Fast food franchise Taco Bell is using QR codes on its fountain drink cups and big box packaging to offer exclusive MTV content to hungry consumers.

The company partnered with Scanbuy for the mobile initiative. The mobile campaign is occurring through Sept. 4.

?Taco Bell is a sponsor of the VMA Awards on MTV, so they wanted to reward their customers with exclusive content by engaging directly with the product,? said David Javitch, vice president of marketing at Scanbuy. 

?They are taken to a mobile website where they can watch and listen to videos and the content is refreshed on a weekly basis to keep people coming back,? he said.

Taco Bell is a quick-service Mexican restaurant model, founded by Glen Bell in Downey, CA, in 1962. The fast food franchise boasts about 5,800 restaurants throughout the United States, more than 80 percent of which are franchise-owned.

Scan me
Consumers can scan the mobile bar code using their QR reader.

Additionally, those who do not have a QR reader can enter m.mtv.com/tacobell on their mobile browser to view the same content.

There, users can listen and watch exclusive MTV content, specifically selected by MTV.

Each week, Taco Bell will add new content ? in total, six weeks of exclusive MTV content will be featured.

?There is an element of exclusivity with the idea of ?unlocking the box? which incentivizes people to engage,? Mr. Javitch said. ?People can either use a standard QR Code reader, such as ScanLife, or they can just snap a photo of the code and send it to us by MMS. 

?We have seen a 5 percent incremental lift by adding this option, and overall, we are well into six-figure scans in about 10 days time.?

Mobile communication
Taco Bell is communicating the mobile initiative on its homepage.

?Mobile bar codes offer an immediate ?Get More? button to an interested consumer,? Mr. Javitch said. ?It?s really simple to get to the content, and it?s a very visible call to action. 

?These codes are quickly signifying to consumers that there is more content or information which allows them to go further than just seeing a high level message,? he said.

Final Take
Rimma Kats is staff reporter on Mobile Marketer, New York