There’s just no doubt that more and more women are turning to blogs for beauty advice – and of course, to share valued opinions. For the first time ever, someone is actually listening to product feedback. However, I think there’s been a hidden knock-on effect in the upsurge of skin care sampling expectation. For years, we’ve been content with ‘sampling’ being a sweep of foundation on the inner arm or skin care vigorously rubbed into the back of the hand…as if it’s immediate effect on dry skin is a miracle and will work in exactly the same way on our faces. Of course, if you have dry hands – most of us do – any form of unguent applied will instantly make things better. But, it isn’t really an indicator of how something will work on the rest of the body or, indeed the face, and absolutely no indicator of how it will work long term. So, why so mean with the samples, beauty people? Now that we are getting pickier – thank you bloggers – and reading up on our skin care in a way that is unsurpassed – it’s time that beauty brands stopped expecting us to buy on their promise and say so. My last post about Embryolisse happened purely because they gave me enough sample sachets to do a mini-facial at home and arrive at a conclusion that wasn’t based on a blob of cream on the back of my hand. They had samples of their best selling cream – and plenty of them – available on the front of their stand at IMATS making it easy for passing punters to pick them up for later perusal. Consider the different experience in department stores where asking for samples feels more like begging. Bloggers are asking the right questions and insisting on samples or at the very least, an MU application before buying, and its this confident stand point that is relayed to many, many potential purchasers that is switching the mindset of customers. To my mind, if you can expect to sell hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of product you can at least let customers try it properly first. Samples really aren’t expensive to produce (except for small companies – a bigger run obviously is cheaper and there may well not be a budget for that) and it doesn’t need a degree in communications to work out that someone who has sampled, loved and bought will pass on the knowledge to friends, strangers and bloggers! We can be positively evangelical about our beauty best buys. Consider the opposite – bullied into buying, hate it at home…again, with equal passion no doubt, that message will be passed to anyone who’ll listen. So, beauty folks, it’s time to stop relying on press, hype and hope and to start providing evidence that people can really use.
Transparency Disclosure
All products are sent to me as samples from brands and agencies unless otherwise stated. Affiliate links may be used. Posts are not affiliate driven.
21 comments
I totally agree and sometimes I think people can feel a bit awkward about asking for samples in stores – we need to get over it and start being more forward! I particularly love QVC because of their return policy for this exact reason – obviously you are limited to whatever brands they stock, but for skin care especially, it’s brilliant to be able to try something for 3 weeks and then send it back if you have to. xx
I do completely agree with you, particularly on skincare and foundations.
However, I can see the flipside too – I’ve seen more than one magazine/newspaper article that suggests asking for samples as a way of getting a freebie (particularly in those ‘how to blah blah blah during the recession articles’) and if I was a sales assistant, I can see why it would make me leery of handing out samples with complete abandon.
In my experience, sales assistants are much more likely to give samples if you’re already buying something, so if you know you want to try skincare from a line it makes sense to ask for a sample when you are buying something else from them.
The lines that just ‘don’t do’ samples (Chantecaille, I’m looking at you) are incredibly arrogant in my opinion, especially when our return policies here are so unfavourable to the consumer.
funnily enough i was thinking last night that dior & rmk do really good sample sizes, but mostly with a purchase. you do feel like a bum asking for a sample without a purchase so i do it when i’m not in my local department store so they dont know me!! haha
I totally agree, some places are really good for giving out samples without a purchase (The Body Shop are always really nice with their samples) whereas other places can be really bitchy. I went to Lancome once and bought a lipstick for my mum and asked for a sample of perfume and the lady said “if you can afford the lipstick, why can’t you afford the perfume?” So I asked for the manager, complained about the girl and returned the lipstick. I’ve not been back to buy anything from Lancome since. Anyway, I digress, when I first started blogging, I’d use something once and be like “wow, this is great” but now I wait a while (usually two weeks) before writing the review and I find that my experience changes throughout the whole time.
I know I’m not the only one who thinks this but I’m sure it’s more than a sheer coincidence that the beauty mags LOVE every new product out there and that there is usually (nearly always) an ad for the same product in the magazine.
i work at Clarins Skin Spa and we’re huge on giving out samples. And decent samples.
It always works because people end up with exactly what they want instead of being bullied into buying something they dislike, which won’t bring them back to the store.
I wish more companies were like that. It makes me so furious when they won’t give samples unless I’ve already bought something.
I totally agree! When I do ask for samples in store, it’s really awkward and most of them are like no… How do they expect us to like something if they won’t let us sample it for a couple of days?! Fortunately, RMK do generous samples and I’m thankful that some companies do that. X
If I can’t get a sample of a foundation or a skincare product – I won’t buy it. Simple as that. I’m really sick of those girls that work in places like Sephora, Douglas etc. and who are really insolent if you DARE to ask for a sample.
And also, what I hate the most is that I KNOW that they DO have samples but they won’t give them to customers (only to customers that will either spend xyz amount of money, either to customers they know OR they take samples for themselves and give them to friends – I know so many cases like those). It just makes me sick.
And that’s why I prefer on-line shopping and if I need to see a shade or something I’ll just check it and then buy the product on-line, even without trying. I just won’t buy it in stores here. Thank God there are so many reviews available on-line and thank God for all these beauty blogs 😀
Fantastic blog again and spot on about the whole department store begging…it grates me SO much! What’s worse is when you see someone on ebay selling a but load of samples at “buy it now”…makes you wonder where they get such a large amount to sell…
Having said that I must praise companies such as Liz Earle who gives a travel size product of your choice with each purchase at her stores (fab idea!) and Lush who are more than happy to cut samples for customers to take home and try.
