A variety of limited-time freebies and deals were available to consumers on August 9, 2018, spanning food, beverages, digital content, and shipping supplies. Offers ranged from free food items at national chains, such as Great American Cookie Company and Freddy’s Frozen Custard, to complimentary Kindle eBooks and USPS shipping materials. Several promotions required specific actions to redeem, including filling out online forms, presenting email confirmations, or using retailer loyalty cards. Additionally, a blood drive in New York provided donors with vouchers for free soup and tickets to a New York Mets game.
Free Food and Beverage Offers
Multiple food and beverage establishments offered free products on and around August 9, 2018. These deals included free cookies, frozen custard, and donuts, with specific redemption requirements such as filling out forms or wearing specific footwear.
Great American Cookie Company On August 9, 2018, Great American Cookie Company distributed one free chocolate chip cookie per customer. This offer was valid from Sunday, August 9, through Saturday, August 15. To receive the cookie, customers were required to fill out a specific form and present it in-store.
Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers In celebration of National Frozen Custard Day, Freddy’s offered rotating daily deals from August 8 to August 10, 2018. On August 9, app users could access offers such as $1 single-scoop sundaes. Participation required users to be signed into the Freddy’s mobile application.
Krispy Kreme Krispy Kreme provided a free Original Glazed donut on Saturday, August 9, 2018. The promotion required customers to walk into any participating Krispy Kreme location wearing a pair of Crocs. No purchase was necessary to redeem this offer.
Corner Bakery Corner Bakery offered a free grilled flatbread sandwich and a side of baby carrots through Thursday, August 13. To redeem, customers had to fill out a designated form and select a specific date to visit a participating location. An email confirmation would be sent and had to be presented at the restaurant. The offer was subject to a limited number of freebies per location.
Chevy’s Fresh Mex Participating Chevy’s Fresh Mex restaurants offered two free kids’ meals (for children age 10 and under) with the purchase of a regular-price adult entrée. This deal was valid every Tuesday throughout August 2018.
Chick-fil-a Customers visiting participating Chick-fil-a restaurants in August 2015 (referenced in the source material) could receive a free Chick-fil-a Deluxe or Spicy Deluxe sandwich. To obtain this freebie, customers were required to register online for a Chick-fil-a 2015 calendar card, which provided access to an online schedule of exclusive offers.
Xtra Mart On Saturday, August 1, 2018, Xtra Mart convenience stores in the Mid-Atlantic and New England regions gave away a free cup of coffee of any size to customers at participating locations.
Burger King Royal Perks members who linked their Walmart+ account could get one free Whopper per day from August 5 to August 11, 2018, with a purchase of $1 or more. The offer was redeemed by activating the "My Code" section in the Burger King app.
A&W A&W offered a free small root beer float on Wednesday, August 6, 2018, from 2:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at participating locations. No purchase was necessary for this National Root Beer Float Day promotion.
Whataburger In honor of its 75th birthday, Whataburger offered the classic No. 1 burger for 75 cents on Friday, August 8, 2018. The deal was available to Rewards members from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. via the Whataburger app or website.
Shake Shack Shake Shack provided a free Chicken Shack sandwich on Sundays in August 2018 (including August 10) with a minimum spend of $10. The code CHICKENSUNDAY was required at checkout for in-store kiosks, the website, or the app.
Krispy Kreme Krispy Kreme offered a free Original Glazed donut on Saturday, August 9, 2018, to customers wearing Crocs. No purchase was required.
Digital and Retail Freebies
Consumers could also access free digital content and retail items on August 9, 2018. These offers included eBooks, movie downloads, stickers, and shipping supplies.
Amazon Kindle eBook A Kindle edition of The Rains of Godwin Valley by Joseph Logsdon was available for free for a limited time. Customers could click "Read for Free" to obtain the eBook.
Movie Download A free download of X-Men: Days of the Future Past was offered to customers who synced one of their participating accounts (iTunes, Prime Video, Google Play, etc.) by August 28, 2018. The offer was limited to one per customer and account.
Southern Marsh and Element Stickers Free stickers were available from Southern Marsh and Element. Customers could fill out a form to request the Southern Marsh stickers, and a separate form was provided for Element stickers.
USPS Shipping Supplies Free USPS Flat Rate Envelopes and Boxes were available. To obtain them, customers needed to add the desired box to their cart, sign into their USPS account, and checkout. These boxes were designated for flat rate shipping use only.
ZOZO Clothing ZOZO offered a free t-shirt and jeans to new customers. To receive the items, users had to sign up with their email and download the ZOZO app.
Giant Eagle Giant Eagle Advantage Card holders received a free Jif Power Up Bar or Cluster. The offer was loaded directly to the card and automatically discounted at checkout when the card was scanned. This offer was valid from August 9 through August 15, 2018, with a limit of one per transaction.
Community and Health Freebies
A community blood drive in New York provided donors with vouchers for free food and entertainment tickets.
New York Blood Center Drive On August 9, 2018, Assemblyman Edward C. Braunstein sponsored a summer blood drive at the Bay Terrace Shopping Center. Donors received a free pair of New York Mets tickets provided by the New York Blood Center. Additionally, Ben's Kosher Delicatessen provided vouchers for free pints of soup to the first 100 donors, and Stop & Shop donated pastries and water. Farm Cow Frozen Yogurt provided coupons to donors.
Conclusion
The available data indicates that August 9, 2018, offered a diverse selection of freebies for U.S. consumers. The primary focus was on food and beverage promotions, with major chains like Great American Cookie Company and Freddy’s offering no-cost treats. Retail and digital opportunities were also prevalent, including free shipping supplies from USPS and a complimentary movie download. Additionally, community-focused freebies were available through a blood drive in New York, which incentivized donors with Mets tickets and food vouchers.