Alliant's Sample U Puts Try Before Buy Spin on Advertising

November 3, 2009

MARKETING: Consumers Invited to Test Products in an Educational Setting
By Molly Pappas

Mass advertising is out. "Tryvertising" is in.

Tryvertising, a relatively new try before you buy concept, allows companies to receive real-time consumer feedback on new products, advertising campaigns and branding.

The nation's first free and ongoing tryvertising center has opened as Sample U at the local Alliant International University campus.

"The college asked me to help them build awareness for their marketing and PR programs," said Linda Neumann, creator and founder of the product testing concept, Sample U.

Tryvertising is a new breed of product placement, allowing consumers, or trysumers, free access to packages, samples, campaigns, messaging, branding and services before a product's market release. Trysumers can actively provide feedback in a controlled environment, allowing companies quick, inexpensive customer opinion research.

"Focus groups are good for certain things, but can be biased and expensive and provide limited opinions," said Neumann. "With sampling, you hand out stuff and don't get feedback. Tryvertising is not as in-depth as focus groups and not as impersonal as sampling, but is a good cross between everything."

Sample U was tested in March with phenomenal results. "We expected to be open for two weeks," said Neumann. "We had to close down after three days."

Mixed Goals

The center officially opened its doors Sept. 25 with three goals in mind. Sample U and Alliant International University are determined to provide inexpensive and real-time consumer opinion; allow students at the college to learn about marketing and market research firsthand; and bridge the gap between theory and practice.

"Bringing corporations to the campus, by students doing internships at the corporations, it kind of all just fits together nicely," said Neumann.

Sample U offers the opportunity to execute professional practice, says Wendy Chung, Ph.D., a communications, marketing, public relations program coordinator and faculty project director of Sample U. "Alliant is known as a professional practice university. Sample U allows faculty members and students to conduct research -- real-life, real-time research -- for real clients."

Interns learned more in three days than during an entire semester, says Neumann, because they were allowed to execute lessons taught in the classroom.

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