Another great article! I really like these types of articles and I hope that someday beauty and cosmetic brands will pay attention.
totally agree with everything. My mother is pretty strightforward on this, she’ll ask for samples straight out and usually gets them. Maybe its the asian thing because all my aunts of the older generation do it. =D
I always feel i have to buy something to ask for samples…
Hear hear! The only beauty products that I’ve bought in the last six months have been items recommended by Makeup Alley users, you, Liberty London Girl (because I implicitly trust both of you to provide unbiased opinions), one or 2 other bloggers, and things that I’ve used for at least 1-2 weeks (that means larger sized samples!). Thanks for stating the obvious. Maybe the companies will finally listen.
It sometimes feels like when you’re at the counter you’ve entered some alternate universe where it’s supposed to be perfectly fine to drop huge quantities of money on something you have absolutely no guarantee you’ll have a use for. A culture of sampling would be so good for the UK – especially since unlike the women of the US, we have almost no chance to return tested skincare and cosmetic items that haven’t worked out for us.
One store that bugs the hell out of me is Superdrug. I have been BANNED from one of my local branches because I tested a cream blusher on my face, not the back on my hand. I argued that where I put it on my body was irrelavent – surely after I’ve dipped my finger in the pot, it doesn’t matter where I place the product? The lady asked me to leave immediately.
Samples should be something companies push more. Not a hierarchy that sales assitants use to make you feel mocked, cheap or humiliated. One Chanel seller actually told me I could recieve 3 testers if I agreed “to give my life to Jesus” . When I declined, she informed me I would “face (my) judgement day.” She was sacked pretty quickly…
Ive often had this with some sellers in stores. I explain ive had back experiences with makeup or skincare after a few days, so im not spending x amount of money on something until i know its ok for me to use.
Store Brands i like for samples are- Clarins, Bodyshop, Prescriptives and Illamasqua. All have been happy to give me pots of what ever ive asked for. I think its because i spent time enquiring about what sort of item i wanted, what i wanted it to do etc..so i wasnt just asking for a freebie.
i totally agreed with you. I saw lots of samples available on ebay or even shops in asia… I have no idea whether the samples from…
I don’t want to ask for samples even when I got the voucher from magazines or the beauty club that debenhams is running at the mo, as it is so odd… as the BAs tends to put a ‘longer’ face. @.@
Totally agree – I’m not overly keen on the “oh I’ll just put some on you if you want” approach either..that doesn’t really give an idea of how the product will fair on a daily basis.
Also, if companies can afford to stick samples of certain products on a magazine ad where the print run runs into thousands, you’d think they could be a little less stingy in store, when I’m actually in front of their desk, interested in the product and wanting to know more/try it rather than just chucking thousands of samples into a copy of Cosmo or something and hoping for the best.
An excellent post. We all know that the cosmetic industry is big business and the more generous the samples the more customer satisfaction. I find Sephora are always very generous with their samples as well as the Body Shop. It makes sense, the more customer satisfaction, the more repeat and word of mouth business.
I totally agree with this article, it’s not uncommon for me to buy skincare after I’ve sampled it.
Most of the companies I found are extremely generous with samples and never make you feel like you’re begging are Japanese companies, like Paul & Joe, RMK and SUQQU – I never felt I was forced to buy to get samples. Sadly I don’t use most of their skincare because it has a high alcohol content.
The only “western” company I felt was ever nice with samples was (funny enough) Chantecaille. The first time I went there I did make a purchase, but it was a generic one (hand cream and some makeup) and I got this GWP sample kit. I tried at home and then returned there explaining what my skin issues were, what I liked and disliked in the samples I tried – the skincare girl (Fenwick Bond St – I’m not affiliated) gave me such an enormous bunch of samples that I actually had something like a 3 week free routine (including daily stuff and masks).
It was great and I ended up being converted to Chantecaille skincare, which is quite expensive, so that just shows you the power of giving samples and being nice to the customer. But maybe she only gave the samples because she suspected I’d buy if I liked, since I had already bought something. But that’s fair enough I guess.
I wished more companies where like that, we are spending money to put stuff in our face that if reacts badly can leave you stressed, so it’s only fair to want to try it first. And you can never get a good idea without trying for at least one week of constant use IMHO.
Great post – it is frustrating (especially with skincare) when you cannot try a sample at home and see how it works with your regular routine. I have found some higher priced brands like La Mer are not generous where as a brand like Ren – I found to be excellent, even giving a mini facial as well as samples (hence now my favourite skincare brand).
Online natural beauty retailers are really good in stocking samples (like Naturissimo) and set a good example for other beauty retailers.
I experienced “the sample issue” the other week when I did a round of department store beauty counters trying to get a sample of a Dior foundation I really want to try. To no avail. I now refuse to buy foundation in particular, based on application in a badly lit store by someone who doesn’t know my skin – and that’s usually the best scenario. I bought Perricone’s no foundation foundation a while back and was so bitterly disappointed that, unusually for me, I took the bottle back for a refund. Normally I feel too ashamed and think it’s my mistake, hence the staggering number of foundation bottles littering my bathroom shelves, equal to the debt of a small third world country!
In totaly agreement with this – I hope they do actually start to listen to us!