The art of collecting marketing permissions while building trust

Collecting marketing permissions shouldn’t feel like a one-way transaction. Customers want control over their data, and they need a reason to share it. With 68% of US consumers concerned about how much data companies collect, the challenge for brands is clear. If you want people to opt in, you have to earn their trust.

Offering something tangible in return, such as a product sample, creates a more balanced exchange. Instead of asking for data up front, you’re giving people a reason to say yes. That’s where digital sampling comes in. It helps you secure higher opt-in rates and starts customer relationships on the right terms.

Let’s take a closer look at how digital sampling builds trust and four proven ways to collect marketing permissions through smarter, value-driven campaigns.

Why sampling is a smart foundation for permission-based marketing

Permission-based marketing means seeking a customer’s consent before using their data. It’s one of the most effective ways to connect with audiences over time. You stay compliant with privacy laws, avoid relying on third-party data, and build a direct, high-value channel that you control.

Using this voluntary, detailed first-party data, you can tailor marketing communications to your audience’s preferences, driving conversions and nurturing existing customer relationships. Plus, it’s cost-effective, unlike renting an audience through third-party platforms like Instagram or TikTok. Best of all, it ensures compliance with privacy regulations, making it a smart and sustainable strategy.

But to run permission-based marketing, you need people to opt in. This is where sampling gives you a clear advantage. When customers get something relevant and useful in return for their data, the exchange feels fair. It’s a stronger signal of intent and a better way to generate long-term value from each interaction. Sampling drives higher opt-in rates than traditional methods, draws in genuinely interested customers, generates better engagement, and lowers CAC.

Four strategies for collecting marketing permissions through sampling

With sampling campaigns, you can ensure that every interaction delivers value for your brand and customers, setting up your permission-based marketing for long-term success. Here’s how to make the most of your sampling campaign.

1. Target high-intent audiences

Use data to help you define who your product is for and when they’re most likely to engage. Strategic digital sampling targets high-intent-to-purchase leads instead of broad audiences who won’t convert. A digital sampling partner like Sampl can use your own data or logic to decide who gets a sample, filtering for factors like spending behaviour, skin type, lifestyle, or product preferences.

Pre-qualifying your audience is the perfect way to ensure you’re targeting relevant consumers. A strong survey eliminates all those unsuitable leads, reducing product waste and respecting consumers’ time. Being selective will also maintain your brand exclusivity and reputation, rather than a scattershot approach that sends samples to anyone who shows interest.

That’s exactly what Royal Canin did. They wanted to grow their CRM database with first-time pet owners. By setting tight criteria for their digital sampling campaign, they brought in 30,000 pre-qualified leads. The opt-in rate hit 65 percent, and cost per lead halved to €2.09. With permission secured, they’re now building longer-term value with pet owners throughout their whole life.

2. Build relationships before asking for too much

While asking for personal data from brand-new customers is tempting, developing a relationship starts with low-commitment requests, like an email subscription, and builds gradually over time. The more trust you’ve built with your customers, the more likely they will provide that data.

Sampling provides an opportunity to build direct relationships faster by creating a clear reason to ask for specific data before a first purchase. Any information relevant to providing the right sample, like skin type or flavour preference, is valuable information for permission-based marketing down the line. When it’s clear how you’re using their data, customers have higher trust in handing over information.

Clarins used this approach to launch a new lip oil. Their sampling campaign was designed to grow their CRM, generate reviews, and increase brand awareness. It delivered over 370,000 interactions and 8,000 new opt-ins. With purchase intent at 83 percent and nearly 1,000 reviews collected, they also gained insight for future product development and messaging.

3. Generate high-quality reviews

Collecting high-quality, authentic reviews is another effective way to get more opt-ins. They generate credibility, engagement, and conversions with your target audience and build confidence in future sampling campaigns. Potential customers are already more likely to trust content from their peers over traditional ads, so encouraging detailed reviews from samples is critical to building your social proof.

Asking for reviews after someone has received a sample helps them feel heard. It turns passive interest into active involvement, and the feedback often adds value across your wider marketing mix.

Reviews also come with bonuses, like driving your product development: Clarins applied feedback from their sampling campaign to their lip oil packaging, improving customer experience across other products. Sampl’s platform encourages and facilitates reviews after sampling by creating a customised, multi-touchpoint campaign journey that prompts recipients to leave a review. It’s beneficial for brands that engage customers directly for the first time and need to build social proof.

It’s also useful for established brands like Weleda, who use reviews as social proof to complement other marketing efforts. Weleda targeted a broad skincare audience through Meta ads, sending 10,000 samples after qualifying their targets. Reviews shot up 4000%, driving a 24% purchase rate and 61% purchase intent rate. This direct outreach also brought in valuable first-party data for Weleda’s CRM through a custom API integration, which they carefully managed to ensure transparent opt-ins and GDPR compliance.

4. Give customers visibility and control over their data

Even when a customer has had a positive experience, unclear data policies can undo that trust. If someone doesn’t know how their data will be used, they are more likely to unsubscribe.

The fix is simple. Make your privacy policy clear and explain how the data will help deliver better products, recommendations, or communication. Customers want to feel in control. Giving them an easy way to manage their preferences reinforces that trust.

Sampl helps brands stay compliant and customer-friendly. The platform supports granular data capture through surveys, reviews, and marketing opt-ins. It also integrates with tools like HubSpot, Salesforce, Klaviyo, and Constant Contact, so that any changes to preferences or unsubscribes flow back to your systems in real time. When your data is clean and up to date, you can market with confidence.

Stronger opt-ins start with better sampling

Digital sampling has never been easier. With Sampl, you can ensure that every sample reaches the right audience at the right time. Using SamplMatch, you can target groups most likely to engage with your brand, match customers with products that resonate, and increase ROI. With smart pre-qualifying surveys, you can quickly sift through leads to bring the highest quality to the top and eliminate weak leads.

Make opt-ins frictionless with Sampl’s innovative collection methods, like custom API integrations, that deliver clear attribution on which interactions and ads led to sign-ups, opt-ins, and conversions.

Track your samples from end-to-end with dashboards of live, actionable data — see where they are, how they’re being used, and their cumulative impact. And if you need to make campaign adjustments in real time, it’s all there.

That’s why brands that use Sampl benefit from 60% lower CPL, 5x better ROI, and 10x more data points.

Ready to run better permission-based marketing campaigns and collect more valuable opt-ins? Book a demo with Sampl today to start building your database!