Get Your Consumers to Give Your Product a Try – Tryvertise It!

Our society loves mobile technology. We love iPods, laptops, and cell phones, particularly Blackberries. We are addicted to texting, e-mailing, instant messaging, and talking on the phone. And though we “feel” connected through all of this technology, we have actually isolated ourselves from physical interaction with people. So now, more than ever, consumers are craving an authentic experience…not just another electronic ad that pops up on their computer screen or a commercial that they fast-forward through using their TiVo.

A recent survey* shows that 9 out of 10 consumers say they would purchase a product if they could first try it and were satisfied with it. Furthermore, 6 out of 10 consumers say that if a brand wanted to convince them to buy a product, then experiencing it first-hand would be the most effective way of getting them to make a purchase.

Our mobile society has presented a challenge for marketers. How do you get consumers to try your product in an authentic way? Product Sampling is not the answer because by standing in a retail store handing out a sample of your product, you are not creating an authentic experience- a place where your consumer really would try your product.

In order to create an authentic experience for their consumers to try their product, marketers for Tylenol put Tylenol PM Samples on 1 million beds at resorts and hotels throughout the US. Along with this sample was a note saying, “We know how long you’ve waited for this vacation, and we know how mush you want to catch up on your sleep. Enjoy.” Tylenol’s goal was to place their samples in the physical location where their product would be used…a bed.

This method of reaching your consumers by getting them to try your product in an authentic experience has been termed “advertrying” or “tryvertising,” and its catching on. Car companies are packaging a free rental of their more luxury models with a stay at certain hotels. Targeting men and women on business trips who would normally need a rental car during their stay, these car companies are creating an authentic experience for their target market to try their product.

With all the new ways to reach your target market, it may be time to evaluate your marketing dollars and see if there are ways to allocate your budget to better reach your target market. In a mobile, technology-dependent society, marketers need to find a way to connect with their consumers and get them to try their products in an authentic way.

*February 2007 consumer-package-goods marketer survey from the Product Sampling Council of the Promotion Marketing Association.

Information presented based on the article, “Give it a Try: Put Brands in Consumers’ Hands (Literally) by Brian F. Martin, in the October 22, 2007 edition of Advertising Age.