Do not act like you are not excited when you get things in the mail. I know I am. As long as it is not a bill, an advertisement or a summons to appear for jury duty, color me excited. I thought that this childlike giddiness for getting fun things in the mail would subside after my teenage years of mail ordering CD’s and Zines, but that has yet to happen even as I push 30. The introduction of the internet in my later teen years even added to the mail anticipation, as ordering nearly anything became possible.
Since I no longer spend frivolously (for the most part), but still want to get fun stuff in the mail, what to do? The answer:
Free Samples
That’s right, I sign up for free samples all the time. Usually, I’ll take 5-10 minutes out of my not so busy day to look around for some free swag that I may end up never using. I get tiny samples of cereal, cosmetic products, coffee, heck…they even give away free condom samples! Why pay for them when I can sample all of these things and find out which I prefer?
Many sites will provide a significant number of samples to choose from, but these are my personal choices when looking for freebies:
Wisebread-Monday-Friday, Wisebread published the 10 best deals of the day. A handful of these deals usually include some kind of free sample. I visit Wisebread daily, so even if I’m not actively looking for freebies or samples, they end up right under my nose.
All of these sites offer loads of free samples or freebies. Even though hundreds of these sites exist, the following six are the best that I have found for legitimate freebies and samples:
Some of these sites will repeat offers, just do not waste time signing up for the same offers more than once.
Protecting Your Information When Signing up for Samples
Although there are a bevy of places to find free samples nowadays, there is a risk of slight annoyances. Luckily, avoiding these minor annoyances is simple.
First off, you WILL be asked for your email address every time you sign up for a sample. I recommend using an email address other than your primary address for samples. Companies will often keep you abreast of new products or services after asking for samples, so keep yourself safe from these annoyances with an email address that will handle your spam.
Phone Number
Occasionally, I will provide my phone number for reputable companies. I never do this before reading their terms and conditions documentation and making sure that they will not use my phone number for any marketing purposes. (They usually ask for this to avoid sending multiple samples to the same person multiple times).
Credit/Debit Card Information
Under NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you ever provide any credit/debit card information when signing up for samples. There is no reason that any company will use your card unless they are trying to charge you! I also refuse to accept any samples that make the consumer pay for shipping. If they wanted you to try their product, they would pay for shipping. Period.
Because the resources to find freebies is frequently growing, and companies are always looking for consumers to try (and hopefully purchase) their products, the possibilities are nearly endless when it comes to receiving free swag. As long as you protect your information and minimize the junk mail offers, you can keep the freebies flowing, helping you find your favorite products and saving money in the process.
{ 4 comments }
I loved this article! Getting free stuff is awesome! I went through the sites; it takes some searching (unless you check on a regular basis), but you can find some really good stuff. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Thanks Sis, You are right, sometimes it does take some searching, but at least you aren’t getting asked for a CC# all the time!
I’ve started using freestuff4free.com which is a pretty cool looking site. I think it’s pretty new but I switched from shop4freebies based on aesthetics. They’re pretty much all the same.
Great mention of sites, some that I didn’t know of. I also use freebiefanatics.blogspot.com and bigbigforums.com
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