I have been asked by several readers who read my frugal living tips on how to get free stuff from companies. I am not a total expert on the subject as I mostly get my free stuff using coupons and the occasional free sample by mail, but here are some tips if you are a freebie hunter:

How to Score Freebies

Join “try and rate” sites like Crowdtap, Bzz Agent, PinchMe! Smiley360 and Influenster. These sites send out “campaigns” that require various social media tasks be completed to share your experience with others. I belong to all four and in the past have gotten full sized beauty products, food, media and even clothing and shopping “sprees”. They are all free to join, although you won’t always get picked for every campaign and you must complete the activities for each campaign to be included in future ones.

Keep your eyes open for free samples on social media. Simply typing in “#freebie” on twitter or Facebook might yield some results.

Ask companies to send stuff to you. You might get lucky if you compliment a company that you already love. They could send branded novelties or even coupons for free products.

Enter blog giveaways. I periodically have them on my blog, so make sure you enter to win as the odds are pretty good for most people. You could also join sites like Contest Chest that send you a newsletter that lists new giveaways that are added to their database every day.

One way to get free things both online and off is to take surveys. These can be found on websites or on receipts after you make a purchase. I often get free food or a discount the next time I shop by taking 5 minutes of my time to take a survey.

Sign up for birthday clubs. Many restaurants and stores offer free stuff when your birthday comes. Make sure to sign up for as many sites that offer freebies on birthdays so you get as many as you can when the day arrives.