Giving your product away for free may not seem like the best way to do business, but it can be an excellent way to build your brand.
Of course this will not be feasible for all businesses or all products, but if it won't set you back too much, why not give it a try?
This is one of Mark Nagurski's "big business sponsorship ideas to market your small business".
"Quite often your expertise, product or service can be as valuable as your cash," says Nagurski. "Look for opportunities where you benefit from both promotional opportunities and the chance to show off what you can do. For example, a landscaper could sponsor a neighbourhood renewal project by providing supplies and manpower rather than just cutting a cheque. A bakery could support a children's hospital by supplying goodies for a bake sale."
In a comment to Mark's post I suggested a business selling their own sports drink giving them out the drinks at local little league games. Kids get thirsty. Especially kids playing ball.
I think what Mark is talking about is more about how your product can "help", but even if it's not really "needed" you can still benefit.
I remember when I was in school and the soft drink Surge came out. This may be a poor example being how I don't think it exists anymore, but Surge representatives came to our school and offered free cans to the students as a promotion. I have to say that I did see a lot of people drinking it there for a while. I went to a Reds game a year or two ago and there were representatives for the soft drink Vault doing the same type of thing outside of the stadium.
People love free samples. People will try almost anything if it is free, and getting them to try your product once might be the beginning of a loyal customer relationship.
You may just offer discounts, but nothing is going to get more customer participation than something that is free. Let them decide if your product is worth paying for. If response is poor, it may be an eye-opener and lead you to consider some change. If response is good, you will sell your product.
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Comments
Use freebies well
Hi Chris and thanks for the mention
Free samples can certainly be a big draw and, done well, can be the first step in a long term relationship. You're right to say I was considering how they might be able to help from a sponsorship perspective but I think the point is broader.
If you can mix free samples with other strategies they can become much more effective.
ex. Free samples as part of a named sponsorship
Free samples donated to help raise funds for a good cause
Free samples as part of a competition / data collection
People do always take free but do they value it much? Being a bit more creative with your freebies and sampling can help create a 'reason why' that makes your campaign more successful.
RE: Use Freebies well
Give away
I sell safety and security products; stun guns, pepper spray, etc. so giving away samples isn't an option.
I do, however, give a free gift with a stun gun purchase. I haven't seen any benefit to it yet but would appreciate any ideas any one could give to do this successfully.
I like the concept and agree that it builds customer loyalty. I'm just not sure if it will work with my product line or how to do it to make it work.
Thanks in advance for any help that comes my way!
RE: Give away
I can certainly see your dilemma based on the products that you sell. I am curious as to what your free gift is.
Perhaps hosting or sponsoring some kind of self-defense seminar demonstrating your products could be of help. You may not want to give away your products for free, but may consider giving out other free promotional items such as t-shirts with your brand on them, or something of that nature.
Give Away
As the owner of a consignment shop where most of the products do not "belong" to us, it's not often feasible for us to offer giveaways. However, I recently found a way around this and came up with a giveaway contest as part of a competiton/data collection campaign as Mark Nagurski mentioned. We are giving away a $25.00 gas card (after all, who would say no to free gas right now?) and are collecting email addresses of those who choose to opt into our mailing list. Opting in to the mailing list is, of course, not required, but we've found that many of those who have entered the drawing have chosen to do so, so it's helping to build our mailing list better than anything we've tried so far. Also, it's getting lots of new people into our store. It's definitely something we will be doing again and it has shown me the value, first hand, of this type of giveaway.
RE: Give Away
Thank you for sharing. It is true that some businesses will not find giveaways feasible, but I think what you're doing with the contest is a fantastic idea (not to mention a fantastic prize). It sounds like it has been worth it for you, and I am tempted to point it out on the comments of my contest marketing article, where some were questioning the value of running contests.
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