All the stores in my area participated LAST year, but they all just simply dropped the free stuff on the counter and let people have it. They did not use the opportunity wisely for marketing. While I got all the free stuff I wanted, I remember thinking, "These morons probably won't do this next year."
And I was right. NONE of the stores in my area bothered with Free RPG Day this year. The one store I bothered to visit anyway on Saturday, told me that they "didn't even know" about Free RPG Day. Which can only mean they simply didn't pay attention to the materials they get from their distributor (Alliance).
So not only did I not get the cool free stuff I wanted this year, I didn't spend any money in the store either, as I was pretty miffed. And I'm highly encouraged to not bother with the stores in my area and save money by purchasing through Amazon.
It's sad that this business is so riddled with store owners who don't have a clue when it comes to marketing.