Inserts or third-party inserts (TPI) are among marketing’s most established and trusted channels.
Put simply, inserts are printed pieces placed within customer communications that don’t require personally identifiable information (PII). They can appear in magazines, newspapers, product despatches, or subscription boxes, reaching audiences in their homes at moments of attention.
What Are Inserts?
Inserts are designed to create a direct response. They’re often offer-led or incentive-driven, prompting sign-ups, trials, or purchases.
Because inserts sit inside existing communications, they’re distributed without the need for data selection or segmentation. The audience is inferred from context — for example, a pet insurance insert in a dog food order. This makes inserts fully GDPR compliant, as no PII is accessed during distribution.
How Inserts Drive Response
The key to successful insert campaigns lies in design, testing, and tracking.
Inserts should use clear creative, strong offers, and a defined call to action. With tracking codes or dynamic QR codes, you can measure performance and refine future activity.
At PSE, we encourage testing across different designs, messages, and offers. Even small creative variations can deliver meaningful insight into what motivates your audience.
What Makes a Good Insert?
The best inserts are those that capture attention, create curiosity, and encourage action. Design plays a major role in standing out, especially when customers are sorting through other items.
There are plenty of ways to make your insert memorable:
Use a credit card-style gift voucher, adding weight and perceived value while giving customers a tangible incentive to act.
Turn your insert into a mini brochure, showcasing a small product range or telling your brand story through engaging imagery and concise copy.
Experiment with die-cut or folded formats that create an element of discovery, such as inserts that open like a gift or reveal a hidden message.
Try spring-loaded or pop-up elements that surprise the customer and create a lasting impression.
Creative treatments like these help transform an insert from a simple leaflet into an experience, increasing dwell time and recall.
Insert Channels
The effectiveness of inserts depends on placement and context. Popular channels include:
Retailer Parcels
Inserts placed in product despatches or order confirmations reach customers in the comfort of their homes, often when they’re in an active buying mindset.
Subscription Boxes
Ideal for building loyalty and lifestyle alignment, inserts in subscription boxes such as food or beauty services reach highly engaged audiences with proven purchase behaviour.
Magazines and Newspapers
With countless titles catering to specific interests and hobbies, magazine and newspaper inserts allow brands to target customers by passion, age, or lifestyle.
Inserts vs Direct Mail
Both inserts and Direct Mail deliver physical impact, but they serve different purposes.
Inserts are ideal for cost-effective customer acquisition, brand partnerships, and broad targeting through affiliation. They offer reach and frequency at scale, especially when trialling new products or seasonal offers.
Direct Mail, by contrast, offers precision. It uses data to reach specific individuals with personalised messages, making it ideal for retention, reactivation, or high-value campaigns.
Many brands see the strongest performance when combining both, using inserts to attract new audiences and Direct Mail to nurture and convert them.
Inserts in the Marketing Mix
Inserts play an important role within a well-balanced marketing mix. They complement digital, door drop, and Direct Mail activity, giving brands a cost-effective way to expand reach while maintaining tangible, in-hand visibility.
Used alongside digital channels, inserts can boost response by driving traffic online through unique URLs or QR codes. When combined with Direct Mail, they create a natural path from awareness to conversion — introducing new prospects through inserts, then following up with targeted mail.
This multichannel approach gives brands the best of both worlds, increasing reach, reinforcing messaging, and maximising ROI across every touchpoint.
Make Every Channel Work Harder with PSE
With nearly three decades of experience, PSE Agency helps brands make the most of every form of Direct Marketing, from inserts and door drops to highly targeted Direct Mail campaigns.
Our 6-step process ensures every campaign is planned, tested, and optimised to deliver measurable results.
See how inserts can become a powerful part of your marketing mix.
