumers need a reason to notice it, trust it and decide that interacting with it is worthwhile.
The Psychology Behind the Scan webinar highlights the importance of looking beyond the technology to understand the relationship between consumer behaviour, packaging design and connected experiences.
For brands, this means considering every stage of the journey: the message that captures attention, the value that motivates the scan, the experience that follows and the insights that help improve future interactions.
Connected packaging offers a way to make physical products more interactive and create measurable digital touchpoints. Its potential depends on how well those experiences serve the people using them.
The question is no longer simply whether a product should have a QR code. It is whether the experience behind that code gives consumers a compelling reason to engage.
Want to explore the psychology behind connected packaging?
Watch the full Appetite Creative webinar, The Psychology Behind the Scan: How Design, Behaviour and AI Drive Connected Packaging Success, featuring Patrick Fagan, Christel Morival An and Jenny Stanley.
▶️ Watch the webinar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VozLx_Bszk
Discover how behavioural science, packaging design and connected technology can work together to create more meaningful consumer experiences.