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2011 Free Sample Marketing Trends

Guest post by: John Clark

Article Overview: Whether you operate a business online or offline, there are certain marketing trends from which you can benefit. One of those marketing trends happens to be free samples, also known as freebies or product sampling.

2011 Free Sample Marketing Trends

Whether you operate a business online or offline, there are certain marketing trends from which you can benefit. One of those marketing trends happens to be free samples, also known as freebies or product sampling. Though free samples are not a new marketing method, they are still very effective. In fact, freebie marketing is becoming a popular marketing method once again. Sample marketing was a big marketing trend a few decades ago. However, with the rise of the Internet, brick and mortar businesses trended away from free samples and focused on other more elaborate techniques.

However, online business owners discovered that free samples can also help their business, making free sample marketing a growing trend once again. For example, blog owners who sell ebooks may post the first few chapters of the books on their blog for potential customers to read. Obviously, if the readers like the first few chapters they read, they may want to purchase the entire ebook to read the rest.

However, there are other ways to use free samples. Many stores will sell razors at an inexpensive price, but make up the difference by selling expensive blade refills. While this may seem like a great way to increase profits, customers have caught on to this marketing technique. Therefore, many customers just buy new razors, instead of buying the refill blades, especially since most razors come with one or two refill blades.

Essentially, there are other great reasons why business owners should utilize free samples in their overall marketing strategy. For one, it builds customer trust and loyalty, especially if the business owner has high integrity and honesty values. Without that trust, business owners can not build relationships with their customers. Of course, relationships are a key component to successful businesses.

If you have never used freebie marketing, start with small, inexpensive items. You should test your marketing methods to see if they will help your business obtain new customers or leads. If your product sampling strategy is successful on a small-scale basis, give away more expensive items during the next marketing session.

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Article Tags: business online, free sample, free samples, freebies, marketing
Referred by: http://www.saveonquotes.com



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