Carrying around printed cards with your contact information is outdated – now all the cool kids are using QR codes that direct to their LinkedIn profiles to network.
Last week, I attended VidCon, a creator conference in Anaheim, California, where I met with dozens of industry experts, social media executives, and creators. Because I write about the creator economy, networking at events like this is invaluable for outlets (and shameless self-promotion).
I first heard about LinkedIn QR codes when I attended Open Sauce, a STEM conference for content creators, in June. I met several people there who taught me how to find and use LinkedIn QR codes. I also met creators there and at VidCon who were promoting their social media by handing out QR codes on their phones or stickers with the codes.
At VidCon, I connected with people using QR codes provided by LinkedIn: I saved the picture in my photos and pulled out the code whenever someone asked for my email address or had my business card.
This way, I gained some new followers and connections on LinkedIn and can now easily stay in touch with them.
LinkedIn QR codes aren't just popular in creative circles — my editor had a similar experience in a completely different context: She told me that she recently attended two conferences on sports and gambling, where executives and other experts interacted using LinkedIn QR codes.
That makes sense: how many times have you collected a large collection of business cards only to lose them and not be able to get in touch with someone you met?
Business cards are expensive, can expire, and can easily get lost or forgotten to be brought with you.
Here's how to use LinkedIn QR codes for networking:
- Open the LinkedIn app on your mobile device.
- Click on the search bar and then on the QR icon on the right.
- There you will find a QR code to your LinkedIn profile.
- You can view this code or save it as an image.
