Getting Personal

Today I’d like to show my appreciation for personalised product sampling and bespoke press visits. The concepts are obviously nothing new, but worthy of shouting about all the same.

When it comes to products, with the best will in the world beauty journos can’t try all the samples they’re sent, as you know. But ones chosen themselves surely stand the best chance of getting on their face/body/hair – and therefore into their features. So I tip my hat to the brand reps recognising this time and again.

Take these examples via PRs I’ve very much enjoyed this month: I was invited to take a quiz to receive personalised product recommendations available on a new e-tailer, before receiving a voucher to purchase the matches that appealed. Meanwhile, a tanning brand also provided a code allowing me to choose the most suitable item from its website, while a skincare company requested to know which three products from its line resonated most, to be sent in a larger ‘perfect for me’ mailer.

For me all these demonstrate a case of ‘you choose, you use’. Otherwise, why accept the offer?

Of course, the approach also applies to trips and visits in many ways. Case in point: I’m awaiting a ‘personalised wellness prescription’ at a boutique health and fitness provider, the invite to experience a catalogue of services sent with a questionnaire determining which three would work best for me. Dreamy!

No doubt this requires significantly more planning on a PR’s part than a straightforward invite leading to a service review. But a tailormade visit – like personalised product sampling – not only injects excitement and enhances engagement. It can make an experience more meaningful and relevant – which, I think, are two of the most important factors in content creation nowadays.