AMiable Solution #207: Treat Marketing

Last week, I got a personalized pen in the mail.  I didn’t order it, and I’d never heard of the company before, but there it was.  A nice, ball-point pen with my company’s name on it.

You’ve most likely experienced something similar.  A set of free Christmas cards here.  A calendar with your name on it there.  You have to wonder: does it work?  Do free samples really bring in business?

Yes, they do.

Sampling does what no four-color catalog, no exquisitely written email, no multi-piece envelop mailer can do: it lets customers see, feel, and use a product instead of just reading about it.  And it’s a practice you can implement through direct mail, at trade shows, and in retail facilities.

YA, an engagement marketing and promotions company in Minneapolis, made the following conclusions through its own research:

·        92% of consumers will try a product sample

·        53% bought the product sample they tried

·        42% have switched their brand preference based on trying a product sample

·        56% like product samples because they are looking for alternatives

·        77% say that receiving product sample would motivate them to try another from that brand

If you choose to send free samples, however, make sure they’re just that: free samples. 

According to U.S. Title 39, your company can mail unsolicited merchandise to someone if it’s clearly identified as a free sample or if you’re a charitable organization soliciting contributions.  It is not legal to send something to someone with the intention of collecting payment later.  Your recipients may contact you for more.  They may not.  They may throw your samples away.  In any case, that’s the risk you take.

Did I order more pens?  No, but I did put it in my drawer.  You just never know when you’ll need one.