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Use a Custom Field as the Full QR URL

If every recipient needs a completely different QR destination, such as a unique listing page, a personal booking link, or a pre-generated tracking URL from your CRM, you don't have to build the URL from pieces. Put the full URL in a custom field and set the QR Code URL to just that field.

How it works​

When the QR Code URL field in a Message Template contains only a custom field variable, like ~CUSTOM1~, thanks.io uses the value of that custom field as the entire destination URL for each recipient.

Recipientcustom1 valueQR code opens
Sarah Leehttps://yoursite.com/listings/123-oak-sthttps://yoursite.com/listings/123-oak-st
Tom Patelhttps://calendly.com/jane/tom-patelhttps://calendly.com/jane/tom-patel
Ana Ruizyoursite.com/offer/AR-5521https://yoursite.com/offer/AR-5521

Scans are still tracked. Each QR code goes through thanks.io's scan tracking first, then redirects to the recipient's URL, so scan notifications, analytics, and QR Scan Actions work as usual.

Set it up​

1. Add the URLs to your CSV​

Add a column holding each recipient's full destination URL:

first_name,last_name,address,city,state,zip,custom1
Sarah,Lee,123 Oak St,Austin,TX,78701,https://yoursite.com/listings/123-oak-st
Tom,Patel,9 Elm Ave,Austin,TX,78702,https://calendly.com/jane/tom-patel

The column can have any name. You map it in the next step.

2. Upload the CSV and map the column​

  1. Go to Mailing Lists and open (or create) your list.
  2. Click Upload CSV and select your file.
  3. On the column mapping screen, map your URL column to the custom1 field.
  4. Click Save & Preview, check the preview rows, then click Confirm.

See CSV Upload & Format for the full upload walkthrough.

3. Set the QR Code URL to the custom field​

  1. Go to Message & QR Templates and open or create a template.
  2. In the QR Code URL field, enter exactly: 
    ~CUSTOM1~
  3. Save the template.

4. Preview and send​

Preview the mailer with a few recipients from the list to confirm that each QR code points to the right URL, then send or attach the template to your campaign.

Rules to know​

  • The variable must be the only thing in the field. ~CUSTOM1~ uses the custom field as the whole URL. If you add anything around it, like https://yoursite.com/~CUSTOM1~, it becomes a regular dynamic QR URL, where the custom field value is inserted into your URL.
  • Any custom field works. Use ~CUSTOM1~ through ~CUSTOM10~, matching the custom1-custom10 field you mapped your URLs to.
  • Use the tilde format, in capitals. Enter ~CUSTOM1~, not %CUSTOM1% or ~custom1~. The dashboard's QR Code field only accepts the uppercase tilde form on its own.
  • https:// is added for you. If a value doesn't start with http, such as yoursite.com/offer/AR-5521, thanks.io adds https:// in front.
  • Empty values fall back to the default landing page. A recipient with a blank custom field gets a QR code that opens the thanks.io default landing page instead of a broken link.

Tips & best practices​

  • Check your CSV for blank or malformed URLs before uploading. Every row should hold a full, publicly accessible URL.
  • Don't put sensitive information (account numbers, passwords, tokens) in the URLs. Anyone who scans the code can see the full URL.
  • If most of the URL is the same for everyone and only an ID changes, it's simpler to keep the base URL in the template and put only the ID in a custom field. See Dynamic QR URLs.