Gift with Purchase Marketing: Meaning, Examples and Benefits

August 3, 2024 /

We’re all consumers. And as consumers, our purchasing decisions are mostly driven by objectives and incentives. Therefore, to win the battle for consumers and get them to engage, brands offer them a gift when they meet certain purchasing requirements.

This strategy is known as the Gift With Purchase marketing.

A well-planned and implemented Gift With Purchase campaign benefits customers and also business owners.

In this in-depth blog post, we’ll explore the Gift With Purchase (GWP) marketing, examples, and the incredible benefits it offers business owners.

Meaning of Gift With Purchase Marketing

Gift with Purchase (GWP) is a strategy often used by business owners to promote sales. Customers receive a free item that adds immediate value to their purchase whenever they buy a particular product or spend a specific amount. 

Let’s paint a simple scenario: You’re looking for a particular item in a store. You head to the section designated for the item you’re looking for. And there, you find several brand types of the same item with similar prices.

Which would you go for assuming you had no one in mind before coming? Wouldn’t you likely go for the one with an added offer; say the one with a gift attached? That’s the power of the GWP marketing in play right there!

While the core idea of Gift with Purchase marketing, which has been in practice since the mid-20th century, remains unchanged (buy something, get something extra!), its implementation has developed. From being a simple technique for clearing out slow-moving products, it has become a strategic tool for attaining various marketing goals such as boosting sales, building brand awareness, growing customer loyalty, introducing new products, encouraging impulse buying, and understanding customer preferences.

Purchase with Purchase: What Does it Mean?

It’s important to note that Gift With Purchase (GWP) marketing is a different concept altogether from Purchase With Purchase (PWP) promotions. While the GWP strategy focuses on using additional, free (mostly complementary) items as incentives to engage customers to buy a specific product, PWP is a promotional strategy that offers customers two special products at a discounted price.

In other words, no free items are given out in the Purchase With Purchase strategy. Instead, the customer receives a discount on the secondary product provided they buy the primary product.

The primary aim of a PWP promotion is to sell the primary product. However, you can also use it to boost the sales of the secondary product, encourage impulse buying, improve customer loyalty, and enhance brand awareness.

Objectives of GWP Marketing

 A successful GWP marketing aims to achieve different business goals. Below, we talk about these goals and objectives:

  • Increase Sales: The goal of every business is to make sales. Using GWP marketing, a strategy that entices customers to spend more to qualify for the free item, helps you make more sales.

  • Drive Brand Awareness: A well-executed GWP campaign opens the door for an expanded customer base. The idea is simple; you offer a gift with the purchase of a product, and your customers who benefit will talk about your brand to their family and friends. This will effectively attract new customers to your brand and products.

  • Customer Loyalty: If you want to build customer loyalty, then a GWP campaign is the perfect strategy. Customers who receive a free item after a purchase, feel valued by the brand. This elevated feeling enhances their perception of your brand.

  • Promote New Products: The GWP strategy is a highly beneficial technique for promoting new products, as it can encourage the trial and adoption of these new products.

  • Clear Out Slow-Moving Inventory: Do you have slow-moving products that need to be cleared? Then GWP can be a strategic tool to move excess inventory or promote slow-moving products by bundling them as gifts attached to more popular items.

Benefits of a Gift With Purchase Strategy

GWP guarantees a boost in customer retention for business owners. But beyond this, does this powerful strategy offer anything else? Here’s a closer look at how it can positively affect your business. 

1. Improve Overall Sales

When the prices of a particular item are similar, and a customer has no preference, they’re inclined to go for the products that have free, additional items simply for the added value it gives.

2. Elevate Your Brand Exposure

There is a direct connection between giving free items and experiencing a boost in brand exposure. Everyone who receives any sort of freebie just from purchasing a product often shares the good news with their loved ones. According to a psychological phenomenon known as the Bandwagon Effect, people are likely to do something primarily because others are doing it.

