How to Prepare a Publisher Sample Request Before Shipping
· Publisher Partnerships · by Evan Weber
A completed sample request and brand reply, plus practical decisions on editorial samples, loans, timing, product fit and follow-up.
“Can you send a sample?” is a reasonable opening question. It isn't quite enough information to put a box in the mail. The brand needs to know what the publisher wants to test, why it fits the audience and whether the timing is workable. The publisher needs to know what accepting the product means.
A useful sample request answers those questions in one short exchange. Start with the story, name the exact item and agree on the terms before shipping. Here's what that looks like.
A sample request and a reply you can adapt
This fictional example follows a small kitchen newsletter planning a coffee equipment comparison. The names, products and dates are illustrative.
Subject: Sample request: compact coffee grinder for a small-kitchen comparison
Hi Maya,
I'm putting together a comparison for Counter Space, a newsletter for readers who make coffee in small kitchens. I'd like to try your compact grinder alongside two other options, focusing on storage, cleanup and everyday use.
Could you provide the standard black model for editorial consideration? I'd need it by November 6 to allow two weeks of use before the planned November 23 issue. If that arrival date isn't workable, please tell me before shipping.
I can send links to two recent equipment comparisons and our current media kit. This is an independent editorial request, so inclusion and a positive review aren't guaranteed. Please let me know whether the sample would be a gift or a loan, and whether you need it returned. I'll confirm the shipping details privately after we agree.
Thanks,
Alex
The request gives Maya an actual decision to make. She can check the model, shipping window and sample terms without first extracting the plan from five separate emails. Alex also names the audience's problem: limited counter space. That is more useful than saying the newsletter has “highly engaged readers.”
A brand reply could be just as direct:
Hi Alex,
The small-kitchen angle fits. Subject to reviewing your recent comparisons and confirming delivery, we can provide the standard black model as a gift for editorial consideration, with no return required and no obligation to publish. We aren't requesting a paid placement or approval of your conclusions.
Our fulfillment team will confirm whether November 6 delivery is feasible before dispatch. Please send your recent comparisons and confirm the recipient and shipping address privately. If the delivery window slips, we'll check with you before sending it.
Here's the product page and care guide. Please contact me if you need a specification checked. If you cover the grinder, disclose that we provided it, and send the live link when convenient so we can read it.
Thanks,
Maya
Notice the difference between checking a specification and approving a review. One helps the writer get a fact right. The other can create an expectation of editorial control that neither side intended.
Decide what kind of arrangement you're making
Before discussing postage, decide whether this is an editorial sample, a loan or paid work. Putting the label in the email helps both sides avoid an awkward conversation after delivery.
- Editorial consideration: the publisher decides whether and how to cover the product. Agree whether the product can be kept. Don't quietly attach a posting requirement to a gift.
- Loan: agree on the testing period, return deadline, packaging, return label and who pays return shipping. Clarify what happens if the item is damaged or a consumable is used. Expensive equipment deserves more than “send it back when you're done.”
- Paid collaboration: if the brand needs a particular video, newsletter placement, deadline or reuse rights, agree on that work separately before dispatch. A product arriving at someone's door is a poor substitute for an agreed brief.
Affiliate commission is another decision. A sample doesn't automatically approve someone for a program, create a tracking link or settle the commission rate. Use the commission, sponsorship and hybrid deal guide when the conversation moves from trying a product to commissioning work.
Review the request before approving a shipment
For a brand manager, the strongest reason to send a sample is a credible match between the proposed coverage and the product. Ask to see the relevant publication or channel and a recent example in the same format. A thoughtful niche comparison can be a better fit than a large account with no clear reason to use the item.
Use three decisions to keep the review moving:
- Ship: the property is verified, the audience fit is clear, the exact variant is available and the agreed terms and delivery window work.
- Clarify: the idea fits, but one important answer is missing. Ask one focused question, such as “Is this for your weekly newsletter or a video?” or “Would a November 10 arrival still leave enough testing time?”
