How QR Codes Can Store and Share Rental History

Whether you loan out cars, skis, or pressure washers, your equipment’s rental history is pivotal to keeping your business running smoothly. It helps keep track of wear and tear, can help you maintain accurate records for warranties, and can help you schedule repairs at the right time. These insights are invaluable for businesses, as they help determine profitability by considering rental income versus maintenance costs. 

However, if you rely on manual systems to capture these details, you could run into challenges: Manual record-keeping is time-consuming, unscalable, and error-prone.

Here, we’ll look at how Quick Response (QR) Codes help you streamline how you store and share rental histories for smoother operations.

What is a rental history QR Code?

A rental history QR Code is a unique code that links to a specific product’s digital record in your inventory management system. Instead of relying on a collection of paper forms, QR Codes can link directly to a detailed digital information profile via URL, including previous renters, rental dates, and maintenance records.   

Why does rental history matter?

Knowing an item’s rental history can give you valuable insight into trends, profitability, and past usage, which can impact future business decisions. Keeping accurate records can help:

• Prevent disputes over damages: Without an accurate system to record damage, there’s no concrete evidence to determine who or what is responsible for inventory damage. This can lead to frustrations for both your staff and your customers.
  
  
• Improve transparency: Rental customers don’t know how well the rental company maintains equipment, who had the equipment before them, or how responsible they were with the item. Likewise, the rental business puts a lot of faith in their customers to take proper care of products in their care. Rental histories enhance customer trust and improve internal oversight.
  
  
• Provide a paper trail for insurance and warranty claims: Should an item be damaged or lost, your business will need to file insurance or warranty claims. Accurately documenting rental history gives authorities critical information they’ll need to process your claim, like proof of ownership, service schedules, and records of damage or accidents. 

How QR Codes make rental operations more efficient

Businesses that hold inventory long relied on traditional barcode systems to track products. However, 1D barcodes are much less flexible and forgiving than QR Codes (2D barcodes): They can’t store as much information, only work with specialized scanning equipment, and can’t be scanned once damaged. 

Here’s how QR Codes’ versatility makes them the ideal solution for rental operations:

Reduce administrative workload

With the help of QR Codes, you can digitally track rental history across multiple customers. As soon as equipment goes in or out, staff can scan the corresponding QR Codes to instantly access the specific item’s records, whether they’re stored in a spreadsheet or management database. 

When using QR Codes, staff won’t have to search through paper records or comb through digital tabs to find information. This gives your employees more time to assist customers at the counter and deliver an unforgettable experience.

Improve scheduling

With QR Codes, maintenance histories and repair logs are easily accessible. Whether you’re renting to individuals or commercial customers, you can view recent service dates, upcoming maintenance checks, and known equipment issues. These details can help you map out rental availability based on fluctuating demand. 

For example, if you know that your high-demand items have equally demanding service requirements, you can use rental records to inform a smarter maintenance schedule that keeps the item in rotation. 

How to implement QR Codes for rental history tracking

With the right QR Code generator, you can seamlessly add functionality without interrupting the rest of your systems. Here, we’ll look at how to implement them within your operations.

1. Choose a QR Code generator with tracking features 

There are two major categories of QR Codes: Static and Dynamic. While Static Codes don’t provide any tracking or analytics capabilities, Dynamic Codes do. With QR Code Generator PRO’s Dynamic URL QR Code tracking, you can see:

• Total scans over time (customizable)
  
  
• Scans by operating system
  
  
• Scan location (country- and city-level)
  
  
• Unique scans

As your team members scan the codes to access or update items’ rental history, a Dynamic QR Code can collect the above data to give you insights like your most popular items (by number of scans) and peak rental seasons for each item.

Then, you can use this data to help inform dynamic pricing strategies during seasonal highs and lows.  

2. Link QR Codes to a centralized rental management system

When you create a QR Code for an item or piece of equipment, link to its entry in your inventory management system or digital database via URL. Once an employee scans the code on the equipment, they’ll automatically be directed to that entry, where they can quickly access the item’s rental history.  

