Digital sampling
Product sampling trends and insights for 2024
Thursday, February 29, 2024
From influencer domination and eco-first campaigns to the rise of social commerce like TikTok Shop, the last few years have reshaped consumer buying habits like never before. How can brands adapt their product sampling strategies to align with these evolving habits and stay relevant in 2024?
We asked sampling experts and senior leaders from some of the world’s most influential brands for their biggest 2024 sampling trends, predictions and priorities. Here’s what they said…
Contents
Supporting your marketing calendar
Full-funnel sampling
How can you get the most out of your product sampling campaigns in 2024? Firstly, stop viewing sampling as a standalone tactic.
“Our most successful partners are not just doing sampling in a silo,” explains Jonny Grubin, Founder & CEO at SoPost.
“Sampling is really integrated into their comms strategy, CRM strategy and broader marketing plans to really get the most out of their campaigns throughout the year.
“So, instead of planning a one-off campaign in 2024, look at sampling holistically and how it can integrate into your wider marketing activity.”
"Our most successful partners are not just doing sampling in a silo. Sampling is really integrated into their comms strategy, CRM strategy and broader marketing plans."
— Jonny Grubin, Founder & CEO at SoPost
Anna Szpot, Global Marketing Manager at Mars Petcare, echoes this sentiment and is doubling down on this strategy for 2024 at WHISKAS® to hit their company goals:
“Sampling remains an important tool for us in 2024. This year, we will look to integrate it even more seamlessly into our overall marketing strategy, and for ways to maximize its impact and make sure it remains aligned with our broader business goals.
“But most importantly, we want to make sure we offer pet parents more choice and we delight as many cats with the taste of delicious WHISKAS® as possible!”
"This year, we will look to integrate [sampling] even more seamlessly into our overall marketing strategy and for ways to maximize its impact and make sure it remains aligned with our broader business goals."
— Anna Szpot, Global Marketing Manager at Mars Petcare
Want to ramp up your sampling game this year? It’s time to embrace a holistic sampling approach.
Supporting your marketing calendar
How else can you turbocharge that full-funnel sampling approach? Sync up your campaigns with key marketing initiatives throughout the year.
This can help you take advantage of peak shopping moments or boost product visibility for new launches, something Shelby Newell, Senior Brand Manager at e.l.f Cosmetics is focusing on in 2024:
"Sampling is an integral part of the e.l.f. Cosmetics & Skin marketing strategy. It’s the ideal way to get new products into consumers’ hands so they can really test out the efficacy of our products.
“Our goal this year is to better integrate sampling campaigns that line up with our big bet marketing moments to further amplify our reach at new product launches."
"Our goal this year is to better integrate sampling campaigns that line up with our big bet marketing moments to further amplify our reach at new product launches."
— Shelby Newell, Senior Brand Manager at e.l.f Cosmetics
Virtual try-on technology
Want to improve consumer journeys, enhance personalization and get better sampling results in 2024?
“Embrace new technologies, such as virtual try-on,” says SoPost Founder & CEO, Jonny Grubin.
Let’s say you’re a beauty brand launching a new lipstick collection. Virtual try-on (VTO) lets consumers find and sample their perfect shade without leaving their screens.
“It’s incredibly effective not only in engaging consumers but also in ensuring they have a better sampling experience,” continues Jonny.
“And we’ve seen incredible results with our brand partners. The first campaign that we launched at SoPost had a 27% greater match rate for foundation shades, which is great in terms of delivering stronger ROI, but also much better for the environment from a sustainability perspective.”
Beauty brands – don't sleep on the potential of interactive tech like VTO. It’ll help you boost engagement and campaign ROI and hit those important sustainability goals in 2024!
Voice-activated sampling
While we’re on the subject of innovative tech, it’ll come as no surprise that voice search is making the list for 2024.
The rise of voice search is a game-changer for marketers. Over half of adults use voice search daily and an increasing number of people make purchases every month through voice.
“That’s why we partnered with Amazon Alexa for voice-activated sampling,” says Jonny.
“Voice search is becoming incredibly popular for product discovery, so we knew integrating product sampling into that experience would be an invaluable opportunity for our brand partners. I’m excited to see how it develops in 2024!”
"Voice search is becoming incredibly popular for product discovery, so we knew integrating product sampling into that experience would be an invaluable opportunity for our brand partners."
— Jonny Grubin, Founder & CEO at SoPost
Artificial intelligence (AI)
No trends piece would be complete without AI! AI dominated the marketing space in 2023 and shows no signs of slowing down in 2024.
How are we leveraging AI at SoPost this year?
"We already utilize machine learning in our Intelligent Order Processing technology, and this year, we're expanding our use of AI to enhance campaign results and streamline internal processes even more,” says Dan Tidmas, Head of Product at SoPost.
"One specific area of focus is our efforts around reviews. Recognizing the significant impact of reviews for our brands, we're using AI to summarize thousands of consumer reviews and unearth new insights, key themes and sentiment analysis.
"This is just one example of how we're harnessing AI this year and we’re already seeing some fantastic results. I’m excited to see how we progress!"
“Recognizing the significant impact of reviews for our brands, we're using AI to summarize thousands of consumer reviews and unearth new insights, key themes and sentiment analysis.”
— Dan Tidmas, Head of Product at SoPost
Localized sampling
Over the years, digital sampling has unleashed a new era of personalization possibilities.
