How to Build a Modern Product Registration System.

You’d be surprised to learn that many brands with a product warranty program manage it very loosely. They have a basic registration card that most people do not mail in, but many will still want to make a claim even if they don’t register. 

To offer good customer service, most brands still honor the warranty. However, brands have no clue if the warranty is still valid or how much money they are losing or making on the program.

Times are changing and brands have new tools and technology at their disposal to build a world class warranty registration process that provides better customer service and is a growth lever for the business. 

One of the linchpins for the program is the addition of a QR Code Experience. Instead of filling out a postcard and going to the post office (which very few people actually do), customers can scan a QR code on the packaging or product and register their product in seconds.   

If you are interested in building this in-house, below are 14 steps to build a modern registration program. If you get impatient after the first few steps, Brij can help you build an effective registration program very quickly. 

Step 1: Setup a dynamic QR code

You never want to print static QR codes on a product. Static codes can never be updated if you ever change your website URL and need to redirect customers  to a new page.

For the best user experience, you’ll want to use QR codes that pre-fill model numbers to save customers from the tedious step of locating that information and making errors inputting it. If it's a high-end product, you may even want the product’s serial number pre-filled, which requires QR code serialization. 

There are a ton of QR code generators out there to look into. Some popular providers are QRTiger, Bitly, Flowcode, and Beaconstack. Pricing plans start at $40/month and scale with the number of QR codes generated and also the number of scans. 

Step 2: Packaging & collateral design

The next step is to add the QR code onto the product, packaging, or an insert. There is some strategy around placement of the QR Code to maximize scanning potential so customers can find the QR code. Some things to consider include:

• Location
• Contrast
• Call to action

Never use generic text like “Scan Me.” If a customer doesn’t immediately understand the benefit to them for scanning, they’ll never scan, making everything downstream meaningless. The call to action should clearly state “Scan to Register your Warranty” or something along those lines.

To execute on packaging and QR code placement, you’ll need a designer and design software such as Figma or Adobe. Design SaaS starts at $75/month. As for the design, that could be nothing if you have someone in-house or it could cost quite a bit to use a contractor or agency.

Step 3: Custom landing pages for each product

Don’t make your customer search your site or their product to find their exact model. Just like the QR code, the landing page should be tailored to the specific product that they have purchased. Don’t make your customers do the guess work to select which product they purchased from all the products you sell.

Each page should have custom imagery and content related to that product. For instance, it should contain the approach instruction guide or setup videos, and even the ability to shop complementary products.  

Depending on your resourcing, you can use an in-house development team or landing page building SaaS. Unbounce and Replo are popular landing page builders that start at $99/month.