Car It's hard to describe an Alfa Romeo. That's why Alfa Romeo invites you to test drive its wide range of sporty and elegant models. As a kind of qualifier, as test drivers will be entered into a prize draw to win an exclusive test drive in the limited edition Alfa 8C Competizione, which is already sold out. The advertisement, adapted for the Swiss market, appears in newspapers and magazines and was designed by Y&R Group.

 
Euro III Pro Infirmis used the football fever for a tactically clever teaser campaign. 
Three likeable young footballers looked at us from the Swiss billboards for a week. Who are they? Who do they stand for? What is their message? Now the secret has been revealed.
Just in time for the start of Euro 08, Pro Infirmis is launching the fifth installment of its awareness-raising campaign "We will not be hindered". The strong team, which can now be seen on posters all over Switzerland, wants to win in its field: equality and the integration of people with disabilities in all aspects of social life. The tactical guideline for this match: "Look at the person, not the disability!" The Euro campaign was created by Schmid + Zoller in Zurich.
The Pro-Infirmis eleven is a dream team made up of protagonists from the previous four campaigns from 2000 to 2007. "The team is there to make Switzerland the European champion. European champion in terms of equality and integration of people with disabilities," explains Mark Zumbühl, Head of Communication + Fundraising at Pro Infirmis.
The teaser campaign will be supported by a making-of video that will be posted on YouTube under "Pro Infirmis".
 
 
Further euro campaigns:
 
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Nike
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Baar Brewery
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Swisslos
 
Andreas Panzeri

 
TV magazines TV Digital is to upgrade Tele and give it access to Cablecom customers. 
When Axel Springer Switzerland acquired the Ringier titles Tele, TV2 and TV vier in addition to its own TV magazines TV Star and TV Digital last summer, it was assumed in the industry that at least one title would be discontinued. But Jörg Tobuschat did not think so. "No title will be taken off the market and no titles will be merged," said the new publishing director of TV guides in December. Although Tobuschat is not discontinuing any titles, he is taking TV Digital off the market. To be more precise: the magazine with an uncertified circulation of 15,000 copies comes under the hood of the big Tele, is now called Tele Digital and is now published weekly instead of fortnightly. In terms of content, it will remain focused on the digital TV offering, but the magazine will be much slimmer: in future, it will only have 40 pages per issue instead of 250. As a Tele supplement, it is also moving away from the newsstand and can only be purchased together with the main magazine as a subscription - at a combined price of CHF 199 (Tele solo costs CHF 164).
The new Tele double pack will be distributed in three ways at the start: Firstly, all Tele subscribers will receive the new supplement on request for a trial period of four weeks. Then the duo will also be sent to all existing TV Digital subscribers. And finally, Axel Springer Switzerland is hoping for a further expansion opportunity thanks to a cooperation with Cablecom: the largest cable network operator is sending 100,000 Tele copies including the supplement to its digital TV customers and is also offering them the combined subscription for just CHF 169. "Cablecom pays the difference of 30 francs where the offer is successful," says Tobuschat.
Just a placeholderBut why does TV Digital have to become Tele Digital? "TV Digital was too German," Tobuschat explains the change. In fact, the cover, content and advertisements were identical to those of its German sister of the same name; only the program section was tailored to Swiss conditions. In Germany, TV Digital is Springer's cash cow, in Switzerland it was at best a placeholder. However, the Swiss branch realized that the magazine would never be successful in this country, even in the age of digital television.
However, Tobuschat does not see the conversion as a cost-cutting measure. "On the contrary, we are investing in the title. The editorial contributions, the programme section, the advertisements - we now get everything in Switzerland," he emphasizes. Axel Springer Switzerland is doing this "with the prospect that Tele Digital will one day become an independent title."
For the time being, however, the supplement will primarily serve as a catalyst to boost Tele's reach again. Conversely, however, it is completely uncertain how the merger will affect Tele Digital's circulation. Tobuschat is therefore cautiously reckoning with an initial circulation of 10,000 copies. That is why he is not yet charging anything for advertisements in Tele Digital. "We offer these advertising pages to good Tele customers as a supplement," he says. From 2009, however, Tele Digital will appear on the market at a favorable price.
Tele and TV Star repositionedThe change from TV Digital to Tele Digital is the most obvious, but not the only current change in Springer's programming. As previously described, the publisher has repositioned Tele and TV Star in terms of content in recent months. TV Star continues to focus on people and primarily aims to appeal to women. Tele, on the other hand, has become a real family magazine. In terms of content, there is room for everything the TV program has to offer - from cars to gardening, travel or multimedia to investment tips. Both magazines - as well as TV vier and TV2 - are supplied by a central editorial team under the overall responsibility of Gion Stecher. However, Tele will retain its editor-in-chief, Urs Padel.
The repositioning of Tele in particular was apparently also appreciated by readers. "We haven't gained any new subscribers yet, but we haven't lost any either," says Stecher, who sees this as a success after the erosion of reach in recent years. However, he and Padel have already reformed the core of Tele and TV Star, the program section. It has been streamlined and made much clearer. There has also been a reduction in the number of channels listed, but the list still includes more than 50, and instead of a "token children's page", the program listings now include a "Children's tip" section.
The editorial team had the changes tested by readers. "Ultimately, we can only win the race thanks to the program section," says Stecher. The publisher continues to rely on reader feedback. To this end, a panel of 800 readers was formed, who are surveyed every six weeks on content, layout and advertising.
Another new feature is that advertisements of various sizes up to a 2/1 page can now be placed on the pages with program listings (but not in the channel listing). The two titles also need this, as customer demand has remained well below expectations to date despite the combined offer. "But with the realignment, thanks to the clearer program section, the expanded advertising offer and a campaign planned for next autumn (see box), the ground should be prepared so that next year's harvest will be all the richer," says Tobuschat.
Markus Knöpfli
TV2 becomes more expensiveSince recently
the fortnightly TV program TV2 at the kiosk is now four francs instead of three. And the subscription has also become 20 francs more expensive at 89 francs. According to Jörg Tobuschat, there are two reasons for this: Because TV Digital is disappearing, TV2, which lists both analogue and digital TV programming, is now practically the only alternative to the Tele/Tele Digital combo - and should not cannibalize it too cheaply. Secondly, Axel Springer Switzerland had an interesting experience with TV vier: when the retail price was raised by 15 percent and the subscription price by 25 percent at the beginning of the year, demand for both distribution channels increased. (mk)Advertising offensiveSince the name change
from TR7 to TV Star three years ago, the publishers Jean-Frey and Ringier did almost nothing for their TV magazines in terms of advertising and marketing. Axel Springer Switzerland now wants to change this. "Brand management has been severely neglected in recent years and we now urgently need to do something about it again," says Jörg Tobuschat. He is therefore planning a pitch for an advertising campaign by the end of June, which will bring the TV magazine genre in general and Tele in particular closer to the respective target audiences. The campaign is planned for the fall. (mk)