Brands can pinpoint their ideal consumers, uncover hyper-specific insights and use these to craft tailored messaging and post-trial communications.
And Lara Akkad, Senior Brand Manager at Procter & Gamble, is looking to push personalization even further in 2024 through a regionalized approach at Pampers:
“One thing I have top of mind right now is how we can regionalize our sampling. If we can understand what sampling means across each of our regions separately, I think we’ll have a wealth of learnings.”
In order to localize sampling, it is important to understand the regional nuances and trends.
So, what are some regional sampling trends we're seeing at SoPost? We asked our regional leads:
Diverse channels and privacy-conscious consumers in the US
"This year, I expect brands to embrace diversified channel placements to balance engagement and efficiencies and gain deeper insights into audience behavior and intent," says Kendall Blakeman, our Head of Brand Partnerships for North America.
She also sees brands moving beyond conventional brand awareness campaigns to heighten brand visibility and drive consideration:
"We've also seen a resurgence of out-of-home (OOH) placements, which, combined with SoPost's seamless digital integrations, provides a holistic approach to engaging consumers in both physical and virtual spaces.
"Finally, as the industry navigates the decline of cookies, forward-thinking brands are turning to digital sampling not only as a promotional tool but also as a strategic cornerstone for collecting first and zero-party data, ensuring a more personalized and privacy-conscious approach to consumer engagement."
“This year, I expect brands to embrace diversified channel placements to balance engagement and efficiencies and gain deeper insights into audience behavior and intent.”
— Kendall Blakeman, Head of Brand Partnerships, NOAM at SoPost
The rise of retail media in Germany
According to Insider Intelligence, retail media is projected to account for over a third of ad spend by 2027.
Magali Kirsch, our lead in the DACH region, provides insights on why brands should capitalize on this trend with their sampling initiatives in 2024:
"In Germany, retail media is on the rise. Consumers browsing retailer websites are already advanced in their decision-making process, so by integrating sampling campaigns within the retail media environment, brands can offer samples to qualified leads.
“Thanks to great partnerships like Douglas and Flaconi in the DACH region, we can target consumers based on specific first-party data and shopping behaviors, such as browsing history and past purchases.
“Sampling through retail environments also streamlines the buying journey and offers convenience for consumers: they can search for, buy and provide feedback on products all from the comfort of their own home.”
“Thanks to great partnerships like Douglas and Flaconi in the DACH region, we can target consumers based on specific first-party data and shopping behaviors, such as browsing history and past purchases.”
— Magali Kirsch, Head of Brand Partnerships, DACH at SoPost
Eco-conscious sampling in the UK and France
"In the UK, we're seeing an increasing trend around ultra-personalized experiences to drive UGC and engagement, as well as a focus on environmental impact," says Emily Sharpe, SoPost's Team Lead, Beauty in the UK.
"We're proud to say that 99% of our packaging in the UK is sustainable, and we'll continue to push eco-conscious practices wherever we can this year!"
"In the UK, we're seeing an increasing trend around ultra-personalized experiences to drive UGC and engagement, as well as a focus on environmental impact."
— Emily Sharpe, Team Lead Beauty, UK at SoPost
We can also expect to see a focus on sustainability in the French market this year, according to Hélène Tournesac, Head of Brand Partnerships, France at SoPost:
"At SoPost, our mission has always been to craft impactful product sampling experiences that maximize ROI while building a greener future.
“This year, we're ramping up efficiency and sustainability in France through some exciting new partnerships. Watch this space!"
"This year, we're ramping up efficiency and sustainability in France through some exciting new partnerships. Watch this space!"
— Hélène Tournesac, Head of Brand Partnerships, France at SoPost
Picking up momentum in Australia
And how about in Australia?
"Digital sampling is gaining traction," says Georgia Ball, Head of Brand Partnerships, Australia.
While some brands have manually supported sampling initiatives in-house for some time after seeing the benefits firsthand, many are just starting to explore digital sampling for the first time.
"Regardless of experience, brands are seeing the best results when they integrate sampling with their broader marketing and commercial objectives — whether launching a new product, acquiring the next generation of consumers or re-engaging lapsed customers," continues Georgia.
"Optimizing for these outcomes only takes simple tweaks in how we configure a campaign, but they make the world of difference when we're measuring results.
"For brands looking to amplify their sampling in 2024, adopting this strategic approach not only ensures optimal performance but creates the strongest business case for digital sampling."
“Brands are seeing the best results when they integrate sampling with their broader marketing and commercial objectives — whether launching a new product, acquiring new consumers or reengaging lapsed customers.”
— Georgia Ball, Head of Brand Partnerships, Australia at SoPost
Prioritizing sampling
But above all, brands should start exploring ways digital sampling is not only integrated into marketing activities, but actually sits at the forefront of everything they do. Something Lara Akkad is prioritizing at Pampers:
Psst! Watch our full interview with Pampers here.
Conclusion
For 2024, the keys to success are clear: embrace holistic strategies and cutting-edge technology like virtual try-on and voice-activated sampling and delve deep into personalization.
Most importantly, what’s our biggest piece of advice? Understand your audience.
Know their preferences, their favorite platforms and what truly ignites their interest. That way, your sampling strategies remain laser-focused and resonate all year long.
Want some tips to help you do that? Read our 2024 online product sampling guide.