In-Store Food Samples Poised For a Comeback

Just one of the many casualties of the pandemic, in-store food samples all but disappeared last year as grocery stores looked to contain the risk of transmission for their customers. But the practice is slowly returning, with Sam’s Club and Costco recently announcing they would start offering in-store samples to customers again – and according to our latest polling on behalf of Ad Age, Americans have mixed feelings about it. 

Despite mixed feelings from consumers, the future looks bright for in-store food samples

Forty-nine percent of consumers say it’s a “good idea” for stores like Sam’s Club and Costco to reintroduce in-store food samples – while 29% weren’t sure about the decision and 22% think it’s a “bad idea.”

The hesitation boils down mostly to safety concerns – food safety was the most commonly cited reason in the survey for forgoing free samples in-store (40% said so), followed by fear of COVID-19 infection (34% said so).

But despite American’s initial hesitation, however, the future looks promising for grocery store samples. While 62% of Americans said they participated in free in-store food sampling pre-pandemic, 65% of Americans said they would partake in the free samples once all COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. 

Staying power: In-store samples influence consumers’ shopping choices and remain relevant for younger consumers

Grocery stores have good reason to bring back the concept: by consumers’ own estimation, food samples do sway their decision at checkout, and their own purchase behaviors show the samples have an even stronger impact than they realize: 69% said they’re more likely to buy a food product after sampling it in-store, and 86% admit to buying a food product after sampling it in-store. 

Appetizers (51%), cheese (41%) and desserts or baked goods (47%) were the top 3 foods consumers say they’ve bought after trying an in-store sample. 

While the practice of offering free food samples to hungry shoppers stretches back decades, the concept still has sway with younger customers: 72% of millennials say they’re likely to try in-store samples at the supermarket post-pandemic — compared to 66% of Gen Xers. 

Methodology:

This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Ad Age between June 4-7, 2021, among 1,055 U.S. adults ages 18 and older. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online.