Free Slurpees could yield big sales day

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DALLAS, July 11 (UPI) -- Free birthday Slurpees handed out at 7-Elevens could mean the Dallas-based convenience store chain rang up some big sales Monday, a data review indicates.

Officials at 7-Eleven say they expected to give away 5 million 7.11-ounce (get it?) Slurpees, about 1,000 per store, USA Today reported.

When the company handed out 4.5 million Slurpees on July 11, 2010, Slurpee sales for the day mushroomed 38 percent, said Nancy Smith, 7-Eleven's vice president of marketing, even though there was no limit imposed on the number of free drinks available to a customer.

"Slurpee drinkers are some of the most loyal fans we have," Smith told USA Today. "They come here to have fun."

"You get a taste of it," said Slurpee senior brand director Laura Gordon, "and you choose to have more."

And while they're in the stores, many Slurpee drinkers buy other stuff, data showed.

"Free is magic," said Barry Schwartz, professor of psychology at Swarthmore College. "If you offer something for free, people will gladly spend money to get it."