Using a QR Code to Sell Merch in Your Store

A QR code lets customers buy your merch from their phone while they're standing in your shop. Put it where people wait — by the register, on tables, on the menu and on takeout bags — with a short line like "Love us? Wear us. Scan for merch." It turns your busiest moments into sales without any extra work from your staff.

Why a QR code works so well for merch

The people in your shop right now are your best prospects. They like your business enough to be there, and many have a minute to spare: waiting for a drink, waiting for the check, waiting in line. A QR code turns that minute into a sale, without you needing stock on a shelf.

Where to put it

• By the register or card reader. Everyone passes through.
• On the pickup counter. Where people wait for drinks or food.
• On tables and the bar. Table tents or small stands.
• On the menu. Printed menus or the menu board.
• On takeout bags and boxes. A sticker or a small card inside.
• On receipts, if your system allows.
• On the mirror in the restroom. People look at their phones there.
• In the window. For passers-by when you're closed.

Start with two or three of these, not all of them.

What the sign should say

Keep it short. Three things: a hook, what's on offer, and what to do.

Love us? Wear us. Shirts, hats and mugs — scan to shop.

You asked for shirts. Scan to get yours.

Take us home. Merch printed to order, shipped to your door.

Add a small photo of the merch if there's room. Include your shop address (yourname.themerchcounter.com) below the code for people who'd rather type it.

How to make it

On The Merch Counter, open Share in your dashboard. It has three things ready:

• A 4×6 counter card in your shop's colors, with your logo, your QR code and a message you choose. Print it on card stock and put it in a small frame or acrylic stand by the register.
• A sheet of twelve 2-inch stickers for takeout bags, pastry boxes and tables. Print on square label sheets, or on paper and cut them out.
• The code itself, as a PNG or an SVG, for your menu, posters or anything you design yourself.

If you design your own, make sure the code is at least about an inch (2–3 cm) across and has plenty of white space around it, so phones scan it easily. The QR code's inventor, Denso Wave, specifies a clear margin at least four modules wide (four of the code's small squares) on every side. Test it with a couple of phones before printing a batch.

Track whether it's working

Every code from your dashboard is tagged (with a UTM source), so Share shows how many visits came from your QR codes, with the counter card and the stickers counted separately. You'll see whether people scan the one by the register or the ones in the takeout bags.

Try moving the sign, or changing the wording, and see whether more people scan it.

Make it part of the routine

• Staff mention it. "If you like the shirt, there's a QR code right there."
• Keep a sample next to it so people can see the product.
• Swap the sign seasonally: "Hoodie season is here."

Related: How to Market Your Merch