Rising printing and paper costs, increased postage, skyrocketing list rental rates. Is there any way around these constantly increasing costs?

For business-to-business lead generating and even consumer prospecting, the answer increasingly is "Alternative Print Media," one of direct marketing's surprising little secrets. Alternative Print Media consists mostly of package inserts and card decks, but also includes ride-alongs, co-op mailings, statement stuffers, sampling, catalog bind-ins/blow-ins and few others.

Especially useful for startups with limited marketing budgets, I have seen some of these media used almost exclusively by magazines, manufacturers, distributors and others, usually in cases where the marketing niche is very specialized and hard to reach through more traditional media.

A Specialized Media Group

Because this is such a specialized media grouping, with its own unique dynamics and requirements, I called upon the doyenne of alternative media, Leon Henry, for help in understanding the variety of opportunities available today. Leon has generously provided access to his web site and other published materials for this article.

In the last thirty years, the number of insert programs has risen dramatically, along with the variety of options being offered to mailers.

Package Inserts: These are free standing promotional pieces delivered to a mail order customer via their fulfillment package, i.e. the insert is delivered to you in a box containing a shirt you ordered from a catalog.  Naturally the product shipment types vary dramatically:  catalog generated vs. space generated, continuity or club oriented, business-to-business vs. consumer. Correspondingly, the responses to the outside insert will also vary (see below).

With more than 1000 PIPs (package insert programs) to choose from, the universe approaches half a billion and includes distributors like Arizona Mail Order, Hanover House and Fingerhut. There are also scores of distributors and specialty companies.

Card Decks: This vehicle usually consists of 20 or more 3-1/2 x 5-1/2" business reply cards delivered in poly packs. Rate card prices average $25/M - $30/M and include printing from film. ostly business-to-business, some consumer card decks have come onto the market in recent months. Currently, some 750 decks are available in approximate circulations of 100M -250M each. Most decks will accept pre-printed inserts at a higher cost per thousand.  Many are also mailing in a larger format, 5-1/2 x 7-1/2" that are more pre-print friendly.

Ride-Alongs: In this instance a company mails a catalog, circular or announcement to its customer base and allows outside advertising to ride along. An advertiser can count on this method of distribution since the company doing the mailing has a vested interest in getting out their own promotional pieces.

Companies like music marketers Columbia House and BMG dominate this category and offer regular mailings in blocks of 2MM-6MM to their club members. Advertiser's response from this category is strong - comparable to package inserts.  Average prices range from $40/M - $60/M.  Outside inserts are from 4-6 per mailing. Response curves are similar to direct mail.

Co-op Mailings: This category, by definition, presents a group of non-competitive advertisers mailing to a common market.

Carol Wright is typical, including both mail order and direct response offers along with package goods participants (coupons on brand items). Co-ops represent large numbers (up to 40MM) in a single drop, can usually provide demographic selectivity and often provide demographic selections. Although responses are not as high as those generally received from packages, co-ops are priced more competitively, at an average of $15/M.

Other types of co-ops also exist which include mail order and direct response offers, but instead of the package goods coupons, local coupons are included (i.e. station, etc.).  These programs are usually sold on a local level by neighborhood franchises. Good examples include SuperCoups (mostly New England), Val Pak and Money Mailer. Most of them are available in a #10 envelope format, but some mail in a 6 x 9" envelope. Circulation exceeds 50MM/quarter.

Statement Stuffers: These mailings include invoices and statements generated by cable TV companies, utilities, credit cards, magazines, clubs, continuity programs, retailers, businesses and so on.  They are usually distributed in small envelopes so your insert needs to be no larger than 3-1/2 x 6-1/2" to fit. Outside inserts are generally limited to 3 since statements get mailed first class (high percentage of deliverability) and additional outside advertising would bump them into the next postal class. Response tends to be strong.  The average price is running $45/M.

Sampling: This method of insertion offers a variety of "goody bags" distributed free to specific markets, i.e. college students, new mothers and other special interest groups. Inserts accompany product samples and coupons. Packages are usually given out "free" in high traffic situations.

Pricing ranges from $25/M - $40/M.  Shelf life can be difficult to pin-point.

Catalog Bind-Ins/Blow-Ins: This distribution has been used in big numbers for years by the horticultural set (i.e. a magazine subscription offer or a lead generator for a lawn tool product is bound into a catalog).  Many catalogs are now beginning to offer blow-in space, traditional advertising space, and business reply card (printed 3-up to make a page) space in their catalogs to further serve the direct response advertiser. Blow-ins can run as little as half the price of package inserts to the same customers.

Other Alternatives: Inserts have been included in newspapers, supermarket take-one racks, have ridden along with Pennysavers, order acknowledgments, FSI's (Free Standing Inserts: over runs of Sunday Supplements) and the list goes on.

As direct marketers look for increasingly creative methods to better their bottom line and find less expensive ways to develop new customers and generate qualified inquiries, more will be developed. An experienced broker can help lead you through the maze and find the best alternatives for you.

More About Package Inserts

The going rate for package inserts is an average of $50/M.  The number of outside inserts varies from 4-8. Generally only noncompetitive pieces are included together.

If one goes heavily into a club or continuity oriented program, the rate of duplication needs to be monitored.  The response rates also vary significantly depending on a number of other variables:

    * Whether the insert is generating a lead or producing an order,
    * The average ticket price of the items being sold,
    * The size of insert.

A large ticket item may be satisfied with two responses per thousand (.002), whereas lead generating devices having a strong affinity between the insert and the products being delivered would require and will produce responses from 2-5%. According to Henry, average acceptable response rates for package inserts overall vary from 0.5 percent to 4 percent.

Additional advantages include the fact that you're paying only for the distribution and not for the postage. Since your insert is arriving with the customer's purchase, you're getting strictly mail order buyers and the very hottest of the "hotline" lists (most recent 30 to 90-day names). This method of distribution also has the effect of granting the advertiser a certain degree of credibility and approval from the sponsoring mailer.