For example, seeing that a friend has received a valuable freebie from purchasing a product, Mr. A can feel like they’re missing out. This feeling will prompt them to follow suit in getting the same item and feel equally valued. So, providing your customers with an item that has your brand will take word about your business further than you can imagine.

3. Nurtures Loyal Customers

A customer consistently choosing your brand over others is what customer loyalty is all about. A loyal customer feels emotionally attached to your brand, sticks with it at all times, and will even endorse it to their loved ones. But does it come on a platter? No! Customers will stick with brands with a solid reputation for offering valuable free items.

4. Supports Data Collection Efforts

The chief aim of data collection in marketing is to gather vital information about your customers, target audience, competitors, market opportunities, and trends. This information gives businesses valuable insight into the needs and preferences of customers and adequately arms them for their future marketing efforts.

5. Control Product Shelf Life and Inventory Management

Your GWP helps you control the shelf life of your products, GWP can do the magic. You can pair less popular or slow-moving items with a desirable gift to boost their sales. This helps to clear out inventory that might otherwise sit on the shelves for too long.

6. Drive Trial of New Products

Many consumers will be slow to purchase a new product for several reasons, leading to a slow sales start for these products. This is where GWP marketing comes in! With this strategy, you can put your products directly into the hands of consumers and say ”just give it a try”.

For example, you can give out small sample kits of new products that customers can try. If they’re happy with the test product, they will come back to buy the full product.

Leveraging GWP for Brand Awareness and Visibility

Impact of GWP on Brand Perception:

You need a positive brand image to frequently connect with your target audience and build a huge presence within the market. And one way to raise the positivity around your brand is by exceeding customers’ expectations. This is where GWP campaigns come in! They’re powerful tools for creating the perception of added value, leading to better customer appreciation and loyalty.

For example, if you receive a stylish travel bag with your new athletic shoes, wouldn’t that instantly raise your perception of the brand? Wouldn’t that make you want to stick with them?

GWP as a Tool for Brand Storytelling:

One way to increase your brand awareness is through brand storytelling. Brand storytelling is like the heart and soul of your marketing operations; it makes your brand unique and helps you genuinely connect with your customers. Themed GWP items and experiential GWP actively connect your GWP campaigns to your brand story.

Themed GWP: Instead of the common gifts, you can use GWP items that reflect your brand story. An example is an outdoor clothing brand offering a free reusable water bottle with a mountain scene print on it. This theme is a commitment to sustainability and adventure.

Experiential GWP: Experiential GWP campaigns can work without offering physical gifts. It involves offering experiences that correspond with your brand identity. For example, a yoga clothing brand might offer a free online yoga class with a product purchase. This move aligns well with their focus on wellness and community.

Reaching New Audiences:

One major goal of every business is to reach new target audiences. In fact, not attracting new customers who might be unfamiliar with your brand, means your sales conversion rate will take a nosedive. This is another area where GWP campaigns help. With the help of free, enticing items, you can effectively attract, new long-term customers.

Social Media Integration:

Social media platforms are of utmost importance to your brand’s goal of building a huge market presence, connecting with your audience, and engaging with potential customers. They are powerful tools for highlighting the values of the gifts and building hype around your offer in your GWP campaigns.

Measuring the Effectiveness of Your GWP Campaign

You need to track the performance of your GWP campaign — otherwise, how do you make better-informed decisions in the future? There are several key metrics for measuring the performance of your GWP campaigns:

● Return on Investment:

Perhaps the most important KPI, this metric tells you how much you earned compared to how much you invested in your campaign, whether GWP or others. To correctly calculate the ROI of your Gift With Purchase campaign, you must accurately track all the gifts and marketing costs and isolate the sales directly driven by the campaign, not just the overall sales increase.

An accurate analysis of the ROI of your GWP campaign is important to help you judge whether or not your marketing efforts are a success and also help you make data-driven decisions for future campaigns. Remember, the higher the ROI, the better!

● Website and Store Traffic:

Did you see a rise in website traffic after the marketing campaign for your GWP launched? If yes, compare that increase in visitors during the campaign to the number of visitors before the campaign to measure the campaign’s effectiveness.

