A Real Page-Turner

WHAT'S THE BUZZ IN ALTERNATIVE media? Look in your mailbox.

Much of the recent growth seems to be coming from catalogers looking to make money from both the supply and demand side of the insert media market.

It's not the first time catalogers have displayed a strong cyclical interest in insert media. But this time is different, because many catalogers now see ad revenue as the top priority in blow-in or package insert programs. Few still view insert media solely as a way to acquire customers or boost their own product sales.

“Catalog blow-ins are the fastest growing insert media,” says Jeff Holland, vice president for new media development at Singer Direct. One reason is that printing technology has improved, ensuring that blow-in inserts remain inside catalogs, ultimately reaching the intended recipients.

Catalogers generally are more open to accepting blow-ins from magazine publishers. Insert media program managers say the rationale for offering the “right” magazine to prospects and customers is like a value-added service and a brand enhancement for both parties.

Peak times for catalogers' involvement in the market have been tied to postage rate increases, which typically spark renewed interest in insert media as a means to cut mailing costs. Before the dot-com crash, distracted catalogers drifted away from insert media in droves.

“More catalogers are trying insert media again, with mini-catalogs and one-shot products,” says Marie Buzzeo, vice president for insert management at Direct Media.

Similarly, insert media always has been viewed as an alternative to list rentals and other types of media. But this has required choosing between inserts' lower prices and response rates vs. the higher costs of rented lists and postage, and corresponding higher responses.

Insert media is benefiting from e-commerce in two ways, says Al Stanton, president of Stanton Direct Marketing. The first: Insert programs now have a larger target audience since more consumers are shopping online for items that ultimately are shipped to them. The second: New insert advertisers have emerged — Web sites using printed insert media to drive online traffic.

In fact, an Internet-oriented package insert program — Barnes & Noble.com's — generated the most broker recommendations over the last 12 months, according to research from NextMark.