The disappearance of the RedPlum insert has been a hot topic lately, both on this blog and others. Locally in Chicagoland, many northwest Indiana Chicago Tribune subscribers have reported that their RedPlum inserts disappeared sometime over the past few weeks. Some readers have attempted to sort out what happened, only to be told by the Tribune that it’s RedPlum’s decision to remove the insert.
So what’s really going on? I spoke with Mary Broaddus, Director of Investor Relations & Corporate Communications for Valassis, which is the company that produces the RedPlum insert.
I explained that I’ve been hearing from a vocal group of Chicago Tribune subscribers who were previously getting RedPlum until a few weeks ago, when it stopped. “If you’re talking about subscribers who are no longer getting it in the Trib, that is interesting, because really, subscribers should be the first group getting it,” Mary said.
I asked if distribution of RedPlum had been scaled back or removed from certain markets, and Mary cited some interesting statistics. Back in 2004, Valassis’ insert circulation was 1.1 million. Currently, it’s 863,000. She said that as newspaper circulation continues to decline, insert distribution can change.
“I’m sure that those who work on our market list that I talked to about this, they’re aware of the prioritization that takes place. We have the consumer, who we’re very happy is interested in looking for coupons and deals, and we have our client that needs to reach some particular consumer who has a high propensity to buy. When you’re working with a partner to distribute it, you definitely need to be where your client wants you to be,” Mary said.
Mary offered to check on some of the specific areas in which the RedPlum insert has disappeared from the weekly Tribune (more on that in a moment if you would like to be a part of providing feedback.) We discussed the possibility of the RedPlum insert being mailed if indeed there are areas it’s being pulled out of for the Chicagoland market too, as Valassis has gone to direct-mailing inserts in some parts of the country.
“I don’t believe the Chicago market is a market where the FSI is available via mail, but for about 14 million FSIs, we are indeed sending them via mail across the US. We would love to see people go to RedPlum.com too to look for coupons, though we know that the offers are not the same for everybody,” Mary said.
Throughout the call, Mary graciously allowed to check on certain addresses and market areas. “If I could get a few addresses of Chicago Tribune weekend subscribers, at least I can try to figure out an answer. I would want to offer that with the fluctuation of subscriptions being what they are, there could be some changes there that may not go back. We hope in those cases that RedPlum.com can be helpful,” Mary said.
If you’re in the Chicagoland market area and have recently noticed that your RedPlum insert is no longer being carried in your Chicago Tribune, and want to help provide information to Valassis, please email the address, city and state to which your Chicago Tribune is being delivered to. You can email this to jill@supercouponing.com. (You do not need to include your name, and in asking you to email the information, I’m trying to avoid having it posted in a public forum.)
blte says
I tried to email my info but it just sent back
leaves says
I just e-mailed the address given, and it was returned as undeliverable
Curious says
does the RP in the Kankakee county area contain less coupons than I receive in my Chicago Tribune? Please don’t tell me it’s because we are not a wealthy suburb! There are plenty of well to do in this county. I remember when Huntley was a small town too :) I used to live in Crystal lake when nothing was there and it was mostly farms (30 plus years ago).
amymac87 says
I always get my paper from a local coffee shop but I just got my first one that is a subscription delivered and there was no red plum, but it has always been in the ones I get from the coffee shop. glad to hear someone didn’t just take it out!
nikikisi says
I did not have ANY coupons is the paper this morning, that’s very dissapointing, is it everybody, or just me? Not just red Plum, no booklets at all.
christinah0214 says
The last couple of weeks I have noticed that my Red Plum was not in there. Thanks Jill for the post!
Judy Foley says
The Red Plum is in the Sun-Times. I went to 2 different Jewel’s and found no coupon inserts at all. Very disappointing.
Coupon Maven says
I heard from Mary at NewsAmerica today regarding the missing inserts in outlying areas:
Hi Jill,
We contacted the Tribune. Our contact said in early to mid August they had shortages in this area but these zip codes should now be receiving the FSI. Please let me know if that’s not the case and we’ll explore further.
Thanks for your patience.