Heinz Ketchup is once again enlisting QR codes on its packaging to help deliver a marketing message while simultaneously driving awareness and excitement for the brand.

The ?Join the Growing Movement? campaign invites consumers to promise to be greener and support The Nature Conservancy via QR codes and a mobile application. The effort, Heinz?s third using QR codes on packaging, is appearing this summer on bottles of Heinz Ketchup in restaurants.

?We?ve found that mobile is an easy and effective way to reach and engage with our consumers as they wait for and enjoy their food in restaurants,? said John Bennett, vice president of foodservice ketchup, condiments and sauces at H.J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, PA.

?As part of Heinz?s overall commitment to the environment, all 20-ounce Heinz Ketchup bottles in restaurants are now made with PlantBottle packaging, which is made from up to 30 percent renewable material derived from sugar cane,? he said.

?The ?Join the Growing Movement? campaign invites consumers to make simple changes to their daily routines to encourage more environmentally responsible living. For each pledge taken and shared through the mobile application, Heinz will help plant a tree - up to 57,000 total.?

QR codes drive engagement
Last fall, Heinz Ketchup ran a Veterans Day promotion enabling restaurant customers to scan a QR code on Heinz Ketchup bottles to send a personalized thank you not to veterans. For e ach ?thank you? sent and each ?like? on the Heinz Ketchup Facebook page, Heinz promised to donate 57 cents, up to $200,000, to Wounded Warrior Project (see story).

The brand?s first use of QR codes on its bottles took place last summer when the 2D bar codes were used to introduce the new, more environmentally friendly packaging. The ?Guess What We Just Planted? effort saw over 1 million scans of the QR codes.

?By engaging with consumers in restaurants, we can help them effect change in very simple ways,? Mr. Bennett said.

?Since we saw such strong engagement for these [earlier QR code] programs, we decided to use QR codes again in the ?Join the Growing Movement? campaign with an added focus on sharing through social media,? he said.

?The mobile application provides an easy way for consumers to take a pledge and help plant a tree, right from their smart phones at the restaurant table.?

Educating consumers
In the latest effort, the front label of Heinz Ketchup bottles in restaurants features the tagline ?Join the Growing Movement.?

On the back label, is a QR code that, when scanned with a smartphone, links users to an app. On the app, users can pledge to be greener by choosing an environmentally responsible activity such as recycling more from a drop-down list or creating their own.

Currently, all 20-ounce Heinz Ketchup bottles in retail stores and restaurants are made with PlantBottle packaging.

?With this program, we?re aiming to educate consumers about PlantBottle technology and to encourage more environmentally responsible discussions and living among consumers,? Mr. Bennett said.

?Though the mobile application is designed to be a one-time pledge to being greener, we certainly hope it will encourage consumers to make long-term changes supporting the environment.?

Final Take
Chantal Tode is associate editor on Mobile Marketer, New York