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Sample Fulfillment Services, From Request to Delivery

KSP runs product sample programs for brands. Requests from your website, your sales reps and your retail buyers reach our warehouse as orders, ship from stock kept only for samples, and carry tracking back to the system they came from, so your sales team knows when to follow up.
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A KSP associate scanning inventory with an RF scanner
order accuracy across 32.1M orders
99.999%
pick and pack
Under 30min
same-day shipping cutoff
2PM CST
ground delivery to any US address
1-3days

What Is Sample Fulfillment?

Sample fulfillment is storing trial sizes, swatches and sample sets, then shipping them one request at a time to prospects, retail buyers and sales reps, with each request tracked so your sales team knows when to follow up. Nobody paid for the order, so the brand carries every cost and the requester gets screened first.

Free also means people ask twice, so duplicates have to be caught before they ship. And most sends are single-unit parcels, where the mailer and postage make up a large share of the cost.

Sample programs come in four common shapes:

  • Consumer trial samples: trial sizes and minis requested from your website.
  • B2B pipeline samples: product sent to a prospect a rep is working, so the rep calls once it lands.
  • Retail buyer samples: finished retail units sent ahead of a line review.
  • Swatches and sample books: fabric, finish and color swatches, loose or bound.

Where Sample Requests Come From

Every source ends up as the same thing in our warehouse: an order from your system, labeled with where it came from. Any platform connects, through Logiwa or our custom API, and a new connection can be built in as little as a week.

  • Website Request Forms

    A request-a-sample form or a $0 sample product in your store creates an order that drops into our WMS like any paid order. Shopify, WooCommerce and BigCommerce stores connect directly.

  • Sales Reps

    Reps request samples for their accounts in your CRM, store or request form. The order reaches us with the rep's name on it, and reps keep working in the system they already use.

  • Trade Show Lead Lists

    After the show, load the lead list into your store or request system as one batch. Each lead becomes an order for the same sample set, and the whole batch ships from sets built before the show.

  • Retail Buyers and Distributors

    One-off requests for a line review or distributor meeting, marked as buyer samples and dated to the meeting.

Screening a Request Before It Ships

Free samples draw repeat requesters and addresses that don't exist. The rules that stop them belong in your request form or store, where the requester types their details. We ship what your system releases, so a request that breaks a rule never reaches our pick line.

RuleWhere to set itWhat it stops
One sample per address or customer

Your store: a $0 sample product limited to one per customer. Or a request form that checks past requests by address.

The same person collecting samples month after month

Business addresses only

Your B2B request form, with company name and work email required

Consumer requests on a program meant for buyers and prospects

Monthly cap per rep

Your CRM or request system, set by rep

One territory using up the month's sample stock

Countries you send samples to

Your store's shipping settings

Postage and customs paperwork on requests outside your market

Address check

Address validation on your form or checkout

A sample and its postage lost to a mistyped street

Each duplicate stopped in your system also saves the pick, the mailer and the label it would have cost.

Sample Stock Set Apart From Sellable Stock

How sample stock stays apart

  1. Sample-Only SKUs

    Trial sizes, swatch packs and sample sets each get their own SKU. Every unit barcode is checked against the order before it ships, so a trial size doesn't go out on a paid order and a full-size unit doesn't go out free.

  2. Lot and Expiry at Receiving

    For cosmetic and supplement samples, each lot and its expiry date are recorded at receiving and the oldest-dated units ship first, the same lot and expiry control on supplement samples as on full-size bottles.

  3. Scheduled Cycle Counts at No Charge

    Sample stock is small, moves fast and is easy to miscount. Our scheduled cycle counts on it are included at no charge.

  4. Live Stock by Sample SKU

    Your portal shows on-hand stock for each sample SKU in real time, so the reorder goes in before requests pile up.

Sample Sets Built Ahead of Requests

A sampler of five minis takes five picks when it's assembled at the moment of the request, and one pick when it's built ahead as its own SKU.

We build discovery sets, sampler kits, swatch packs and sample books in batches on our 50,000 sq ft kitting floor, which has built 20.9 million kits. Each set is assembled to your bill of materials, checked against it and photographed before it's sealed, then stored as its own finished SKU, so a request is a single pick. See how we build sample sets to a bill of materials.

Insert cards go in at the build: an offer code, a reorder link or a QR code to your product page, so the sample arrives with its next step in the box.

A long aisle of pallet racking in KSP's warehouse
Racking on KSP's warehouse floor in Brooklyn Park.

Packing Small: Mailers, Weight and Carrier

A sample brings in no revenue, so its mailer and postage are pure cost. Most of that cost gets decided at the pack station, which is where we control it.

  1. Mailer Set per Sample SKU

    Each sample SKU gets its packaging spec once: padded mailer, poly mailer or small box, chosen so the sample arrives presentable without paying to ship empty space.

  2. Glass Packed for the Trip

    Vials, droppers and serum bottles get the protective packing we use on beauty sample sets and glass, and packers confirm pumps and droppers are tight before the mailer closes.

  3. Weighed and Measured Before the Label

    Every packed mailer goes over certified scales and dimensioners, and we pick the carrier on that measured weight and size. A box an inch too big can raise the billable weight on a small parcel (see dimensional weight on small mailers).

  4. Rate-Shopped and Shipped

    Labels come from multi-carrier rate shopping. Requests that reach us by 2 PM CST ship the same day, and ground delivery reaches any US address in 1 to 3 days.