 
Euro I The Winterthur agency +Söhne has worked with soccer superstar Philippe Senderos for Nike. 
 
"Be ready for 2008", says the Nike advertising film, which was shot by +Söhne and Tobias Weber with Philippe Senderos shortly after the World Cup 06. Now the European Championship 08 is finally just around the corner and two old acquaintances are meeting up again. This time, a photo shoot was on the agenda. As Senderos, one of our most important national team players, trains in England with Arsenal, it was not easy to get hold of him and arrange a date. But after a few clarifications, the time had come and CD Tobias Weber made his way to London with photographer Gian Paul Lozza. "The training session took longer than expected and the Swiss international turned up at the studio two hours late after all," says Weber. But Philippe Senderos was relaxed and in a good mood. The shoot went quickly and smoothly. "You couldn't notice anything of his alleged depression, which Blick had played up a few days earlier," says Weber.
When defining the various poses, it was clear that the legendary pose with the raised finger from the World Cup match against Korea had to be included. In order to reproduce this as realistically as possible, the make-up artist wanted to draw the trail of blood on Sendero's face. However, the footballer refused in order to spare his mother, who does not like to see him bleed. However, the subject was authentic and expressive even without the bloodstain. In addition to this familiar pose, Tobias Weber and Gian Paul Lozza wanted to place more emphasis on the defender's strength. This resulted in the header subject, which can now be seen as a mega poster at Bellevue in Zurich during the European Championships. Other motifs from this campaign have been placed as advertisements in the free newspaper 20 Minuten.
 
Andreas Panzeri
 
 
 
Further new euro campaigns:
 
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Baar Brewery
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Pro Infirmis
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Swisslos

 
As the winner of the pitch, Hofer Kommunikation will launch a national image and PR campaign for the umbrella organization of Swiss private clinics. The Bern-based advertising agency is thus further expanding its position in the service-oriented healthcare market. The campaign for the Swiss Private Hospitals Association (PKS) planned for late summer is primarily intended to combat the "private=expensive" image of private clinics. It focuses on free choice as the greatest advantage of private hospitals, according to the press release. The campaign also aims to promote the general image among the population and to convince political players of the need for a level playing field between private and public providers. At the heart of the campaign is the advertising message: Vote. Hofer uses a series of ballot papers in bold colors to propagate the advantages that private hospitals have over public hospitals.
 

