Visitors vs page opens
QRForge reports three different things. They are easy to mix up, so here is what each one means.
Scans
A scan is one time someone scanned a QR code, or opened its link.
- One person who scans the same code three times makes three scans.
- The Analytics page always counts scans. It never tries to count people.
Page opens
A page open is one time a trail page was opened: the entry page or a stop. Opening five stops makes five page opens.
Visitors
A visitor is meant to be one person (more exactly: one browser). The trail Funnel tries to count visitors, so that one person who opens five stops counts once in Reached trail.
To recognise a returning visitor, QRForge places a small, first-party cookie in the visitor's browser. It holds a random number and nothing else, and it is used only for this count.
Why the address matters
On the standard qrforge.link address, the way our pages are delivered means the visitor's cookie does not reach QRForge. QRForge cannot recognise a returning visitor, so every page open counts as a new visitor. The trail funnel then shows page opens, even where it says visitors.
On your own custom domain,
for example links.example.com, the cookie works. A visitor is counted
once per day in each row of the funnel.
| qrforge.link | Custom domain | |
|---|---|---|
| Scan analytics | Scans | Scans |
| Trail funnel | Page opens | Visitors, once per day per row |
An example
Anna follows a five-stop trail on Saturday. She scans the entry QR code and all five stops.
- On qrforge.link, Reached trail goes up by 6 (one entry and five stops), and each stop row by 1.
- On a custom domain, Reached trail goes up by 1, and each stop row by 1.
If Anna comes back on Sunday, she is counted again on both addresses, because the funnel adds up daily counts.
What should I do?
- If you need real visitor numbers for a trail, for example for a sponsor or a funding report, use a custom domain for the trail's project.
- If you stay on qrforge.link, read the funnel as page views. Comparing stops is still useful: a stop with far fewer opens than the one before it shows where people stop following the trail.
- Use scans to compare QR codes with each other. Scans are counted the same way on every address.