A few years back, I never thought that I would call a company for anything other than a complaint about their product. However, now I call more often for positive reasons without any hesitations.

What I've learned is that many companies would rather hear about your good experiences than the bad ones. And in most cases, they'll reward you for contacting them, whether it be through a free sample or even some coupons.

Many times, I've gotten coupons for free products just for making a quick phone call or email. It's very easy to do. Here's a few steps to get you started:

1. Write down a list of products you use most frequently (go through your cabinets even)
2. Get those products and find the 800 number on the back of the product (or google for their website)
3. Contact them and tell them why you love their products so much (you don't even have to ask for coupons, but you could if you'd like)
4. See how quickly your mailbox fills up with goodies!

Usually, most companies will allow you to call every 30 days to ask for coupons. This will differ from company to company. You could even keep a list of who you've contacted and when, this way you'll remember who sent you what and who you shouldn't bother with.

So, go give it a shot! What's the worse that can happen?

Edited to add: Here's a sample letter that you can use to email manufacturers', just tweak as needed

Excellent advice to remember to call about the good too!

I contacted Pilsbury Grand Buscuits last fall.I found something that looked like a rodent dropping in a buscuit. Pilsbury sent Fed Ex to my house immediantly and picked up the buscuit. It turned out to be food grease used in thir machinery ( I was so happy to hear that). They turned it over to quality control, re-assured me it is an edible grease, and though they don't like it in thier foods, it is safe. They also sent me 6 coupons at 5.00 off of any products thye make. I usedt hem to buy the BIG boxes of pop secret. I still buy Pilsbury Grand Buscuits too. It really pleased me to see how fast they moved and they took me seriously.

When I had babies I did this got lots of coupons and samples .I told them I was comparing products.Works for new moms.

Awesome post GF!

I love complimenting companies when I love their products! I usually do the email route. Sometimes they send coupons, sometimes they send thank you letters (which is still really nice) and sometimes you don't hear anything at all, but I like to think they still read my email and passed along my compliments to the makers of the products.

What a great idea to keep track of who you've written to and when! Thanks for the tips!

To show just how much this works, I contacted Ziploc about some containers that I bought from Target cheap the other day. I bought 4 5-packs and their supposed to be freezer safe, 1 (one!) lid cracked and all 4 box tops were expired, so I mentioned that. They are sending me 4 (four!) replacement coupons!

UPDATE: I rec'd 4 coupons for free Ziploc containers and another coupon booklet from SC Johnson on 6/27/09... 3 days after calling them. That's amazing customer service!

Jenner, I hope you don't mind me mentioning this. Jenner mentioned this in another thread: here

Another perfect example of a company being amazing!

Of course I don't mind. I think that is one of the best companies I've dealt with. Spread the word!