The ultimate 2025 guide to measuring sampling campaigns

Introduction

Why measurement matters

A recent Gartner survey found that 53% of marketers have higher pressure on them to explain or justify their decisions vs previous years. Every marketer’s move is under scrutiny, and that pressure is growing year on year.

Brands need to be able to select media channels that drive impact, as well as find ways to measure them more accurately. It's why many more brands are turning to product sampling to get their products into consumers' hands.

However, brands often face critical challenges in understanding the effectiveness of these campaigns. Traditional sampling methods lack precision, leaving brands with questions like:

• Am I reaching the right consumer? Without targeting, many samples end up in the wrong hands, with limited or no value.
• Did recipients try the sample? Many brands distribute samples without knowing if they were actually used, leaving the impact unknown.
• What do consumers think of the product? Gathering feedback is often challenging, and brands miss out on valuable insights that could guide future marketing.
• Did the sample drive sales? Without tracking, brands struggle to see if samples led to actual purchases.
• Can I prove ROI? For many brands, proving the financial impact of sampling remains elusive.

These pain points highlight the need for a measurement-focused approach. Sampl addresses these issues by transforming sampling into a fully trackable, data-driven process. 

Through advanced measurement tools and integrations, Sampl provides brands with actionable insights, enabling them to see the entire customer journey—from initial exposure to conversion—and understand ROI with confidence.

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Step by step

Step 1: Set clear campaign KPIs – the foundation of success

Before launching any sampling campaign, defining clear KPIs is crucial. KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) are measurable goals that align with your brand's overall objectives, allowing you to track success and make data-driven decisions.

At Sampl, we ensure that every campaign goal is specific, measurable, and aligned with the desired outcomes. This keeps the project on track, as well as gives you a point of reference for measurement.

Key KPIs to consider:

• Brand awareness: Monitoring reach and impressions for product visibility.
• Marketing opt-in rate: Assess how many people consent to join your marketing list.
• Review rate: The % of real customer feedback for your product.
• Conversion rate to sales: Track how many sample recipients make a purchase.
• Return on investment (ROI): Determine the financial return of your sampling campaign.
• Lifetime value (LTV): Measure the long-term impact of acquired customers from sampling (vs other channels).

These get more complicated the further down the list, so it's important to define what you want to measure from the outset to allow for it all to be set up correctly. If you're unsure then it's best to work with a sampling provider that can guide you through the processs, or take ownership.

Pro Tip: To get started, consider using a SMART KPI worksheet to define goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.

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Step 2: Identify key metrics across each stage of the sampling funnel

Successful sampling campaigns measure effectiveness at each stage of the funnel. Historically this has been difficult with traditional methods, as you had no way of tracking whether someone you have given a sample to has gone on to use the product. If this is important to you then you need to work with a digital sampling provider that can give you a complete view.

With Sampl, brands gain visibility across the funnel, from awareness to conversion, allowing for a comprehensive understanding of what activities yield the best results.

Funnel stages and metrics:

1. Awareness (top-of-funnel): Measure initial reach, impressions, and consumer interest.
2. Engagement (mid-funnel): Track sample requests, data captures, and customer feedback.
3. Conversion (bottom-of-funnel): Monitor conversions, repeat engagement, and reviews post-sampling.

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Step 3: Data collection and analysis

Effective sampling measurement relies on a robust, multi-layered data approach that captures consumer behaviour, engagement, and purchase activity. Sampl has pioneered an advanced, simplified framework for measurement, making it easier for brands to understand the level of measurement that they want to achieve, and also how to track each step of the sampling campaign.

The Sampl Impact Model

We send out millions of samples a year, and each one of them can have valuable insight. However, it requires robust tracking and analysis to turn it from data into insight. That's why we have developed a handy framework to make this easier.

Each layer in this framework plays a crucial role in capturing and understanding campaign impact. While other providers may use similar techniques, they do get increasingly more advanced and specialist. Sampl can work with you to apply these cohesively and comprehensively, helping brands to see the full picture of their sampling and media effectiveness.

