QR codes are black matrix-looking boxes scannable by Smart Phones & Tablets. The above newspaper ad has a QR code linking to http://greenhillspharmacy.com/?FCC-01.
The additional coding — ?FCC-01 — to the web site domain http://greenhillspharmacy.com/allows the owner to track the visitors to the site from the newspaper ad. The next months ad could use a different additional coding ?FCC-02, ?FCC-03, ?FCC-04, etc to see how effective the money is spent on these newspaper ads. This can help you decide if this newspaper is worth your time, effort, and money. A great way to get people on your website.
Other options would be to have a special mobile-optimized landing page. Contests and sweepstakes are big users of QR code scanning. Our last bunch of bananas even had a QR sticker on them that took people to a page with a YouTube video for Banana smoothies.
You can even produce some artistic QR codes.
You can create printed flyers or online ads for your products and allow people to BUY NOW on their Smart Phones & Tablets.