Buy One, Free One
July 15, 2007 – 4:32 amIt is funny how many of us fall for the marketing gimmick of “Buy One, Free One”. However, did you know that while we, locals, may understand what it means, foreigners may not?
When you free one, it means that you are letting something go. However, if you would like to give a second unit free of charge upon the purchase of the first unit, you should say, “Buy One Get One Free”. Admittedly, it is rather clumsy but that’s proper English for you.
But just like the slogan “The whole of Malaysia is on sale”, it does not really make much sense grammatical wise but we do know what it means.
In marketing, we always look for something short yet catchy, something that is easy to read, spell and most importantly, to pronounce. What was that fizzy drink called again? Schweppes? But then I have a knack for weird spelling!
If you have the chance to shop in the country while the whole of Malaysia is on sale and you see a sign which says “Buy One, Free One”, it actually means that you will be paying for one item and getting the second for free. What a deal!
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2 Responses to “Buy One, Free One”
Thanks for the tip! I would never have guessed…
By JasonJ on Jul 16, 2007
Hi Jason,
That’s Malaysian lingo for you!
By Cyberpartygal on Jul 16, 2007