Something, such as a
commercial product, given away at
no charge, to
entice or
encourage the
recipient to
become a
faithful,
regular, and
paying user of that
item.
Depending on logistics, free samples might be found
delivered to one's mailbox, in a store where they would
otherwise be available for purchase, or as newspaper
inserts. Often the free sample appears in a different form
from the original it promotes, in a smaller or
"single-use" package, or already processed in some way,
such as those little cubes of cheese you see at the deli
counter.
Perhaps if products were more reasonably priced and
necessary, there would be no need for free samples of them.