Free Sampling

What it is

Carrie Heilman and colleagues studied a free-sample programme run by a US grocery chain, covering six products over six weekends, and published the results in 2011. Sampling was very effective at inducing trial, especially among less-educated shoppers. For people already planning to buy in the category, a sample could switch them to the promoted brand; for others, it could draw them into the category. Shoppers who interacted with the person handing out samples seemed more likely to buy.

Two field experiments reported in Marketing Science in 2004 found that free samples, unlike coupons, could raise a brand's sales for as long as 12 months after the promotion. They broke the effect into people settling into the brand sooner, people not paying for a trial they would have bought anyway, and new buyers drawn in by the sample.

In effect

The gift route shows up in what people buy straight after a taste. In a 1991 study of a chocolate shop, a free sample on entry raised sales immediately, but only for small purchases and only for varieties other than the one sampled. Robert Cialdini's Influence argues that a free sample "is also a gift", so it can engage reciprocity while appearing only to inform.

What it does not say

Free sampling does not guarantee a sale, and its effect is not uniform. The 2004 experiments found large differences even between brands in the same category. Research on reciprocity also suggests the gift route is short-lived: Jerry Burger and colleagues found in 1997 that the pull to return a small favour was strong after about five minutes and had faded after a week. A sample that arrives long before any purchase, or with no giver present, has less reason to work through obligation, and any effect is more likely to come from people learning that they like the product.

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