Not surprisingly, one of the best marketing techniques that you may want to employ as part of your overall strategy is giving away something for free. You won’t make any money directly from such a promotion, but this tactic can achieve several objectives.

Let’s take the example of the free coffee promotion that McDonald’s has from time to time. First, it will attract some people away from their “usual” coffee places and you may be able to win over some new customers, making McD’s the new preferred coffee shop. Sometimes all it takes is getting the customer to try your product.

Second, while the coffee itself will lose you money, there’s a significant chance that the customer will spend money in other areas. Since they are already in the store, they’ll likely buy their breakfast too. And you can gain profit that way, not to mention that the customer gets to try more of your product.

The same concept of a no-strings-attached freebie has been applied in other areas too. I know that Hastings Racecourse has free breakfast from time to time, knowing full well that the people eating the breakfast will likely lose the money back (and then some) by wagering on the horse races and on-site casino. It works because it gets them in the door.