Taking a Page Out of the Happy Meal Play Book

Though my kids are six and nine, we don’t spend much time clothes shopping. (My wife was quick to occupy that turf long ago). So this past weekend I was floored to see that clothing companies have learned exactly what McDonald’s pioneered a long time ago:

kids will push for your brand if you give them a free toy!

This is happening with Skechers, Levis, and many lower-tier lines. In fact, with ever-plummeting electronics prices, they can actually include a pair of walkie talkies when buying a shirt!

This is good old fashioned “promotion”. In the big picture, of course, the chances are pretty slim that you are in the children’s apparel business. But the principle here opens up two interesting questions:

Where can you sell a low-cost version of your product or service to another manufacturer that would make their product even more appealing? Alternatively, look at what drives purchases of your product. What low-cost (or even free) deal can you cut with a complementary supplier that would make your product sell faster?