StartSampling

About StartSampling

StartSampling Inc., established in 1998 and publicly launched in September 1999, carved a niche for itself within the product sampling industry. The company operates as a specialized service provider for Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) marketers, their advertising agencies, and retail partners. Its core business revolves around designing, executing, and managing large-scale product sampling campaigns aimed at fostering connections between brands and consumers.

The firm's business model is multifaceted, offering turnkey services that cover the entire campaign lifecycle from design and execution to fulfillment, monitoring, and measurement. A key component of its revenue generation is a Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) model, where advertisers pay for tangible results. This approach allows brands to deploy sampling programs across a wide array of channels with transparency. StartSampling's distribution network is extensive, leveraging online platforms, mobile apps, SMS, direct mail, and a broad retail network that includes major players in the mass, club, drug, and grocery sectors. The company ships millions of samples monthly from its facilities in the Chicago area and collaborates with the US Postal Service on market standards.

StartSampling's service is built to be a one-stop shop, managing the logistics of getting samples to consumers regardless of where they engage with the brand's offer. The company creates custom e-sampling micro-sites that facilitate these campaigns and gather valuable consumer information for the client brands. Beyond the logistics of sampling, the firm also operates a marketing research division to provide deeper consumer insights. Between 2008 and 2009, the company was recognized on the Inc. 5000 list for its growth.