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The scannable barcode appears on the back jacket of Lauren Conrad's L.A. Candy. |
HarperCollins is launching viral mobile content, accessible by scanning 2D barcodes, for a promotion for Lauren Conrad's forthcoming YA novel, L.A. Candy.
The promotion coincides with the book's June 16 release and through it, readers/fans can download book-related content—among other things Conrad in a video and answering a Q&A—by downloading an application to their smartphones. Users can then access the content directly at http://lacandy.mobi, or, if they're out and have access to the book—at a bookstore or event—by taking a picture of a 2D barcode placed on the title's back jacket.
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| A close-up of the barcode. |
Speaking to the promotion, which was built by the mobile marketing company QMCodes, Susan Katz, president of HarperCollins Children's Books, said that because "teens use their mobile phones for everything from texting to updating their Facebook pages; this is one more way we can offer them content to share with their friends.”
HC has plans to test the barcodes on paperback version of Freakonomics, on sale August 25, which will include exclusive content related to the book and to the fall publication of Superfreakonomics. HarperTeen’s The Amanda Project, an interactive series that is both printed book and online adventure, will incorporate the codes to further extend the experience.
