You’ve probably enjoyed a few free samples here and there while wandering down the aisles at the grocery store. If you’re like most people, sampling something you like has probably influenced you to purchase that item either the same day or on a later trip. This is exactly why food items are sampled out.
In a grocery store, there’s a captive audience of people who are looking for meals and some of them are hungry. By stimulating their taste buds, it’s easier to convince them to buy a specific product. In fact, handing out free samples has been proven to be more effective than promotions placed on aisle endcaps. That’s because sampling is engaging, while end cap promotions are passive.
The good news is you don’t have to sell food to harness the power of free samples. It’s something that can work for any business in any industry or niche, no matter what type of product you sell. It even works for services and digital products, too.
If you haven’t yet started using free samples, here’s why you should incorporate this effective tactic into your marketing strategy.
Free samples drive sales
The reason companies focus so heavily on free samples is because they drive sales.
People love free samples. It doesn’t matter what it is, people will almost never refuse a free sample of a product. There are even entire websites dedicated to providing subscribers with a monthly box full of free samples from a variety of companies, like makeup and hair products.
If you’re considering creating a sample pack for your products, that would be a great move. You can even hire a company like Peoria Pros to assemble your sample kits and ship them to your customers.
Drop shipping your samples will save you time and money.
Why do free samples generate more sales?
Here’s how the psychology of free samples works in a nutshell:
· Provides potential customers with the opportunity to get to know your product and brand
· Encourages repeat customers
· Allows you to generate feedback so you can make improvements to your products or services
· Helps you understand what your target market likes and dislikes
Sometimes people are interested in something, but aren’t sure if they want to make a purchase. Once someone has sampled your product or service, they usually have enough information to make a decision. This applies to online services as well, like software subscriptions, for example. The more complex a software application is, the more time a customer will need to spend testing it out to know if it’s a good fit. This is where free trials come into play.
Free trials remove risk, which increases sales
The idea behind a free trial is that it removes all the risk from the customer and makes it possible for them to fully explore a service while knowing that if it isn’t right for them, they will get their money back. Sometimes the full value of a service isn’t discernible from the sales page copy or even the FAQ section.
Often, getting a full understanding of what’s being offered requires using the product directly. However, people aren’t always willing to pay up front for something they aren’t sure about just to try it out, but a free trial will entice people to sign up and give it a shot. Sometimes the value of an online service lies in its user interface or integrations, which really need to be experienced directly.
The downside is cancellations, but that’s not actually a bad thing. Having to refund people who cancel their subscriptions at the end of their free trial might seem like a bummer, but you want customers who are a match to your services. Not everyone who signs up will be your market, and that’s what a trial will help them figure out.
Offering a free trial allows more of your ideal customers to sample your services, and while you will get some cancellations, you’ll also get more long-term customers who would not have signed up without the trial.
Generate loyal customers with free samples
In addition to generating sales, offering free samples will help you establish a loyal customer base. Your existing customers will be thrilled to get a free sample kit in the mail that lets them try new products or things they haven’t considered yet.
If you haven’t already started creating your free samples, there’s no better time than now. It’s a proven method for creating a loyal following and a bigger bottom line.
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