Free samples?

[Tabitha]

Do free samples work? You bet they do. I carry a giant 1/2oz tube of lip balm in my line. I always tuck a little 1/5oz tube into all of my orders as a thank you. This week I had a customer order 12 full size balms because she loved the sameple size. Last week I had a customer order 24 full size tubes for the same reason.

Free samples really do pay off.

Does anyone else have free sample experieneces to share?

 

[pepperi27]

I have this customer that loves my sample soaps which btw is my biggest seller? Anyway she is a repeat customer and decided she wanted to purchase a sampler of 10-15 soaps for her fiance as a birthday present? LOL So I sent her a few extra and dressed up the soaps. Ever since then she repeatedly orders from me and sends me referrals which I reward her for LOL!

 

[digit]

As a customer, I love freebie samples! I often go back and purchase the full size, so it works on me.

It also makes me feel appreciated as a customer. That little touch, that certain "je ne sais quoi" that keeps me coming back.

I think it is very helpful for internet business because it is so darn difficult to smell or feel a product on the screen. Where is Willy Wonka when you need him?

Digit

 

[pepperi27]

LOL loved that movie btw

 

[kwahlne]

I am not selling yet, but I take samples in to my work. Everyone keeps telling me I need to sell my soap and I keep telling them, I will when I'm ready, but until then here are free samples! I am hoping that this is an indication that I will actually GET some sales when I open my doors for business!

On a side-note, I JUST APPROVED MY FINAL REVISION ON A LOGO FOR MY UPCOMING SOAP BUSINESS! Yea!

 

[pepperi27]

That sounds so exciting kwahlne!

 

[Simply Divine Soap]

Tabitha,
Were do you get your 1/5oz tubes?
THANK YOU!

TTFN
Emily
Oh yeah CONGRATS!

 

[Lane]

I sample like CRAZY! I've noted a few different things I've done in past posts...

I've just started to post my sample sizes on Etsy, 2oz mostly. but I always send .5 ounce samples and extra soaps with orders. Not so much for returning orders, but as a thank you to my customers. My samples are always different, and I had a customer e-mail me about how excited she gets when she opens her order and finds new goodies everytime.

If a new customer e-mails me with questions about buying samples, I always send them something for free.

I had a lady e-mail me about wanting to test a pink sugar conditioner, to make sure the smell was what she wanted. I told her I had some half ounce Pink Sugar lotions I had made that morning and I would be more than happy to pop one in the mail for her (for free) so she could smell how good and rich my Pink Sugar blend was. She was thrilled and loved the smell and came back to buy the conditioner AND a full size lotion.

When I sold Mary Kay, forever ago, they taught us A LOT about linking products together to increase sales. By introducing the lotion in a scent I knew she was interested in, I sold a product to her she might not have even thought twice about...

I use to send samples in different scents but stopped doing that. If someone orders a lotion, I send them a shampoo in the same scent...

 

[Simply Divine Soap]

Lane,
Bye the way your avater is cute!

TTFN
Emily

 

[Tabitha]

Tabitha,
Were do you get your 1/5oz tubes?
THANK YOU!

The 1/5oz tube is the standard chapstick size. You can get those anywhere. http://www.bayousome.com comes to mind first. WSP http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.comhas them on sale right now too.

 

[Soapmaker Man]

As some of you who have ordered from me know, I always try to include a free bar of soap, shrink wrapped, sitting on one of my wood soap decks. Besides compliments, I have sold several wholesale orders of my wood soap dishes due to this gift.

 

[pepperi27]

I sample like CRAZY! I've noted a few different things I've done in past posts...

I've just started to post my sample sizes on Etsy, 2oz mostly. but I always send .5 ounce samples and extra soaps with orders. Not so much for returning orders, but as a thank you to my customers. My samples are always different, and I had a customer e-mail me about how excited she gets when she opens her order and finds new goodies everytime.

If a new customer e-mails me with questions about buying samples, I always send them something for free.

I had a lady e-mail me about wanting to test a pink sugar conditioner, to make sure the smell was what she wanted. I told her I had some half ounce Pink Sugar lotions I had made that morning and I would be more than happy to pop one in the mail for her (for free) so she could smell how good and rich my Pink Sugar blend was. She was thrilled and loved the smell and came back to buy the conditioner AND a full size lotion.

When I sold Mary Kay, forever ago, they taught us A LOT about linking products together to increase sales. By introducing the lotion in a scent I knew she was interested in, I sold a product to her she might not have even thought twice about...

I use to send samples in different scents but stopped doing that. If someone orders a lotion, I send them a shampoo in the same scent...

