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Package Insert Survey Part 2: Trust and relevance

Part two of our survey reveals how US consumers feel about package inserts compared to traditional direct mail.

Consumers trust what feels relevant — and package inserts deliver that trust.

In our latest survey, over 80% of shoppers said they find a printed offer from a brand they just purchased from trustworthy and relevant. This includes 55% who chose it outright and another 28% who rated it as equally trustworthy.

By contrast, only 10% favored generic direct mail.

That’s the power of context.
📦 When an offer arrives inside a package, it’s tied to a brand experience the shopper already trusts.
💡 It doesn’t feel like advertising — it feels like a reward.
🚀 And it converts, because it reaches consumers at their most receptive moment: unboxing.

For brand managers, package inserts are a smarter alternative to direct mail:
✅ Built-in credibility
✅ Targeted by recent purchase behavior
✅ Delivered at scale through premium ecommerce partners

Direct mail interrupts. Package inserts connect.

If you’re looking to invest in channels that consumers actually welcome, it’s time to own the unboxing moment.

Package Insert Survey Part 1

How do people really feel when opening an ecommerce package?

Connections recently conducted a national survey of US consumers to understand emotional engagement at the exact moment a package is opened.

The headline?

74% of consumers said they feel excited.
Not neutral. Not distracted. Excited.

Compare that to traditional direct mail—often lost in a stack of bills or non-relevant mail—or digital ads that are a scroll away from being forgotten. Package insert media reaches people in a moment of joy, when they’re highly engaged and emotionally open.

This data reinforces what our partners already know:
If you want attention, go where the excitement lives.

This is part 1 of a 5 part survey series to share our findings around Package Inserts. 

💍 Big news from the Connections team — we’ve just welcomed David’s Bridal to our portfolio of retail partners!

New Retailer Alert: Petco Joins Connections Portfolio of Exclusive Programs! 🐾

We’re thrilled to welcome Petco as our newest—and exclusive—package insert partner.

For brands looking to engage high-intent shoppers at home, this is a powerful moment: Petco packages are landing in the homes of devoted pet parents who spend with purpose.

📬 Why it matters:
Petco buyers are emotionally invested. They’re purchasing essentials for the furry (or scaly) members of their family. That moment of delivery? It’s joyful, intentional, and distraction-free—exactly when your brand should show up.

✨ Package inserts are:
• Hyper-targeted—based on real purchase data
• High-impact—directly in hand at the point of unboxing
• Trusted—endorsed by a retailer the shopper already loves
• Efficient—delivering ROI at scale across 1B+ packages annually

🎯 Great Fit for Petco’s Package Insert Audience:
• Subscription meal kits (for humans!)
• Home cleaning & organization brands
• Fitness & wellness programs
• Insurance providers (home, life)
• Travel & pet-friendly lodging
• Lifestyle boxes and gifting services
• Credit card and financial services
• On-demand delivery & convenience services

If you're looking for meaningful engagement and a strong conversion driver, Petco just became your next best channel.

Let’s talk about owning this in-home moment.

Target Media Solutions, Inc. and Connections announce merger to create family lifestage retail media marketplace.

We’re excited to share the press release below announcing our merger with Target Media Solutions.
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Target Media Solutions, Inc. and Connections announce merger to create family lifestage retail media marketplace.

The combined business represents some of the most-loved life- stage retailers, spanning bridal, pregnancy, young and growing families. This merger brings together two of the most established and respected players in the offline media, and in particular, the package insert sector into one united team harnessing many years of category experience, contacts and know how.

Richard Downey, SVP of Connections, says “We are beyond excited to announce this merger. We have been working with the TMS team for many years and have always admired their knowledge, tenacity, and helpful nature. Earlier in 2025, we started tentative conversations about joining forces, and those early conversations have led us to this fantastic conclusion. The whole Connections team looks forward to getting to know the TMS client and customer base, and we are honoured to get the chance to work with great people such as Ingrid Brown and Joe Fitzgerald.”

Connections is an Atlanta, Georgia-based business specializing in the management and monetization of retail media programs for companies such as Carters Inc., Shutterfly, and Saks OFF 5TH. The merger with TMS adds the retail programs of Similac, Petco, David's Bridal and many more to the united portfolio making the collection of programs the largest collection of Mom and family focused retail programs to be found in North America.

Joe Fitzgerald, EVP Operations & Business Development of Target Media Solutions, says, “We couldn't be more excited about our merger with Connections, another respected leader in the lifestage marketing space. This strategic union enhances our capabilities in insert media and allows us to leverage additional innovative ideas and cutting-edge technology.
Having collaborated closely over the past several years, it became clear that we are stronger together than as separate entities. By combining our advertiser and marketing program relationships, decades of industry expertise, and technological strengths, we are creating a more powerful, synergistic organization—one that will deliver even greater value to our clients.”