1. In-platform tracking

This foundational layer is all your campaign data. This links media data with campaign engagement and performance metrics, allowing brands to monitor full-funnel impact. By connecting ad data from major platforms (like Meta, TikTok, and Google) to sampling campaign performance and customer behaviour, brands can see precisely which ads drove the most sample requests, engagement, and subsequent conversions.

Insight: Real-time, in-platform tracking also enables brands to take immediate actions, such as reallocating ad spend or adjusting targeting to maximise ROI. This level of visibility is invaluable for staying agile and maximising their ROI.

2. Survey responses

‍Surveys allow brands to go beyond behavioural data and capture valuable insights on consumer perceptions, preferences, and intent to purchase. Sampl’s proprietary survey tool enables brands to reach out to consumers who have trialled the product, collecting zero-party data that reveals why consumers liked (or disliked) the product, their likelihood to recommend it, and potential purchase interest.

This allows for a deeper level of analysis into drivers of purchase behaviour, as well as valuable customer specific information to personalise future marketing.

Insight: Zero-party data (data voluntarily shared by consumers) offers a direct line into consumer sentiment, making it an invaluable asset in refining product positioning, messaging, and even product development.

3. Coupons and purchase tracking

This layer integrates coupon data and tracks purchases to bridge the gap between sampling and sales. For direct-to-consumer (DTC) purchases, Sampl employs tracking pixels that record sales originating from samples. For offline purchases, Sampl works with cashback providers to track coupon redemptions and offline conversions, enabling brands to see if the sampling experience successfully moved consumers to purchase.

A great example of this is our case study with Bio&Me, where the team achieved an 18% coupon redemption rate, using our NearStore technology.

Insight: By linking sampling with purchase data, brands gain a direct view of conversion paths, understanding what drives action in both online and offline channels. This insight is crucial for brands operating in omnichannel environments.

4. Brand awareness tracking

Brand tracking is one of the staples of brand management, but it can often be expensive and difficult to measure. Partnering with brand-tracking providers like Tracksuit, Sampl enables brands to measure the impact of sampling on brand awareness. This looks to understand the shifts in consumer perception and brand affinity by tracking changes in awareness, consideration, and preference over time, as a result of campaigns.

Insight: For brands aiming to build long-term loyalty, brand awareness tracking offers insights into how effectively sampling campaigns elevate brand perception, creating a lasting influence on the consumer journey.

‍5. Sales uplift studies

Through partnerships with third-party analytics providers such as Circana, it allows brands to conduct in-depth sales uplift studies. Using media holdout tests and matched store data, this layer isolates the sales impact directly attributable to sampling efforts, delivering a comprehensive ROI analysis.

Insight: Sales uplift studies go beyond surface-level metrics to deliver proof of incremental sales driven by sampling. This level of attribution allows brands to justify sampling investment with precise ROI data, giving clarity to the financial returns on campaign efforts.

6. Lifetime value (LTV) measurement

For more advanced uses, you can extend data capabilities beyond single campaigns by tracking consumers over time to measure the lifetime value of customers acquired through sampling. By capturing first-party data and obtaining marketing consent, brands can conduct long-term studies, comparing the LTV of sampled consumers with non-sampled cohorts.

Insight: LTV measurement is transformative for brands with ongoing sampling programmes. It allows brands to build a true picture of customer loyalty, retention, and long-term profitability, helping to shape future marketing strategies with high-value consumer insights.

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Step 4: Measuring and optimising during a campaign to maximise ROI

With real-time data, Sampl enables brands to make informed adjustments mid-campaign. This optimising ability allows you to refine targeting, adjust spending, and even test new creative approaches.

• Creative adjustments: Modify ad creative based on which visuals or messages drive the most engagement.
• Media spend reallocation: Shift budget to high-performing channels for maximum impact.
• A/B testing: Experiment with different ads and messages to pinpoint what resonates best with your audience.

