While working for a year in Singapore, Roham Sheikholeslami began to notice the popularity of Quick Response (QR) codes around the Southeast Asian country.
The marketing trend he noticed was interesting, but his aesthetic eye spotted something more in the squares of matrix barcode.
I saw an opportunity to combine design and art with technology, says Sheikholeslami, co-founder and CEO of Muprime Technologies. By default, they have fairly unattractive look. You can actually do some much with them without affecting the functionality and make them much more beautiful.
Most of you have probably seen the cryptic QR codes dotting ads and buses around the city. These codes, when scanned by your smartphone, take you online to a company website or page.
Muprime takes the technical, abstruse look of a QR code and redesigns it into a functional and attractive tool for marketing, embedding a logo or message into the design. They currently have more than 1,200 customers using the unique medium, including the Vancouver Sun and Davis LLP.
If you scan the QR code thats part of this weeks WE Vancouver cover design, it will take you to an online version of the story, all thanks to Muprime.
Were making them more attractive as an advertising vehicle, explains Sheikholeslami, who has a background in architecture and interactive design, but whats more important is that its a whole package for a mobile marketing campaign.
We want to connect anything from offline materials to online content, he continues. Thats basically our mission and QR codes are the most popular medium for that right now.
Sheikholeslami says customized QR codes are the focus now, but they will be expanding to near field communication and augmented reality technologies in the future.
This summer, Muprimes reinventing the traditional, linear community event by integrating mobile technology into the public-space experience. It will showcase downtown Vancouver by creating VIVA Treasure, an outdoor interactive QR code game, to engage pedestrians on Granville Street.
Mu means mysterious and prime means original; so the basic translation could be interpreted as the originator of something really cool.
Im a huge Apple fanboy, he says with a small laugh. I look out for those small details that unconsciously have a huge effect on people Apple showed me that.
The Iran-native moved his family to Vancouver in 2006 for a better life and says hes thankful every day that he did.
I love it here. The city, the people are wonderful and Im really happy that I could start the company here.