Samples for Retail Buyers and Distributors

A buyer sample has a deadline. It goes to a named person ahead of a line review or a distributor meeting, and it has to arrive as the finished retail unit the buyer would put on the shelf, packed to survive the trip.

Mark the request with the buyer and the meeting date, and we hold its release so it lands before the meeting. Ground covers any US address in 1 to 3 days, and overnight service is available when the meeting is close. Signature-required delivery and a declared value are set per order.

Once the buyer says yes, the first purchase order ships from the same building and inventory, built to the retailer's routing guide by our B2B fulfillment team.

My experience with KSP has been fantastic since day one! KSP has a great team of well trained staff who pay attention to detail and know how to do the job right. The system access has proven to be an exceptional tool in managing my business and direct communication with the warehousing team. KSP makes fulfillment very easy and I enjoy our partnership!

Sports Apparel RetailerKSP client

Getting Tracking Back to Your Sales Team

Sales follows up once a sample lands, so the delivery record has to reach the right person. The request's source and requester live on the order in your system, and that's where the shipment record comes back to.

  1. Request Logged in Your System

    The order carries whatever source and requester your system gave it: web form, rep name, show name or buyer.

  2. Picked, Packed and Shipped

    We pick from sample stock, pack to the mailer spec and ship, with every unit barcode-checked against the order first.

  3. Tracking Posts Back

    Tracking posts back to the same order in your store or system, so each rep sees it on their own request. Your team can also check order status any time through KSP system access.

  4. Follow-Up Timed to Delivery

    With carrier tracking on every request, the rep follows up once the sample has arrived instead of guessing.

Bad Addresses and Returned Samples

A requester who typed a bad address has little reason to fix it, so returned samples need a rule before the program starts.

  • Returned to Sender

    Returned samples are received, inspected and handled by your rule: back into sample stock, quarantined or disposed of. You get a report of every return and its condition.

  • Address Fixes

    Correct the address on the request in your system and release it again. It comes back to us as a new order with the same source and requester, so the follow-up still goes to the right rep.

  • Weak Lead Sources

    Every return ties to an order, and every order carries its source. A trade show list full of dead addresses shows up in the returns before you book that show again.

What a Sample Costs to Send

We don't publish sample rates. A per-sample cost is built from the lines below, and we walk you through the invoice and your program line by line.

Carrier trailers backed into KSP's dock doors
Pick and Pack

Priced per order and per unit. A pre-built set ships as one unit, which keeps this line low on multi-item samplers.

Mailer

Padded, poly or small box, set per sample SKU. A mailer sized to the sample also lowers the postage line.

Postage

Set by measured weight, size and destination zone, rate-shopped across carriers on every label.

Set Building

Applies when samplers, swatch packs or sample books are built ahead. A three-mini sampler takes less labor than a boxed set with a printed insert, and the quote shows it.

Storage

Space for sample stock, driven by how many sample SKUs you run and how fast each one turns.

What Brings It Down

Sets built ahead of requests, a mailer sized to the sample, and screening rules that stop duplicates before they become orders.

What we'll talk through

Not ready to share program numbers? Get the Fee Checklist by email first.

  • Where requests come from: website, reps, trade show lists, retail buyers
  • Samples per month, and how that changes around launches and shows
  • Single item or pre-built set, with the components in each set
  • Sample type and size: trial size, swatch or sample book, full-size unit
  • The store, CRM or request system your requests start in

Sample Fulfillment FAQ

How do sample requests from our website reach the warehouse?

Through your store connection, the same way paid orders do. A sample form or a $0 sample product creates an order that drops into our WMS with whatever sample tag your store puts on it.

Can our sales reps request samples for their accounts?

Yes. Reps request in your CRM, store or request form, which sends each request to us as an order with the rep's name on it. Tracking posts back to that order, so each rep sees when their samples ship.

Do you connect to our CRM or request system?

Any platform connects, through Logiwa or our custom API, and a new connection can be built in as little as a week.

How do we stop the same person requesting samples again and again?

Set the limit where the request is made: a $0 sample product limited to one per customer, or a request form that checks past requests by address. A duplicate stopped in your system never reaches us, so it never costs a pick, a mailer or postage.

Do product samples need their own SKUs?

Yes. Sample units get their own SKUs, so a trial size never ships on a paid order and sample stock is counted on its own, with our scheduled cycle counts included at no charge.

Do you track lot and expiry on cosmetic or supplement samples?

Yes. Lot and expiry are recorded at receiving, and the oldest-dated sample stock ships first.

What happens when a sample comes back undeliverable?

We receive and inspect it, then follow your rule: back into sample stock, quarantine or disposal. You get a report of every return and its condition.

What samples does KSP not ship?

Refrigerated or frozen samples, since we have no cold chain, and hazmat such as alcohol-based fragrance samples and aerosols. Alcohol and hemp-derived THC samples are out too. CBD samples are in.

Are Your Free Samples Costing More Than They Should?

Tell us who asks for samples and roughly how many go out a month. We'll plan the program around your sales team and show you what each sample would cost.

  1. Answer five quick questions about what you ship and where you sell, with rough numbers.
  2. A KSP rep gets in touch within 1 business day to set up a short call and hear what you need.
  3. We build a fulfillment plan and a quote around your operation, then walk you through both line by line.

99.999% order accuracy across 32.1M orders.

No obligation, and nothing to send or prepare.

Not ready to talk yet? Get the Fulfillment Fee Checklist: the 14 lines a 3PL can bill you for, with the question to ask about each one.

Step 1 of 5

Who do you ship to?

Pick one or both.