In 2009, two-thirds of online-originated car insurance sales came through price comparison websites. Joining these websites meant appearing ranked according to price, putting further downward pressure on quotes, paying a fee per policy sold and losing control of the customer relationship. Instead, Aviva launched the ‘Paul Whitehouse’ campaign. Paul appears in each ad as various characters, delivering product messages: good value, service credentials, innovations and short-term offers. Over the whole of 2013 monthly car quotes averaged 293,973, a 39% rise on the 12 months prior to the campaign.