free samples as promotional tool.

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giving free samples is a good way of promoting your brand to your target group of customers, simply you offer your product to your customer without charging anything. in the customer point of view its win situation anyway they didn't pay anything for using a product or service. before going deep about the benefits of this method, i like to show how this method differ from other methods.

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AIDA model

a customer acquiring process can be explained by AIDA model. AIDA consists of four levels

• A - Attention (Awareness): attract the attention of the customer.
• I - Interest: raise customer interest by focusing on and demonstrating advantages and benefits.
• D - Desire: convince customers that they want and desire the product or service and that it will satisfy their needs.
• A - Action: lead customers towards taking action and/or purchasing.

in the AIDA model customer should aware, interest, desire to buy and use your product. to this three phases companies are spending millions, advertisements advertisements advertisements companies are shouting to the customers, unfortunately there are thousands of people shouting in the same time. customers have thousands of options than your product.

how free samples work

so how the free samples techniques works?, simply it work as reverse of AIDA, first a company issuing the free samples for customers, in simple term customers purchase it without paying. first customer try the product. when they try the product they will be desire or satisfied and satisfaction will make the customer to know the advantages and benefits of the product and ultimately customer will get a good attention toward brand and company.

what are benefits of free sample method

cost of acquiring a customer will be low - when compare to the advertising cost giving a free sample will be low in cost
customer will experience - in other methods companies are first educate the customer about the product and convince them to try with a cost, but in free samples customer don't know any thing so they don't have any expectation product will be over the expectation anyway
high value for product - value of a product is determined by the cost and benefits, here customer have no any costs (financially), but they have benefits.
customer will feel like you cared them - when you offer a product free to a customer and ask them to use they will feel like you care them and respect their feedback.

when you offer a product free concern on followings

give it to the right people - offer it to potential customer, give the people who will at least try it.
try to get the feedback on your product - convince them to share the feedback about the product
explain them how to use it - for example if you are a noodles producer, let them to know how to prepare it correctly.
ask them to share - ask the people to share about your product with their family and friends.

over promoting may kill your brand

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what is promotion

what is promotion
Promotion means the promotions mix or the communications mix. This mix includes advertising, sales promotions, publicity, direct mail, exhibitions, display, packaging, selling and even word-of-mouth. (http://multimediamarketing.com/mkc/marketingmix/)
promotion is a communication process which communicates about the product to the customers. specially in new product promotion, it should communicate more than a existing product. new product promotion should inform customers followings

what promotion needs to tell your people

• product or brand name
• price of the product
• when it will be available in market
• where it will be available
• value and benefits to the customers by the product
• sources where customers can gain more information such website, customer call center
• manufactures, distributors details
• if the product is novel, information such how to use, why to use, technical details and more

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effects of over promoting

end of the day the goal of the promotion is convince the customers to buy it, or create a demand for the product.
when designing a promotion specially for a new product, marketer should be more careful. over shouting in the ears of the customer may affect the success.
simply when you over promoting your new product, customer expectation will be high, when the expectation is so high people will buy when you introduce the product. but when they using it they had a high expectation on the product so to satisfy them your product should be best or customer will be dissatisfy.
you may have experience on this. i love movies, so i like to tell you a example from film promotions. think about a film which is averagely good which is promoted hugely by back to back advertisements on TV, internet, radio and almost all sources of advertisements. now compare with a film it is too averagely good but not promoted hugely.
so in the first film you know all the positive things about it actor, director, music director, music tracks, best scenes and almost every thing but the positive side. in the second film you know the basic information of the film.
when you watch film you have all the positive things about the first film but you need more because they shouted more and made you expect more. but when you watch the second film lower expectation and information about the film will satisfy you more than first film. simply a same quality product but the expectation made the product successful or failure.
think that you don't know anything about the i-phone, you will satisfy more than knowing about i-phone and use it.
simple thing here is don't tell more than what you can offer, emphasize more on core benefits and let the customers to try and excited. when you show all your excellent scenes in trailer customer don't have any reason to come to the theaters.
so talk less do more........