When you have a new product, whether it’s physical or digital, you want to make sure that you get the best distribution possible. At the same time, you want to make sure that the public actually knows about the product and wants to have it.

Taken together, this could mean two things. First, you want to give product samples to the buyers for various retail outlets and other types of stores. This will help to convince them that you have a quality product that will sell. Without having a product in hand, it may be more challenging for the buyers to make that kind of decision.

Second, you want to give product samples to the media, both online and offline. They can review the product, highlight the product in an article, or otherwise provide you with that “press” and “exposure” that you need. The public learns about the product, how it works, and what purpose it serves. From this, they can extrapolate why they would want to buy one.

Naturally, giving out product samples comes at a cost and you may only have so many samples to go around. Do you give priority to the buyers or to the media? In the end, like so many other things in business, it’s about finding the balance. Both groups need to be kept happy.