The truth is, gifts have been around for as long as businesses were built. The only difference is today, it is given away online. In the past, these free things were given away at store entrances. Most of the time, these were food. It was known as a “free taste”. Restaurants and bakeries would offer free tastings of their food to entice consumers to shop or eat at their restaurants. It is really a great marketing strategy to encourage consumers to buy. It is so cool that it has survived and evolved into a great online marketing strategy. With gifts, companies see huge growth in consumer loyalty and, of course, profits.

Now that they are given away online, consumers can easily access various free samples. These include food coupons, food samples, toiletries, household items, and much more. Now that it’s become a revitalized online phenomenon, one can help but wonder why giveaways matter and why they’ve taken over the online world.

1. Times are getting tougher.
Businesses are struggling to make good profits, while consumers are struggling to stretch their budgets. With gifts, companies can get those consumers to remember them and buy from them when they can. At the other end of the spectrum, consumers see gifts as a way to save on basic necessities and even simple luxuries.

2. Companies and consumers in the online world.
It has been said many times: the Internet is a great invention. It made the world smaller by allowing everyone to have access to almost everything. With websites and social media, consumers are always online. We do research online, we do business online, we work online, we connect with our friends and family online, we shop online, and we do just about everything online. With this, companies recognized how having an online presence can greatly affect the make and break of their business. Consumers need to see you online. We have now equated reliability with online presence. The best way to stand out in the online world is to give gifts. These attract consumers.

3. Consumers can no longer spend more money.
Unlike before, when life was easier and better, consumers can no longer spend money trying new products. Before, it was okay to spend money just to try something new. That is not the case in today’s world. With budgets tightening, consumers are simply not willing to risk spending money on a new product. This is where the gifts come in. It allows consumers to try the product without spending money. If they like it, they will buy it. This is the main marketing backbone of gifts. Companies spend some money on free samples, but gain a lot from competition and a mountain of loyal new customers.

These are some of the reasons why gifts are important. It is the driving force that allows businesses to prosper and consumers to minimize their spending. Giveaways allow companies to introduce new products and entice consumers to purchase these products. For consumers, free samples allow them to save some money and avoid wasting it buying a new product they really wouldn’t like.