Now based in Indianapolis, CIA Creative Indoor Advertising Inc. places ads inside restrooms at more than 200 sites throughout Indiana.

From Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar locations to Pepsi Coliseum , a variety of eateries and other venues displays CIA's aluminum-framed advertisements, which the company has installed at eye level for restroom patrons. They appear on the backs of stall doors and above urinals.

"This is a type of advertising that's picking up steam," said David Turner, president of the Indoor Billboard Advertising Association. "It's an idea as old as cavemen drawing on walls, but right now, growth is phenomenal.

"A lot of people are turning toward target mediums," said Turner, who believes the concept draws success from its ability to reach a gender-specific audience within the lucrative 18- to 34-year-old demographic.

Muffley believed the Indianapolis market would embrace the method and moved CIA here in 2001. She purchased local site contracts from Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Johnny Advertising Inc., which had operated locally as Indiana Indoor Advertising Inc. after acquiring Indianapolis-based Captivating Visuals from local owners.

CIA developed a partnership with Johnny Advertising that allowed it to use the firm's brand name, said CIA President Todd Muffley, Vicki's husband.

"We're now larger than Johnny Advertising, but continue to use their name because it's so catchy and recognizable," he said.

CIA places ads for national and local advertising agencies, but 90 percent of business comes from local clients its own sales team drums up, Todd said. Advertisers are companies of all sorts, including golf courses and professional sports teams. CIA's most active client, Indianapolis-based Ace Mortgage Funding Inc., advertises at most of CIA's 222 Johnny Advertising sites and is carrying the firm into new markets, said CIA Director of Sales and Marketing Shannon Boyts. CIA landed a contract to accompany Ace Mortgage as it expands west. As a result, CIA will soon open advertising offices in St . Louis and Phoenix.

"They're growing with us through a relationship that helps us reach our target market and reinforce our brand identity," said Karla Winks, Ace Mortgage vice president of marketing. "We hear from a lot of people whose attention the ads have grabbed, and that lets us know that we are successfully stamping our brand name into people's minds."

The affordability of the ads is also attractive, Todd said. Advertisers can purchase full-, half- or quarter-page ads in as many or as few locations as they choose. CIA offers six-, nine- and 12-month contracts, but has started to offer some short-term space for clients looking to take advantage of calendar events such as Valentine's Day and other holidays.

"A lot of people don't think of us, but our work gets results," Todd said. "We have an in-house creative team and the ability to create, make and place an ad within five to seven days."

The ads lower graffiti and enhance what might otherwise be dull space, he added.

"Clients find that the ads work because they give people something to do when they're using the restroom," Todd said. "You can't help but notice them, and you're bored, so you read them. The message sticks with the reader and complements a client's other forms of advertising."

It's hard to deny the simplicity of the concept, but even harder to deny its success, Todd said. CIA's revenue was $180,000 in 2002. This year, it was $463,000 for the first quarter alone, he said.

The Muffleys expect similar results from expansion into new markets where advertisers have yet to tap the niche. Locally, client and site numbers have continued to multiply.

"When we first started out, we'd be happy to get one call a week," Vicki Muffley said. "Now we're getting five or six a day."