Walmart Customers Will Soon Be Able To Snag Free Samples

If the best part of your trip to Costco is the free samples, you might be interested in Walmart's latest move. The chain retailer has been testing weekend demos offering free samples in over 120 stores since June, and now it will roll the service out to 1,000 locations before February, according to CNBC.

This isn't limited to food; it's open to all advertisers with products at Walmart and is part of the company's multi-channel advertising toward in-store shoppers. In a report from Walmart's advertising arm, Walmart Connect, the company identified demo stations as a "proven part of the shopper marketing playbook." If you've ever been subtly convinced to buy a new cheese or snack after a free sample, you know this, too. Walmart pitches the opportunity to potential advertising customers as a "massive opportunity to drive discovery and conversion" and says that some customers have likened the demo weekends to "customer appreciation events."

The store will be pairing the in-store demos with QR codes at the sample stations offering cooking inspiration, virtual purchasing alternatives, or seasonally appropriate suggestions. It'll also include audio ads on Walmart radio playing over the store's PA system, on the TV wall, and even on the self-checkout screens. If you find yourself craving the ice cream sandwiches in the Walmart freezer aisle for the first time, whether you've already checked out or are even still in the store, this new marketing tactic may be why.

The effectiveness of free samples isn't new information. Trader Joe's, Costco, Publix, Whole Foods, Sam's Club, H-E-B, and many other food stores have used this technique for years. One major obstacle in advertising is getting a customer to even notice what you're selling. Free samples reduce the financial gamble for a customer to try a product. Psychologically, they indebt a customer to the brand; writing for Time, Psychologist Susan Krauss Whitborne explains that when you've received something "seemingly for nothing," you "feel obligated to reciprocate by buying the item." As such, demo staff are often trained on the five-step technique of free samples: "Smile, Invite, Talk, Give Sample, and Ask." Walmart is seemingly adding a sixth step: Inundate customers with omnichannel advertising throughout the store.

What brands like Costco and Trader Joe's know, too, is that free samples make the shopping experience more fun — echoing Walmart Connect's position that its demo weekends feel like customer appreciation events. People love going to try free samples; it's why TikTok is filled with viral videos of people flocking to Costco to create unique, full meals out of free samples. Walmart Connect says demos "[create] an experience to look forward to."