If your business operates only in physical stores, there are still ways to measure the effectiveness of your GWP campaign:

a. By tracking foot traffic before, during, and after the campaign to see if there’s an increase in customers visiting your store.

b. By tracking the in-store engagement between staff and customers to see if they’re asking about the GWP or other promotions.

● Sales Increase:

A major sign of a successful GWP campaign is a notable rise in sales during the campaign compared to the period before the campaign. By tracking the increase in sales driven by your campaign, you can identify the areas that need improvement and make adjustments in subsequent campaigns.

● Social Media Engagement:

Pay attention to the likes, shares, comments, and mentions on social media posts promoting the GWP. An increase in these metrics points to brand visibility and consumer engagement driven by the campaign.

● Customer Acquisition Cost:

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is an important metric for evaluating the cost and marketing efforts of acquiring a new customer. We calculate this metric by dividing the cost of sales and marketing by the number of new customers gained.

An in-depth knowledge of this metric can help you increase your business profitability and return on investment.

● Customer Acquisition Cost:

Customer feedback is an important tool for measuring the success of your gift-with-purchase campaign. You can collect these insightful feedback and preferences through customer surveys, reviews, or interactions on social media. With the information gathered, you can then identify the needs and expectations of your customers and make adjustments to future campaigns to meet these needs.

Top Gift with Purchase Ideas for Your Campaign

Below are some unique, impression-making gift ideas that cover price points, occasions, and industries:

Higher-Price-Point Free Gifts with Purchase

Gifts in this category are premium because the products or services they come with are luxury products and command a higher price. High-quality gifts entice customers to make a more expensive purchase.

Tips:

  • Ensure they apply to your target audience and product category
  • Ensure they apply to your target audience and product category
  • They must complement the primary product

Examples:

Seasonally Themed Free Gifts with Purchase

You can engage your customers by supporting your seasonal campaign with a resonating Gift with Purchase. This adds more interest and a special appeal to your campaign.

Tip:

Industry-Specific Gifts with Purchase

Give your customers a GWP relating to the products you sell or services you render. Not only does this cater to your target audience’s needs, but it also keeps your brand name at the top of their mind whenever they use it.

Tip: Show off your logo

Examples:

Planning and Running a Successful GWP Campaign

As we already know, a GWP campaign is a great way to entice customers and increase sales. We also know that it helps business owners reach different marketing goals. However, for your GWP campaign to be successful in helping you achieve these goals, you must plan and run it effectively. So, what then do you need to keep in mind to make sure it is successful?

Here are some important things to consider:

  • Target Audience: Every successful GWP campaign builds its foundation on identifying the target customers. This is the most important thing to consider. You must identify their needs, preferences, behavior, and problems, and tailor your GWP accordingly. Getting this aspect right sets the tone for a successful GWP campaign.

  • Clear Eligibility Requirements: Your GWP campaign must have crystal clear eligibility requirements. It’s also important to define clearly when the promotion starts, how long it will last, and what it will require to be eligible.

  • Give Relevant Gifts: The secret behind the most successful GWP campaign is the unmistakable value the gifts add to their purchase. Ensure that your brand stands out with quality gifts, as they represent your brand. Most times, it’s better when the gifts complement the primary products they’re buying.

  • Think About Branding: Make sure that the campaign carries the looks and feel of your brand. This helps you stand out.

  • Choose Your Timing Wisely: Too many Gift With Purchase promotions crammed in a short period take away the secret weapon of urgency and exclusivity. You can align your campaign with major shopping periods like Black Friday to help you drive traffic.

  • Stock-up Enough Gift Items: Imagine telling your customers who meet the purchasing requirement for the GWP promo that you ran out of the GWP items. You don’t want that, do you? So make sure you have a sufficient stock of your GWP items.

  • Effectively Market the Promotion: Build hype around your GWP promotion. A successful campaign starts by developing a powerful marketing strategy to promote your campaign. You can run a campaign on social media, your website, and other relevant channels.

