SPRINGFIELD, Mo. –

Dealer Uplink, a company that provides dealerships with QR barcode and mobile marketing services, announced this week a $1 million capitalization by its members that it contends will accelerate growth in North America and the U.K.

During the next three years, the company — which has been around nine months — plans to create more than 50 high-tech jobs, most of which will be in downtown Springfield, Mo., Dealer Uplink’s hometown. The rest will be spread  throughout North America.

“We have created an innovative way for auto dealerships to better inform potential customers of their advantages, as well as providing customers an instant way to validate and buy a vehicle from their smartphone,” noted Dealer Uplink chief executive officer Jay Martinez.

“This capitalization will spearhead our corporate messaging, giving more room for auto dealerships to capitalize on our technologies to capture the next generation of auto buyers,” he added.

As some may know, the history of QR codes dates back to the mid 1990s. Businesses — automotive and otherwise — are now utilizing them for marketing via smartphones.

Dealer Uplink got into the game early this year and began “innovating around the existing technology,” the company noted.

“Hard work, innovation, and the entrepreneurial spirit will be what changes the current economic climate,” said company president George Lamelza III.

“Dealer Uplink embodies all of that and is why others believe in the effectiveness of our service and will stand with us as we add new jobs into the economy, putting Missouri and the nation back to work,” he added.

To learn more about QR codes and their prevalence in the auto industry, read Auto Remarketing’s feature on this and other technologies here.