“They sent me a free mini bottle of essential oils with my scented candles order! So excited!” This was the message that a teammate once sent in our Slack group. 

Can you guess what happened next? If your answer was “she loved the candles and the freebie so much that she placed a separate order for essential oils,” then you’re bang on. And, just like that, with a single freebie (and quality products), the seller had made a loyal customer. 

The moral of the story is that free gifts can be a great way to boost your small business. Let’s explore why freebies work, and some ideas that you can pick from. 

What are the benefits of giving freebies to customers?

The #1 rule of giving freebies? It needs to actually be useful and relevant to the product they’re buying. If you’re a clothing company giving away coffee mugs, then it won’t work. 

When you do it right, though, freebies and giveaways can have some great positive effects on your small business. 

• Boosts customer loyalty: A thoughtful free gift makes your customers feel appreciated, which is the gateway to getting their loyalty. And, loyal customers? They stick around for a long time.

• Promotes your products: Whether you’re launching a new product, or trying to get more sales on a previously existing product, sending out free versions of the item lets people know that it’s out there. 

• Builds brand awareness: Free gifts make it more likely for a customer to leave you a positive review or recommend your brand to others.

• Reduces cart abandonments: A free gift or a discount coupon can turn browsers into buyers by giving them the push they need to not abandon their carts — especially if they’re first-time buyers.

• Increases sales: All of the above benefits come together to give you the thing you really need: an uptick in sales!

Best free gift ideas (+strategies) to keep your customers coming back for me

A brief dive into 10 freebie ideas that your customers will love, some simple strategies on how you can implement them, and the psychology behind why they work. 

1. Free products related to their order

Free gifts make customers happy. If you needed proof, a study conducted by a neuroeconomics professor found that gifts increased people’s happy hormones and reduced their stress.

This is especially true if the gift pairs well with the products they already ordered. For instance, if your niche is skincare dropshipping, and your customer orders a face moisturizer, you can offer hand cream as a freebie.

A great strategy to incite more sales is to offer free gifts in tiers. For example, you can offer a mini product on purchase of items worth $50, and a full-sized product on purchase of items worth $100. The more they spend, the higher the value of the gift they receive. 

You can also make this quantity based, such as Buy 3 Get 1, and Buy 5 Get 2. 

Why does this strategy work?

• A freebie makes customers have a positive association with your brand right away, which increases repeat sales

• A new customer or someone who was hesitating on going through with the purchase will be more likely to buy from you if they had a better return on their investment (i.e. they spend $25, but get a $5 product for free, which means their investment was only $25, but their ROI was $30)

2. Mini samples of new launches

Giving away mini versions of new products works in the same way as giving freebie products. However, here, you have the added benefit of getting real feedback on what your customers are thinking about the new launch. And your buyers get a risk-free way of trying out your new items.

Do they like it? Is it actually beneficial to them? Are they having any problems with the product? 

Getting answers to these can be valuable in letting you know whether you continue with the product as it is, make some tweaks to it, or slash it entirely. 

If people are loving these mini samples, you can send emails or text messages to get them to buy the full-sized versions. 

3. Branded merch

Technically, branded merch falls under “free products,” except it comes branded with your logo, tagline, and social media usernames. The goal here is to make your customers feel appreciated while getting more visibility for your brand. 

So, not only should your branded merch be useful, it should also be visible, i.e. something your buyer would use out in public. This could be a tote bag, a pouch, a t-shirt, or even a keychain. 

4. Exclusive discount codes

We've already established — even scientifically — that customers love coupon codes. What better way to make them come back for more than a promo code that's exclusive for them? 

A discount can entice even those buyers who had no plans of purchasing more items anytime soon. After all, nobody can let a good coupon go to waste. 

Your buyers get a discount, and you get more sales. It's a win-win. Just be sure to tack on an expiration date to the coupon code. 😉

5. Courses or webinars

Does your product or software need some know-how to use? Do you have any expert tips that your customers would benefit from? If yes, creating a simple course or webinar and giving it away can get you a lot of brownie points! 

Let's say you sell secondhand photography gear. Almost all photographers and videographers use photo and video editing tools. In this case, you could give away a free course on Adobe Photoshop or Davinci Resolve. 

To make your sales climb up even more, create urgency by giving away the course or webinar only for a limited time. Once that time ends, you can even sell the asset separately! 

6. Digital items

This includes eBooks, printables, checklists, or even free sticker packs. Basically, any intangible item that will put a smile on your customer's face. 

Digital freebies can work with virtually any type of business. Sell beauty products? Give away an eBook full of insider makeup tips. Do you deal with camping gear? Send a checklist on camping safety rules. 

Even if you sell art, you can give away free sticker packs that can be used on Instagram. So, get creative, and make sure your buyers get something that's valuable and/or fun! 

7. Discounts on subscriptions/ memberships

If you sell a line of subscription boxes along with a la carte items, or have any premium paid membership subscriptions with extra perks, you can offer a small discount on them for your buyers. 

Alternatively, you can also partner with other subscription-based services in your niche, and offer discounts to those memberships for your buyers. A great example is a tech company offering discounts on streaming services. 

If you do decide to go the partnership route, make sure there’s something in it for you, too (obviously). The most common perk would be receiving a commission for every customer you send their way (tracked through the discount codes you provide).

8. Holiday-themed goodies

Holidays are the time for shopping sprees — be it for gifts, or for personal use. You can cash in on this and get your sales graph to go uphill with some small holiday-themed freebies. Bonus: you’ll get to spread some holiday cheer, too!

These freebies could be anything, ranging from Christmas tree decorations to gift baskets. Just think of a free product you can give away, and make it holiday-themed. 

9. Gift cards

Like discount codes, giving away gift cards for your own business makes repeat customers out of anyone who receives them. They may even pass the gift card along to friends and family, in which case you get a new customer entirely!

Even a small amount, such as $5-$10, can go a long way. 

Alternatively, you can (once again) partner with other brands and give away gift cards that can be redeemed there. If you stock your products in any brick-and-mortar store, you can also make sure that locals can use your gift card to buy your products there.

10. Handwritten notes! 

When all else fails, this simple strategy might be your life raft. While this technically isn’t a freebie, it’s something that makes your buyers really feel appreciated. 

Why? Because, you took the time to sit down and write out a personalized note for them. This can’t be automated, which means you’re essentially saying, “I value you. You’re worth my time.”

Like we discussed above, making your buyers feel valued is the ticket to getting their loyalty. 

Have any other freebie tricks up your sleeve? Share them with us!