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Calculating ROI and understanding financial impact

Calculating ROI (Return on Investment) is essential for evaluating the financial effectiveness of sampling campaigns. A clear ROI calculation can justify budget allocations, guide future investment decisions, and demonstrate the value of sampling to key stakeholders. 

Sampl can work with you and our select partners, to connect sales uplift, LTV insights, and cost-efficiency metrics, giving brands a precise view of the financial returns on their sampling campaigns.

4 ways to calculate sampling ROI

1. Sales uplift analysis‍

One of the most effective ways to calculate ROI is through a sales uplift analysis. This involves comparing sales in regions where sampling occurred with those in holdout or control regions, isolating the direct impact of the sampling campaign. For products sold in retail, Sampl partners with analytics providers like Circana to use EPOS store data and media holdout tests, revealing the incremental sales driven by sampling.

Advanced Insight: Sales uplift studies provide a concrete measure of how sampling translates into immediate and incremental sales, both at a product and halo level. By quantifying uplift with media holdouts, brands can confidently link sampling efforts to revenue, offering evidence-backed justification for further investment in sampling.

2. LTV analysis – assessing the long-term value

Lifetime Value (LTV) measurement is highly relevant for brands with longer-term acquisition and retention strategies. By tracking sampled consumers over time, it enables brands to compare the LTV of customers acquired through sampling with those acquired through other channels. This helps identify the true, enduring impact of sampling campaigns on customer loyalty, repeat purchases, and retention.

Advanced Insight: LTV measurement goes beyond campaign-level metrics, providing a long-term perspective on customer value. By understanding the lifetime impact of sampled customers, brands can refine targeting, optimise sampling strategies for high-value consumers, and improve overall customer acquisition cost (CAC).

3. Cost-efficiency metrics – marketing opt-ins and reviews

In addition to sales and LTV, assessing the cost-efficiency of sampling campaigns is essential. By calculating the cost per marketing opt-in and cost per review, brands can evaluate the efficiency of sampling in generating valuable leads and authentic customer feedback compared to other acquisition methods. Sampl’s campaigns have shown significant cost savings, often achieving a 60% reduction in cost-per-lead (CPL) and double the industry average in opt-in and review rates.

Advanced Insight: Cost-efficiency metrics help brands evaluate sampling as a lead-generation strategy. With higher-than-average opt-in and review rates, Sampl enables brands to optimise their sampling budget, effectively reducing CPL and maximising ROI from each campaign.

4. Blended ROI calculation – combining short-term and long-term metrics

A blended approach to ROI combines short-term gains (e.g., sales uplift) with long-term metrics (e.g., LTV) to provide a comprehensive picture of a sampling campaign’s effectiveness. By calculating the initial revenue uplift alongside projected long-term value, brands gain a well-rounded understanding of ROI. This approach is especially valuable for campaigns that aim to build both immediate conversions and sustained customer loyalty.

Example ROI Calculation: For a sampling campaign with a £25,000 budget that generated £120,000 in immediate sales uplift and an estimated additional £30,000 in long-term revenue, the blended ROI would be calculated as follows: (£120,000 + £30,000 - £25,000) / £25,000 = 5.6x ROI.

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Best practices for effective sampling measurement

Sampling measurement can be complex, but following best practices ensures that brands maximise their efforts. Sampl’s platform is designed to simplify this process, providing actionable data and optimisation tools.

Do’s and don’ts for success:

• Do align KPIs with campaign objectives and measure what matters to you.
• Don’t wait until post-campaign for insights. Use real-time data to adjust.
• Do use A/B testing and experiment with targeting for optimal engagement.
• Don’t overlook the importance of partner integrations for comprehensive data collection.

Pro Tip: Partnering with a provider like Sampl that can offer an end-to-end data integration solution is key to capturing a complete view of your campaign’s impact.

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Final thoughts

The importance of making sampling measurable

Measurement can turn any sampling campaign into a data-driven success story, offering actionable insights that inform future strategy. With the right KPIs, real-time optimisations, and in-depth ROI analysis, brands can confidently launch and scale their sampling campaigns.

Book a demo now, and speak to one of our sampling experts about how we can help.