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1. Your freebies should match
your brand.
For BarkBox, a startup that assembles and ships monthly
packages for the pup in your life, maintaining brand identity
is key.
“We’re kind of an irreverent, silly company, so our marketing
stuff and giveaways match that,” says Chris O’Brien, puplick
relations director at Bark & Co. “Our aim is to make dogs
happy and healthy. So if we’re going to discount BarkBoxes
with coupon codes, we make sure that it benefits dogs.”
Basically, it wouldn’t make sense for a company like Bark &
Co. to be giving away, say, human watches. Bark & Co.’s
quirky giveaways and freebies align with the brand and
products its customers have come to know.
2. Don’t give away your best sellers.
While handing out free iPads with your sticker on the back
might make your booth the most popular at the conference,
it’s not going to help in the long run. For SparkFun Electronics,
an online retail startup that sells electronic components and
creative building kits, there’s a delicate balance between
what to give out and what to keep in inventory.
“We tend to give out products that are low risk and can last for
multiple events,” a SparkFun spokesperson told Mashable.
“We do have a lot of free swag, but we’re not giving out our
top sellers.”
3. Know your audience.
While SparkFun and Bark & Co. are established startups,
the team at Kiwi Wearables makes due with a smaller, newer
team.
“With freebies, from a founder’s perspective, you have to get
some kind of return,” says Ashley Beattie, vice president of
marketing. “I’m not going to get much value from you if I’m
giving you a t-shirt. It’s about making sure the right people
are getting your product.”
Kiwi has given away development kits at development-centric
events, such as hackathons, making it more likely that their
market audience gets their product.
4. Make freebies work for you.
Though products like t-shirts and pens will make for a nice
goodie bag, they aren’t going to do much for your business’
future.
“I saw a booth that gave away freebies if you tweeted about
them,” Beattie tells Mashable. “Creating viral products like
that allows you to analyze your audience.”
5. Cut down on branding.
For Danielle Morrill, CEO of Mattermark and former director
of marketing for Twilio, freebies are best when they’re store
quality.
“I think it’s important to focus on design, more than just
branding,” she tells Mashable. “Think about when you go
into a store; what do you want to pick up?”
“Think about when
you go into a store;
what do you want
to pick up?”
According to Morrill, it’s important to get value out of every
single piece you give away, whether that value is in driving
awareness or driving sales. If you’re creating and giving
away products that people don’t want, it’s likely a waste of
resources.
“The best giveaway is one that creates community,” says
Beattie. “You’re always going to be in a limited resource
situation, so if you’re just giving away material, you’re
probably wasting money.”