The merged agency, operating under the name Connections, is eager to engage with retail programs interested in generating significant incremental revenue by leveraging their e-commerce or digital inventory through complementary, non-competitive advertising partnerships.

Please reach out to Richard Downey at richarddowney@exactconnections.com 

Your Next Best Customer Already Shops DTC - Are You in the Box?

When someone buys from a direct-to-consumer brand, they’re not just making a purchase. They’re demonstrating behavior. Intent. Trust.

That’s the moment Connections helps brands capture - by placing offers and product samples inside ecommerce packages from over 50 premium retailers.

These high value consumers have already proven they’ll buy from brands beyond Amazon and Walmart. They’re opt-in, online-savvy, and ready to engage again.

By advertising in the packages of other DTC brands (Carters Inc., Shutterfly etc) you’re tapping into a network of high-value, high-intent buyers — in-home, distraction-free, and in the mindset to purchase.

It’s targeted. It’s scalable. And it’s built on data that ensures you’re not wasting media dollars on anonymous scrolls or unproven clicks.

If your brand is selling DTC, you should be advertising with other DTCs. Let’s talk about how we help make that happen.

Monetizing your audience post checkout

One of the most common and obvious third-party advertising relationships that retailers enter into is the post-checkout ad format.

This is often in the form of a pop-up ad unit that is served immediately after the customer has completed their online order. It is usually a selection of relevant and algorithmically selected advertiser offers.

These partnerships generate a significant amount of incremental revenue for the retailers that host them, and AdTech companies such as Rokt and Uptick are among the fastest-growing in the sector.

Retailers can block specific advertisers and/or verticals that they believe do not align with their audience, or are brands and categories with which they do not wish to partner.

If you are a retailer looking to take your first steps in the area of post-checkout monetization, or if you are a retailer already seeing the benefits of a partnership such as this and are looking for additional, complimentary, non competitive ad partnerships reach out to us here at Connections and we would love to answer any questions you may have.

Connections brings like-minded brands together in powerful ways. (And it’s science!)

Studies show that when brands team up, the impact is real:
✔️ Equity transfer elevates both partners
✔️ Strong brand fit drives stronger response
✔️ Advertising support boosts perceived value

Even emerging brands gain traction when paired with trusted household names. Advertising campaigns associated with high value brands consistently outperform solo efforts on recall, ROI, and consumer trust.

🔗 Meta-Analysis on Co-Branding Effectiveness, 2021 
🔗 State of the Art in Co-Branding Strategy, Baumgarth & Huber 
🔗 Co-Branding and Brand Equity: Park et al. 

At Connections, we turn research into results - leveraging trusted ecommerce packaging and digital extensions to deliver brand stories where they matter most: in the home. A few smart pairings? Huel reaching health-conscious families through Carters Inc. packages, and Naked Wines delighting stylish shoppers via Saks OFF 5TH packages. Strategic, seamless, and seriously effective.

Ready to partner up? Let’s connect.

PIP Series: Part 5: How to track and attribute your package insert campaign

PIP Series: Part 4: A full turnkey solution

As Connections continues its series of articles covering some of the most asked questions regarding how to set up a money-making package insert program (PIP) we turn to a subject that is just as important as the selling of the advertising campaigns themselves and that is the back end operations that go into ensuring that the campaigns happen as planned.

One of the understandable concerns is always around the fulfillment of these package insert campaigns once booked.

Obtaining full buy-in from the personnel in distribution centers (DCs) and warehouses is a crucial component that a successful PIP campaign cannot function without. With years of experience in setting up PIP projects from scratch, here are a few of our top tips:

1) Overcommunicate - Including the DCs in the process from the start enables an open dialogue where processes can be mutually agreed on and the success of the PIP can feel like a commonly owned objective. Not just something the DC staff have had foisted on them.

2) Introduce a collated envelope when required - As the PIP starts to grow in popularity, there will come a point where the number of loose inserts becomes too much for the DC team to handle. When this happens, Connections gathers all the inserts and collates them into a branded envelope, so the DC staff only have one item to insert at a time, rather than multiple items.

3) Get ongoing feedback - Advertisers need to know that their campaigns are running as planned. For them to be reassured—and to measure the response accurately—they need to know how many ads have been distributed and when the campaign is scheduled to end. Regular check-ins with the DC staff ensure that this information is always up to date and can be communicated in a timely manner.

Connections are a one-stop shop for all prospective PIP partners. From sales to logistics. From reporting to accounts.