A publishing executive warned DMers yesterday that it takes work to make package inserts and statement stuffers pay out.
Michael Feldstein, director of alternative media for Boardroom Reports Inc. offered some tips on how to use insert media. He made these recommendations in a session at the DMD New York.
First off, he advised that marketers get a good broker.
Next, he counseled mailers look for insert programs that may not formally be on the market.
“Sometimes catalogers can create a package insert program where none existed before,” he said.
Next, he urged package-insert marketers to save their hardest negotiations for program rollouts and not get too hung up on the prices for tests.
He strongly urged marketers to avoid placing inserts inside packages delivered by retailers. “I’ve been burned in the past by retail programs,” said Feldstein.
Despite the fact that insert programs are much less expensive than other forms of direct marketing, Feldstein warned against putting any money up front to pay for insertions.
“The medium is too risky,” he noted. “Get your broker to negotiate good credit terms.”
Moving over to creative, Feldstein said marketers should follow the same rules of thumb as direct mailers, including a liberal use of the word free. In Boardroom’s case is usually amounts to soft offers and/or free trial issues.
To avoid creative fatigue, Feldstein said marketers should rotate as many as three control packages.
He also said sizes of test amounts should follow the practices of direct mail.
There are also several production pitfalls to watch out for.
One of them is to mind the weight of pieces since the U.S. Postal Service has strong regulations in this regard and exceeding weights can sometimes cost insert marketers extra money.
In addition, sometimes inserts can get mangled at the printing and production stages and not go out.
“If you get 0% response to a program, chances are that it didn’t go out and don’t let the broker or list owner tell you otherwise,” he said.
Overall, insert programs can work but they’re not as precisely targetable as direct mail. “Remember that they are essentially mass media,” said Feldstein.
Network
