For years, brands bank on sampling to get the word about their product and services. As trends and advancements in marketing evolve, sampling methods in the consumer package goods (CPG) segment go with the tides as well, shifting towards a more digital approach.
Sampling allows consumers to try a product before buying it. Traditional product sampling, such as experiential marketing and direct mail, has been the go-to method of brands when it comes to getting their product into the hands of customers. The main goal is to get products into as many hands as possible. On the contrary, digital sampling is focused heavily on data behind sampling. This gives brands the advantage to specifically track and craft their sampling operations. To put it simply, brands nowadays can target consumers digitally and send them samples to try and experience. Brands either deliver small trials to the consumers’ doorstep, talk with consumers via chatbots, or have social media promos where participants get redeem codes for free goods.
Here are three examples of brands who have used digital sampling.
Amazon
With the help of their consumers’ purchase history, Amazon sends out free
samples for them to try. The samples are like product recommendations from
Amazon, only this time it’s as real as it gets. Such samples are included in
the partnership between Amazon and select brands to hopefully persuade the
consumer to eventually purchase the product. This enables a higher likelihood
of conversion than display ads and an addition on sales for the brand’s
benefit.
KIND
Snack bar company, KIND, had a campaign called #kindawesome to encourage
people to spread kindness towards others. Audiences can pass along a
#kindawesome card to individuals doing kind acts, then they can use the code on
the card to redeem a KIND snack bar thru the online website. The recipient then
receives the snack via mail along with another #kindawesome card to pass onto
another individual.
Perrier
After Perrier launched their new flavored sparkling water, using Facebook ads
that target key demographic consumers, the brand came up with a creative
engagement campaign. Perrier chatted with consumers using a Gratafy-powered
Messenger bot. The bot helped consumers add Perrier Flavors filter onto their
profile image to share on their timelines tagged with #PerrierFlavors. Once
shared, users are given an incentive or reward for participating- a Messenger Bot sends them a discount code
for a ride-hailing service app.
With the continuous evolution of innovative ideas in marketing, and changes in consumer behavior, one way to keep up with everything is by integrating digital in our consumers’ experience with our product or service.
Send us a message and let’s plan how we can start your digital journey upgrade!