Create a QR Code for Your Music
Nobody remembers a band’s handle by the end of the second encore. A QR code on the poster, the merch table and the record sleeve takes people to whatever you want them to hear next: the new single, the mailing list, the tour dates. With a GetQR dynamic code you point it at the next release and keep the posters, shirts and stickers.
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Where Musicians Put QR Codes
Gig posters, merch tables, record sleeves and a busker’s sign. A different listener at each, and a different page behind the scan.
Why Put a QR Code on Your Posters and Merch?
A poster can carry a name, a date and a venue. A sleeve can carry a tracklist. Neither can carry the new single, the tour dates and the mailing list at the same time. A QR code gives the listener one scan to reach the thing that matters now. It also means a poster on a lamppost can do more than announce a date.
No handle to remember
People at a gig are mid-song, mid-drink and mid-conversation. A scan on the poster takes them to your page before the moment passes, with no username to remember and no spelling to get wrong.
Give a stranger a way in
Someone who loved the third song doesn’t know your name yet. A code on the poster or the sticker takes them to a page with the song they heard, so they can hear it again tomorrow instead of forgetting the name by morning.
One link page, many destinations
Point the code at a page that lists your latest release, your tour dates and your mailing list. GetQR sends people to that page. You build the page with whatever link tool you already use, and you can change it any time.
See which poster or table works
Use a separate code for each poster run, the merch table and the record sleeve, and compare scan counts in your dashboard. It counts scans only. Streams, sales and ticket numbers come from your own platforms.
Let the sign work the queue
At a merch table the person selling is often the person who just played. A code on the sign opens your store page while the queue is long, so fans can look at the rest of the catalog before they reach the front.
What Your Band Gets With a GetQR Code
One code on the merch, a destination you can change and a count of how often it gets scanned.
Printed shirts and stickers for the last record can open your newest single, and a poster from the last tour can open the next one. You change the link in your dashboard, and the print stays out in the world doing its job.
Use your colors and logo, and add a short line such as “Scan for the new EP.” Posters tend to be black and loud, so put the code on a light patch with strong contrast, because a clever design that won’t scan helps nobody.
See how many times each code has been scanned over time. Give each poster run, the merch table and the record sleeve its own code to compare. GetQR counts scans only. Streams, downloads and ticket sales show up on the platforms where they happen.
Download SVG or EPS for your poster printer, sticker maker or screen printer, and the code stays sharp from a tiny sticker to a big banner. PNG or PDF works for your own artwork in a design tool, as long as you keep it large.
Make a separate code for each release, tour or merch run and manage them together. When one campaign ends, you change its page without affecting the others, which beats hunting through an old link tool for the right one at midnight before a show.
Make a QR Code for Your Music
Decide what the listener should hear or buy first.
Six Ways Musicians Use QR Codes
Not every one fits every act. Take what suits yours.
Gig Posters and Flyers
Add a code to the poster that opens the ticket page, the event listing or your music. Posters get a few seconds of attention, so put the code where eyes land after the date, and say what the scan does. Posters on lampposts get wet and torn, so check the code survives a rainy week.
Merch Table Signs
Stand a sign on the merch table with a code linked to your store, your latest release or your mailing list. It helps when the queue is long and the person selling is also in the band. Add a line saying what the scan does, and prop the sign where the stage lights don’t glare on it.
Record Sleeves and CD Inserts
Print a small code on the back of the sleeve or insert that opens liner notes, lyrics or a bonus track page. Use a separate code for each release so you can update one without touching the others. Test it on the gloss, because sleeves reflect the lighting in every shop that stocks them. Keep the page simple.
Business Cards and Press Kits
Put a code on your card or one-page press sheet that opens your press kit page: a bio, photos, live video and a booking contact. A venue manager can scan it from a card handed to them weeks ago. Keep the page current, because it’s the first thing a booker will see. Add a live video if you have one.
Busking Signs and Tip Jars
A busker’s sign can carry a code that opens a page with your music and a link to wherever you accept tips. GetQR sends people to the page, and your payment platform handles the money. Make the code large, since people scan while standing in a moving crowd with one hand full. Add a short line, like “Scan to hear more.”
T-Shirts, Stickers and Tote Bags
Print a small code on the hem, the sleeve or a corner of the design that opens your music page. Fabric wrinkles and curves, which hurts scanning, so keep the code on a flat panel and test a printed sample before the run. A sticker on a guitar case is a free poster that goes to every gig.
Running More Than One Act or Label?
Give each artist, release and tour its own code and manage them from one dashboard. A label with several acts can then see which artist’s merch gets scanned.
Printing QR Codes for Posters, Merch and Sleeves
Light Patch on Dark Posters
A black poster looks great, and a white-on-black code won’t scan reliably. Put the code on a light square and keep the code itself dark.
Scan It in the Dark
Gigs are dim and phones struggle to focus. Make the code bigger than you think you need, and test the printed piece in low light before the run.
Keep the Border Clear
Leave empty space on all four sides, away from band logos, torn edges and busy artwork.
Shirts Fold, Stickers Peel
Cloth wrinkles and curves, which distorts codes. Put the code on a flat panel, ask your screen printer for a test shirt, and use durable vinyl for stickers.
Mind the Gloss
Glossy sleeves and laminated posters reflect light. Use a matte finish where you can, and angle the sign at the merch table away from the stage lights.
Vector Files for Everything
Send SVG or EPS to the poster printer, screen printer and sticker maker so the code stays sharp, big or small.
See What GetQR Users Have to Say
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Frequently Asked Questions
What bands and solo artists ask before the first print run.
Your newest release or a simple page that lists it with your tour dates and mailing list. Pick whichever you most want a stranger to do first, and make the page work on a phone.
Open your GetQR dashboard, change the destination to the new page, and scan a printed shirt or sticker to check it. Nothing printed changes. People who scan the old merch land on the new release from then on.
Place the file in your poster or sleeve template, set a size you can scan comfortably, leave a clear border on all four sides and export. Print one copy, scan it and only then send the artwork to the printer.
No. It counts scans of the code. Streams, downloads and sales are recorded on the platforms and stores where they happen, so look at both when you’re judging a poster run.
Make a simple page with the links you want, such as the latest release, tickets and a mailing list, using any page or link tool you like. Copy its address into GetQR. You can add or reorder links later without touching the code.
Bigger than looks tidy. Dim light makes cameras focus slowly, so a large code on a plain light square helps. Print a test and try it in a room as dark as the venue.
Check for glare first. Print on matte stock, tilt the sign slightly away from the lights and scan it from where fans stand. If glare is the problem, move the sign or add a small shade above it.
Ask the screen printer for one test shirt. Lay it flat and scan it, then wear it, move around and scan again on the wrinkles. Try a few phones. If the code fails on folds, move it to a flatter panel.
The code opens a link. If the link goes to your store or ticket page, fans can buy there, but GetQR doesn’t take payments. The store or ticket provider handles the sale.
If each release has its own merch, yes. A separate code lets you compare which sleeve or poster gets scanned more.
Yes. A short line such as “Scan for the new EP” gives people a reason to lift their phone. An unexplained code on a busy poster gets ignored.
Make the sign bigger. Keep it lit, and say what the scan gives in a few words. Have the person at the table point at it when they hand over change. People scan what they’re shown.