There has been an increased emphasis on shopping locally and promoting local business over the last handful of years, but ultimately, customers will gravitate to the most convenient and, often, the most price-competitive options. These aspects can be difficult for small local businesses to overcome, but some have found a classic angle to level the playing field – one that’s become prevalent in the spaces customers now explore online.
The Resurgence of the Free Sample
Many still have the idea of free samples being somewhat of an archaic form of marketing. Free samples conjure memories of little stalls at markets offering tiny tasting pots of jams or little treats from a local business to drum up interest. However, free samples are just as effective now as they always were, tapping into the principle of reciprocity and how it continues to have a lot of appeal for business and customers.
In fact, free samples may now be even more potent than they once were. Due to the levels of competition, the ease of leaving, and the convenience of finding discounts, the online business space has long leveraged free samples to keep customers from going elsewhere. You can even see this in action on platforms that aren’t offering physical products and simply want to help customers take the next step to signing up.
Online platforms are very competitive in this regard, especially in entertainment circles. You can see it at its most prevalent in iGaming. Now, the best casino bonus has free spins with a deposit match to help newcomers get a lot more game time for their first deposit. Around that, the promotions expand to daily free wheel prize spins and a bunch of free bingo gaming times and tickets. Then, there are the free trials for streaming platforms. Hulu, Paramount+, Apple TV+, Fubo, and Mubi all offer at least seven-day free trials.
Leaning into Customer Expectations
Throughout 2025, we’ve seen plenty of businesses in Manchester, from local brands to more national ones, lean into this and win over a whole host of customers as a result.
In September, Re:bourn x Northern Lights ran a hugely popular sample, vintage, and deadstock sale. The centrepiece of this was the collection of samples, but the huge 80 per cent
discounts brought prices down to being pretty close to free anyway! In a more traditional free sample event, Kylie Cosmetics hosted a pop-up in March, offering free samples and sprinkle doughnuts to anyone who wanted to try out the new range of products.
From there, even Greene King has been looking to leverage the free samples angle. They found that 65 per cent of Mancunians haven’t ever asked for a sample of a drink. Further, nearly one-quarter have been too nervous to ask for a sample. So, to rectify this and hit the free sample promotion hype, they introduced a new tiny glass so that people would be encouraged to try free samples before they buy.
Free samples have become more and more sought out by customers, which means that local businesses across Manchester that lean into the marketing scheme can draw in the crowds all the easier.