- Decline: the product doesn't fit the proposed coverage, the deadline can't be met or the request falls outside the sample budget. Give a plain reason without promising a future shipment you haven't approved.
A useful decline is short: “Thanks for the outline. We can't get the grinder to you by November 6, so we won't dispatch a sample for this issue. If you revisit the topic later, you're welcome to check availability.” That closes this request without implying that another shipment is booked.
For the grinder example, a request for the wrong electrical version would stop shipment even if everything else looked promising. Confirm the product's market, variant and suitability from its actual documentation. Don't make the publisher discover a mismatch when they open the box.
Keep the sample budget visible, too. If a brand's illustrative limit is $100 per approved request and the product costs it $65 plus $18 shipping, the shipment uses $83. An additional $25 return label would take a loan to $108. That changes the decision: choose another arrangement or get the extra amount approved before sending it.
For broader property and program checks, use the affiliate applicant review guide. You don't need to repeat the whole application process in every sample email.
Work back from the story date
“Needed by November 23” can mean the publication date, the filming date or the day testing must begin. Ask which one. In our example, the issue is planned for November 23, but Alex needs the grinder on November 6. Shipping it on November 20 would miss the purpose of the request.
Record four dates: the latest useful arrival, the expected dispatch, the publisher's planned coverage window and any agreed return. Treat the publication date as a plan unless a separate paid agreement makes it a commitment. Confirm delivery feasibility with the team actually shipping the item.
Press Hook's own sample request guidance for media professionals asks for story context, the publication, the exact product and the timeline. It also advises flagging tight deadlines. Those are useful details to include even when you arrange a sample directly by email.
If stock or shipping changes, tell the publisher before substituting an item. A different size, formula or model may no longer answer the question their story is built around. Offer a revised arrival date or a clearly identified alternative and let them decide whether it still works.
Adapt the request to the publisher's format
The same basic request works across formats, but the useful details change.
For a written comparison, explain the buying question and the product's role in the piece. Ask for specifications and care instructions. The grinder request does this by naming storage, cleanup and daily use rather than promising a vague “feature.”
For video, confirm the filming window and what the creator needs to demonstrate. If the item arrives after filming, the newsletter deadline doesn't rescue the project. Any brand request to reuse the footage belongs in a separate rights discussion.
For a gift guide, ask whether the publisher needs a physical sample to assess the item or only verified information and images for initial consideration. Don't ship a product just because someone is compiling a list. First establish what they need and whether the submission window is still open.
For a specialist reviewer, ask about their published sample policy and testing requirements. A reviewer may need longer to assess the product or may return loan equipment. Agree to those terms before allocating the sample.
After the sample arrives
Send the tracking information once. After delivery, a short check-in can confirm that the right item arrived intact and that the publisher has the documents they need. Keep that message useful: “Did the black model arrive, and do you need the cleaning instructions?” beats “When is our post going live?”
For U.S.-facing endorsements, the FTC says free products can create a material connection that needs disclosure when the recipient mentions them. The disclosure should be clear and easy to notice with the endorsement. Video needs disclosure in the video, not just its description. The publisher's opinion must reflect their actual experience.
When coverage appears, record the live URL, publication date and any agreed follow-up. If an affiliate link is included, check it through the program's normal process. Don't count a shipment, delivery confirmation or promised story as a published placement.
If nothing appears, keep the record accurate. An editorial sample can remain “delivered, no coverage observed.” That gives the next manager a useful history without turning a gift into a debt the publisher never agreed to owe.
Send one clear request
Before the next box leaves, put the story, exact item, latest useful arrival and gift-or-loan terms into one email. If you can't fill in those four details, resolve the missing answer first. That small pause is often the difference between a sample someone can use and a package that arrives with a question mark attached.
PublisherFinders provides free affiliate recruiting resources. For discovery and contact research, explore AffiliateFinders. For help managing recruiting and publisher relationships, see Experience Advertising's affiliate program services. Disclosure: Evan Weber founded these businesses.