Usually freebies are geared towards and redeemed by you and you alone. But Kleenex has tried it’s hand at social sampling, encouraging visitors to it’s site at kleenex.com to send a free pack of tissues to a friend or family member during the cold and flu season, reports AdAge.
“They could also send virtual Kleenex tissues to Facebook friends, but the million were all actual tissue packs,” said Amy Popp, Kleenex brand manager.
“People can track online how their samples inspire others to follow suit or how many samples have been sent or received by state or ZIP code. So far, 1.5 million people have done so, Ms. Popp said, and the longest ‘chain of sharing’ so far has involved 34 cycles.”
I think this is a very smart way for Kleenex to use the inherently social and sharing nature of the internet to its advantage as a brand. Instead of transferring their sampling campaign online, they came up with an innovative way to connect its customers with other customers. Ultimately, that is what every brand should be doing – not attempting to connect customers with the brand, but enabling connections and conversations between customers.
Very smart, Kleenex. And the results proved it:
“The Kimberly-Clark Corp. brand last week sent its millionth requested mini-box of tissues in North America. And the ‘Softness Worth Sharing’ campaign, aimed at introducing a new softer version of the tissue, has lifted market share 1.7 points since October, said Kleenex Brand Director Craig Smith. Nielsen data from Sanford C. Bernstein show Kleenex share up 3.9 points to 49.9% for the four weeks ended Feb. 19 vs. the period before the campaign began.”