Over the years, our Budget101 members and fans have discussed the benefits of signing up for freebies, aka Free Stuff Online. We’ve received a number of questions about “freebies”, “Free Stuff”, which we’ve addressed below: 1. Why Would One Want to sign up for free Stuff
2. Why would a company just give stuff away?
3. How Can I tell real freebies from Spam?
4. Other Easy Tips
Why Would One Want to sign up for free Stuff?
There are several reasons for signing up for free things online.
- To try new Products
- To Save money on items like shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, baby care items, etc
- To receive free travel size products to keep in the car, camper, or in your purse- these free trial size items also make lovely additions to Mason Jar gifts, like the SPA Jar or even care packages as well
- Donations to Church’s , Lion’s Clubs, Military Care Packages, Nursing Homes
- To Get Free Stuff- Need I say more?
Why would a company just give stuff away?
Most companies have realized that giving away a trial size of their product is an excellent marketing ploy that will generate thousands upon thousands of dollars in revenue. It gives them the opportunity to get their name out.
Spam or Real- How Can I Tell?
I would like to sign up for free stuff, but every time I do, I don’t get any free items, just a bunch of spam. How can I tell the difference?
Here are several pointers to help you decide what a legit freebie is and what is SPAM:
- If the Freebie Sign up page is loaded with advertisements from google or any other advertiser, it could be an address harvesting site. (SPAM)
- If you’re signing up for a “Brand Name” product, look to see if the website address in your address bar includes the title name of that product. (They won’t always as some of the larger companies use a distribution company for their samples).
- If you come to a “freebie” page that requires you to answer yes or no to 5 or 10 “offers” before you can confirm your freebie, then it is more than Likely SPAM.
- If you scroll down to the bottom of the Freebie page and it says the following (or something similar) :
- This promotion is conducted exclusively by (whateversite.com) and is subject to participation terms and conditions. Receipt of your item requires compliance with offer terms, including: age and residency requirements; registration with valid e-mail address, shipping address and contact phone number; completion of user survey and sponsor offers. Upon valid completion of all Program Requirements, we will ship your item to your provided shipping address. Unless otherwise indicated, participation eligibility is restricted to U.S. residents, 18 and over. Void where prohibited.
* If you see the above message you can be sure it is BIG TIME SPAM from Multiple Avenues- you can be sure they will sell your info to anyone who’ll pay for it.
- If the “Freebie” site you are visiting hides its links with words, or Masks the freebie links with other sites, such as (tinyurl.com) than you can be assured that many of the links within that site are simply spam.
- It is a Paid Advertisement and Not a True Freebie If the url address link for the freebie includes any of the following:
Spam Example: https://lynxtrack/8484
- Who is Running the site? If you look around the site and cannot locate any contact information or find any contact forms besides a free email address- be suspicious! Most companies WANT their customers to contact them for ordering or product questions. Real Businesses don’t conduct their business using “free” email addresses from hotmail or yahoo.
- Does the site look like a Fly By Night operation? All companies, even little ones, try to maintain a professional appearance online. If the site is thrown together with spelling mistakes, or advertisements on it for Competitor sites, then you can be sure you’re headed for spam City.
- Last but not least, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is. If the freebies states, *Free $500 gift card to “Whatever Big Store”, it’s nothing but spam generating crap. Who is going to give you a $500 gift card for nothing?
Other Easy Tips:
Although, at first it can be overwhelming deciphering Spam from the Good Stuff, you’ll be getting great free items in the mail. Don’t forget to sign your children up for free coloring books, stickers, snack food samples etc. Kids love receiving items in the mail.
Other items we’ve received over the years: Coupons for Free Full size Food & cleaning products, coupons for free lunch, free crafting supplies (paints, gloves, fabrics), free magazines (by the hundreds!), free dvd’s & computer programs, and much much more.
Did you know?
We have a Freebie Forumon our site where we take the time to Verify the freebies before we share them, so basically, we weed out the crap offers and warn you about those in our “duds” forum.
What kind of freebies have you received?
I recieved a full sized Downey fabric softener once, that was pretty Cool. I have also recieved many travel sized bath items and snack packs that are perfect for a basket in the guest bedroom when company comes to stay. They always comment that it feels like they are staying at a bed and breakfast!
LOL! Blessings and Peace
I have had good luck with Start sampling.
This information is good to know. Thanks.
Something to add to setting up a email address just for the free offers:
If you are in doubt weather a site will sell your name and/ or email address and you need to fill out a form to get whatever it is, A handy tip someone taught me years ago is to spell your name differently, or to intentionally misspell your name. If you get additional offers or emails that have your misspelled name you KNOW where they came from. (If you keep track of it, depending on how many offers you sign up for.)