Doctors' Kit.

Institution: Grabill Bank, Grabill, Ind.

Assets: $475 million; seven branch locations

Agency: Big Advertising & Design, Fort Wayne, Ind.

Some time last year, a real estate agent asked one of the bank's loan officers for some of the bank's marketing materials. The agent said she wanted to pass on the materials to the clients she specialized in serving: new doctors moving to the Fort Wayne area.

Since doctors are one of the bank's target markets, Gabrill Bank decided to provide for the agent something more than just general marketing material.

The bank worked with its agency to repackage some existing materials into a new "welcome kit" aimed specifically at doctors. The real estate agent ended up distributing about 50 of these kits.

Within six months of the initial distribution, one customer closed a $1 million mortgage twice with the bank (based on the market rates during 2003).

The experience showed that "being creative doesn't always have to cost thousands of dollars," according to Karen J. Cameron of Gabrill Bank.