• by Steve Smith , Staff Writer @popeyesm, February 3, 2012

I would say that it is getting hard to avoid those fugly little QR codes lately. But GGP malls is challenging lovers everywhere to hunt for the codes in a Valentine’s Day promotion.

Beginning this week, shoppers at some of GGP’s 136 locations will be prompted by in-mall signage to scan “love themed QR codes” in the vicinity. The lure is entry into a sweepstakes for one of 30 $10 gift cards that will be issued daily. The promo runs through Valentine’s Day and ends on February 15. GGP is calling it their “Where Is the Love?” sweepstakes, which has as its grand prize a romantic getaway at a Hawaiian resort.  

GGP’s VP of Digital Marketing Keith Maladra says the aim of the program is to provide entertainment, not just another sweepstakes. “Smartphones now play such a central part in our everyday lives, so we try to create fun and engaging promotions to keep our guests entertained while shopping at our mall,” he states.

Well -- we hadn’t actually considered that QR code-snapping could be entertaining -- perhaps because it really isn’t. This is a way for GGP to get more shoppers signed up for “The Club,” which sends email promotions and event announcements. The company says it is planning more in-mall mobilized entertainment projects throughout the year.

Malls have an interesting conundrum in the mobile-at-retail landscape. They are yet another layer of providers trying to get the attention of mobile users. There are the brands, the retailers themselves, a host of shopping app intermediaries, and the malls. I am not sure many consumers really think of their mall itself as a provider -- as a go-to resource for deals and promotions. A number of third parties have tried to introduce mall apps that can pull in maps from a range of malls. Then the mall chains themselves have issued their own apps.

What's a consumer to do? Which resource really owns the mall shopping experience?

At least GGP is coming at the problem from an entertainment angle. Someone at the company seems to get the idea that mobile is capable of creating new experiences in a given space, and this is one of the platform’s long-term assets. One way the mall might raise its profile as an entity in the shopper’s awareness is the reveal itself as a source of in-mall fun.

Chasing QR codes to enter a $10 gift card sweepstakes isn’t exactly a thrilling adventure, or even much of a scavenger hunt. But it is a start.