Thats a great idea but they would get costly for you if say 20-30 request a sample prior to purchasing and only 10 make actual purchases? I was also thinking how many samples do you send? I send one per two items. If its a repeat customer I send a sample per item ordered. I didn't think of pairing items until a few months ago. Now I do that all the time, like if they order vegan items I won't send them a goatsmilk soap! LOL

 

[Lane]

Thats a great idea but they would get costly for you if say 20-30 request a sample prior to purchasing and only 10 make actual purchases? I was also thinking how many samples do you send? I send one per two items. If its a repeat customer I send a sample per item ordered. I didn't think of pairing items until a few months ago. Now I do that all the time, like if they order vegan items I won't send them a goatsmilk soap! LOL

Yeeeaaahhhh..... I pour alot in to samples. But IF 20 or 30 people requested samples I'd be excited and send them anyway. The way I see it, a sample costs about $.20 to $1.50, and then the packaging and shipping... So say about $3.00. If you times that by 20 potential customers, that would be $60.00. Even if only 5 came back and bought a lotion @$6.99 and a single bar of soap @4.75 that would be almost $60.00. PLUS the word of mouth that you are a generous seller. :wink: My math is probably very arguable...Never my strong point.... I figure samples are primarily the way to advertise, so I might as well put some 'umph in it...

I don't really have a scale for how many samples I include...I probably should It is always different. Sometimes if I had to make a soap to take a picture of for Etsy, who ever makes the biggest purchase that day, gets the soap.

I had a customer e-mail me today asking about if I could make her some body care with essential oils and w/o a preservative. I told her I had a tooth ache today and I didn't feel like listing anything on Etsy. BUT that I was making EO stuff today and I would be more than happy to send her a few samples tomorrow for free. She was totally thrilled and within two hours, her friend had placed an order with me! I think samples just go hand in hand with customer service....And YES I have had that customer who just keeps wanting samples. I only send ONE set of free samples, if they don't place an order, I do not send more free stuff.

 

[Lane]

Lane,
Bye the way your avater is cute!

TTFN
Emily

Thanks! I've been playing around with my camera a bunch lately.

 

[Tabitha]

I use to send samples in different scents but stopped doing that. If someone orders a lotion, I send them a shampoo in the same scent...

This makes so much senese but I have never really thought about it.

If you send a dif scent & the person likes the other scent, they just switch to it, if you send a dif item & the person likes it, they order them both! What a great concept!

 

[Lane]

I use to send samples in different scents but stopped doing that. If someone orders a lotion, I send them a shampoo in the same scent...

This makes so much senese but I have never really thought about it.

If you send a dif scent & the person likes the other scent, they just switch to it, if you send a dif item & the person likes it, they order them both! What a great concept!

There is an "official" name for that kind of selling/marketing... I just can't think of it... Pyramid selling? Latter selling? Something like that... Just taking what the buyer already likes and offering it to them in a new format.

 

[Chay]

Were do you get your 1/5oz tubes?

This site has a lot of sample size packaging. http://www.sks-bottle.com/340c/SampleIndex2.html

 

[kwahlne]

There is an "official" name for that kind of selling/marketing... I just can't think of it... Pyramid selling? Latter selling? Something like that... Just taking what the buyer already likes and offering it to them in a new format.

Is it "upselling"? Not sure.

 

[Tabitha]

Lane wrote:

There is an "official" name for that kind of selling/marketing... I just can't think of it... Pyramid selling? Latter selling? Something like that... Just taking what the buyer already likes and offering it to them in a new format.

I used to dress windows & visuals in general for upscale boutiques & department stores, we called it cross merchandising.

 

[pepperi27]

Thats a great idea but they would get costly for you if say 20-30 request a sample prior to purchasing and only 10 make actual purchases? I was also thinking how many samples do you send? I send one per two items. If its a repeat customer I send a sample per item ordered. I didn't think of pairing items until a few months ago. Now I do that all the time, like if they order vegan items I won't send them a goatsmilk soap! LOL

Yeeeaaahhhh..... I pour alot in to samples. But IF 20 or 30 people requested samples I'd be excited and send them anyway. The way I see it, a sample costs about $.20 to $1.50, and then the packaging and shipping... So say about $3.00. If you times that by 20 potential customers, that would be $60.00. Even if only 5 came back and bought a lotion @$6.99 and a single bar of soap @4.75 that would be almost $60.00. PLUS the word of mouth that you are a generous seller. :wink: My math is probably very arguable...Never my strong point.... I figure samples are primarily the way to advertise, so I might as well put some 'umph in it...

I don't really have a scale for how many samples I include...I probably should It is always different. Sometimes if I had to make a soap to take a picture of for Etsy, who ever makes the biggest purchase that day, gets the soap.

I had a customer e-mail me today asking about if I could make her some body care with essential oils and w/o a preservative. I told her I had a tooth ache today and I didn't feel like listing anything on Etsy. BUT that I was making EO stuff today and I would be more than happy to send her a few samples tomorrow for free. She was totally thrilled and within two hours, her friend had placed an order with me! I think samples just go hand in hand with customer service....And YES I have had that customer who just keeps wanting samples. I only send ONE set of free samples, if they don't place an order, I do not send more free stuff.

You know I never really looked at the bigger picture and your right giving samples even if yes is too much in the end could very well be worth it.