3. Customize the QR Code’s design

While a QR Code might not be the focal point of a rented item, it is an opportunity to keep your assets aligned with your brand. Your chosen QR Code generator should give you plenty of design flexibility. With QR Code Generator PRO, you can customize your QR Codes’ call to action, frame, colors, text, shape, and edges, and even have the option to add your business’s logo to the center of the code.

4. Train staff 

While many people are familiar with QR Code scanning these days, it’s important to ensure your staff has the resources they need. A short video or infographic can show employees where to find an item’s QR Code, how to scan it, how to access the item’s rental history, and a run-down of the most relevant details they may find in the item’s database entry. For example, you might consider highlighting where to find service records for the equipment or a list of existing cosmetic damage. 

Be sure to train employees on how to use your new solution, covering the process of updating records, checking equipment in and out, and noting any damage or maintenance needs.

Common challenges and solutions when using QR Codes for rentals 

While QR Codes are simple to create, manage, and implement, they still pose a few challenges:

Ensuring QR Code durability

QR Codes are notoriously durable and have built-in error correction. So, if your renters aren’t careful with your equipment, you can expect the QR Code to scan even after a little damage.  

That said, QR Codes aren’t indestructible. Using durable materials like laminated stickers and weatherproof labels can protect your codes against damage and fading so you can avoid constant reprints. 

Managing QR Code security risks

QR Codes make information more accessible, so you’ll need to be careful about who has access to what information. With secure links and password protection, you can delineate which information stays public and which stays private. 

Set distinct permission levels across your team: floor staff can view rental histories, maintenance records, and customer details, while financial data remains restricted to accounting personnel. For customers, enable read-only access so they can view their rental information without being able to modify any records.

Scanning on irregularly shaped objects

Depending on what you’re renting, finding a flat surface to affix a QR Code sticker can be challenging. Putting a sticker on a curved surface or one with deep corners could create lighting or readability issues that result in an unscannable code. 

To combat this, opt for tags rather than labels. Tags ensure you can attach the QR Code to a flat surface regardless of the object’s shape, making them scannable in most lighting conditions.

Best practices for rental history QR Codes

To get the most out of your QR Codes, keep these best practices in mind. Here are a few final tips to help you get started.

Keep rental records updated in real time 

When staff enter data after an event, records can become incomplete or inaccurate. QR Codes eliminate the need for manual written logs and paper receipts. All staff need to do is scan the code, update the item’s information, and repeat. 

You can also give customers more agency with codes for check-ins and check-outs. This can help you streamline your operations in more ways than one. Automating rental returns with QR Codes gives both the customers and staff a clear record of whether or not the renter missed the return deadline. 

Protect customer and business data

Encryption can help protect data from accidental or intentional theft. It can be used alongside permission-based access to ensure that customers can’t alter important details like service history or the rental contract. 

Ideally, you’ll limit access to as many sensitive details as possible, particularly customers’ personally identifying information (PII), while still making all relevant information accessible. 

If you must link QR Codes to sensitive data in your rental management system, such as financial accounts, you may need additional access protocols (such as one-time codes) to protect the information. 

Optimize QR Code placement for easy access 

QR Code placement can be trickier than it sounds, especially if the most visible places on a piece of equipment are also the most exposed. To strike a balance, look for shielded but still accessible locations, such as a vehicle’s glove box. After you choose a spot, do some quality control checks to ensure that the QR Code is easy for staff and customers to see and scan with their mobile devices. 

QR Codes: The smarter way to streamline rental operations

QR Codes have changed how rental businesses track an item’s history by replacing outdated manual processes with a fast, digital, and highly efficient system. By embedding rental histories in scannable QR Codes, businesses can improve equipment tracking, reduce administrative workload, and enhance customer transparency. Whether it’s preventing disputes or optimizing maintenance schedules QR Codes offer a seamless way to manage rental operations.

QR Code Generator PRO is a comprehensive QR Code solution that delivers everything you need to create, customize, and implement QR Codes seamlessly. From custom design options to tracking and robust analytics, QR Code Generator PRO makes it simple to elevate your rental management from manual processes to streamlined digital systems. 

Ready to see how QR Codes can improve your rental business operations? Sign up for QR Code Generator PRO today!