  • Track the Campaign’s Progress: Track the progress of your Gift with Purchase campaign. Monitor it with data and analytics to help you track the sales velocity and recent visitors. Doing this allows you to make better-informed decisions in your future efforts.

Case Studies and Examples

Below are three real-life examples of successful GWP campaigns across industries. We’ll analyze the strategies used, the target audience, and key factors that combine to make them successful.

FMCG: Heineken UEFA 2024 GWP Campaign 

Product: Heineken Original and Heineken 0.0

One of the most successful gift-with-purchase campaigns this year is Heineken’s UEFA 2024 GWP Campaign. The liquor brand, collaborating with UCL and UWCL, is offering limited-edition glassware to customers who purchase a select pack of Heineken from participating stores. Offering these items which feature the UCL and UWCL trophies, helps Heineken take advantage of the excitement around the UEFA Euro 2024 to boost sales and drive engagement.

Success Factors: This campaign cleverly targets the right audience, creates a sense of urgency, utilizes a strategic partnership, and is easy to claim.

Apparel and Footwear: “Nike By You” GWP Program

Product: Nike Shoes

Nike’s successful ‘’Nike By You’’ GWP campaigns leverage personalization. Customers are offered a chance to customize their shoes with unique colours, initials, or designs at no additional cost when they buy a  Nike shoe.

Success Factors: This campaign creatively adds value to the purchase, and gives customers a sense of ownership and uniqueness. Allowing customers a right to creative expression also played a major role in the success of this campaign

Consumer Electronics: Apple Free AirPods GWP campaign

Product: iPhone 11

In this campaign, customers qualify for a free AirPod when they buy a new iPhone 11. It was a perfect promotion aimed at motivating customers to upgrade their phones.

Success Factors: The free AirPods add premium value to the customers’ purchase. They are also desirable gifts that iPhone users highly covet, and they create a sense of exclusivity.

Beverage Industry: Belvedere GWP Campaign

Product: Belvedere Bottle

With this campaign, Belvedere aims to propose a new and sustainable way of drinking their product. As an additional incentive for a limited time, the company offered a free, innovative mini cocktail shaker for every purchase of a Belvedere Vodka bottle.

With this campaign, Belvedere aims to propose a new and sustainable way of drinking their product. As an additional incentive for a limited time, the company offered a free, innovative mini cocktail shaker for every purchase of a Belvedere Vodka bottle.

Success Factors: The gift complements the primary purchase, which makes it a perfect gift for any cocktail lover. It has an eye-catching packaging design and the limited duration creates a sense of urgency, helping to drive sales.

To Wrap It Up

Gift with Purchase campaigns are killer marketing strategies for gaining new customers and strengthening relationships with existing ones. They’re excellent tools for increasing sales, building a loyal customer base, and helping you learn more about them. To stay on top of your marketing game and ahead of competitors, picking the ideal gift item, being intentional about the promotion, and using your data wisely should be your ultimate priority.

GWP Marketing FAQ(s)

● How effective is a Gift with Purchase?

-Very effective! GWP makes a deal better in the eyes of the customer. This leads to an increase in sales and customer loyalty.

● How do you market promotional gifts?

– You can use email and social media campaigns. You can also use in-store displays, or even mention it right on the price tag.

● What is the difference between a Gift with Purchase and a free gift?

– A Gift with Purchase as the name implies requires customers to make a purchase; a free gift does not.

● What is an example of free gift technique?

– Offering a free sample with no purchase required.

● What marketing activity is free gifts?

– The marketing activity involving free gifts is often called ”promotional giveaway”.

Work With UCT (Asia)!

UCT (Asia) is a one-stop marketing agency that understands the immense marketing importance of well-planned Gift with Purchase campaigns. We have the experience and expertise needed to make your GWP campaigns successful. We also specialize in the production of quality promotional gifts for your campaigns. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you. Together, we can make your next campaign a richly successful one!

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