Interpolis is a leading insurance company from the Netherlands. Interpolis offers small businesses the Compact Business Policy: one policy for all business insurance. The business insurance market is difficult to penetrate. Growth can only be achieved through brand switching. Moreover, for entrepreneurs insurance is a low-involvement item. Switching is considered bothersome.

Interpolis always sells insurance through the Rabobank or agents. Therefore a two-step mailing. First a mailing from Interpolis to the Rabobank and agents. Subsequently a mailing from the Rabobank and agents to prospects. Aim (agent mailing): bring in participants for mailing to prospects. Aim (prospect mailing): consultative talks.

A TV commercial for the Compact Business Policy showed business premises burning down. In direct marketing we went a lot further: damage actually suffered is central. Damage must not only be visible, but also tangible. Agents and the Rabobank therefore received a detailed fire damage report. With Polaroid pictures of the burnt business premises, a description and copy of the mailing to their prospects, plus a charred Rolodex card with telephone number of the Interpolis contact person. Agents' mailings to prospects were partially burnt, sealed in plastic and sent with an official disclaimer from the Dutch Postal Services.

Response target (agent mailing): 40%. Achieved: 60%. Response target (prospect mailing): 10%. Achieved: 14%.This translates into more than 1,000 extra consultative talks and 500 more policies sold. Because of this success, Interpolis decided on five more runs of the same mailing. Several trade journals focused attention on the mailing because of its much talked-about creative concept and the outstanding results achieved.