 The application phase for the Marketing Trophy 09 awarded by Swiss Marketing is now open. Once again, all companies based in Switzerland and Liechtenstein are invited to send in their best work. The application forms can be found at www.marketingtag.ch. The closing date for entries is, this year a little earlier, October 20, 2008. The winners of the Marketing Trophy 09 will be chosen at the Marketing Day on March 3, 2009 at the Culture and Convention Center Lucerne (KKL). This year, registration will be simplified by the newly introduced pre-process. In order not to go through the entire selection procedure in vain, companies can have the chances of their work being entered weighed up by submitting a short application. Members of the jury review the work, and scores are returned to companies within three weeks. Short applications can be submitted until September 14.

 
Euro IV The Hasenfeld agency in Zurich shows for Swisslos: With Sporttip, everyone can play at the Euro. 
 
They advertise for beer, cars, flat screens, soft drinks or fast food chains: Europe's national football players are in big advertising business before and during Euro 08. Almost all of them. Because just as little as at the European Championship finals, the English are currently also present in advertising. A circumstance that the advertising agency Hasenfeld Zürich cleverly uses for Sporttip to stand out from the Euro advertising "uniformity" - as the agency says. Hasenfeld therefore ironically advertises the wide range of bets on offer with an English footballer and the message: "With Sporttip, everyone can play in the European Championships." The "Sporttip Englishman" is prominently displayed on practically every kiosk in Switzerland. The contact strategy is rounded off with database-supported online and offline marketing measures, sampling campaigns and an accompanying advertising campaign in national and local print media as well as radio spots.
What can reinforce each other and transfer image is used consistently to maximize impact: Media partnership with 20 Minuten and Blick. Partnership with the airline Swiss to fly 40 winners to the motherland of football. And because Sporttip is sponsoring the online football game "Sporttip Football Challenge FC:08", the distance between football fever and betting fever is significantly shortened.
 
Andreas Panzeri
 
 
Further euro campaigns:
 
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Nike
-
Baar Brewery
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Pro Infirmis

 
Personal Since April, Sabine Steffen has been responsible for press and public relations for the FCP association.  
She will also be responsible for the organization of internal and external events at Forum Corporate Publishing (FCP). 
Previously, the 25-year-old worked as a junior consultant at the Munich-based communications agency Maisberger Whiteoaks, supporting clients from the IT and telecommunications sector. Steffen studied Media Management at the University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt.
During her studies, she worked in the editorial department of the Sächsische Zeitung newspaper, at the Würzburg radio station Charivari and at the educational television station BR-alpha in Munich. Before graduating with a degree in media management, she completed a semester at the International Business School (IBS) of the Plekhanov Russian Academy of Economics in Moscow.
The Forum Corporate PublishingThe Forum Corporate Publishing brings together more than 80 CP providers from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. They offer services for all areas of corporate communication, from traditional print products to new electronic media. The Forum is the largest association of corporate publishing service providers in Europe.

René Worni on spoiled appetite aka news fatigue In the last article in this section, the thesis was ventured that every child has long known (in complete contrast to the publishers) that the commuting public is getting fed up with the flood of free papers. The thesis was also linked to an imperative that the Aargau publisher Peter Wanner should not spoil the appetite of his loyal AZ readers with free food, as Wanner's competitors in the Mittelland are already doing across the board. What children have known for a long time is now also highlighted by two studies, the results of which are briefly presented here. A study commissioned by the VÖZ (the Austrian Newspaper Association) entitled "Media qualities" comes to a clear conclusion: free newspapers cannot hold a candle to paid newspapers in terms of credibility, topicality and information - as we have always suspected. 88 percent of 4,300 respondents consider paid-for newspapers to be credible, whereas "only" 72 percent believe the free papers.
What might be the reason for this? The second study, commissioned by the Associated Press, sheds further light on the subject and also provides a life-threatening diagnosis for the news agency that commissioned the study: the frenzied flow of news not only produces news junkies en masse, but also their complete opposite: people who fall into a paralyzing lack of interest because they are constantly supplied with thin news snippets and left alone with their need for in-depth information. The researchers even observe the conditioning of a so-called Pavlovian link: at some point, the constantly failing information seeker learns to associate the term news directly with frustration. The result: news fatigue (as every child already knows). AP therefore wants to develop new methods to make it easier for media consumers to access in-depth information. In an almost revolutionary move for a news agency, AP recommends that the news media refrain from too frequent news updates.
> René Worni, Editor

 
Customer magazines A survey of the target group pointed the way for the design and implementation of the new Microsoft magazine. 
Executives are a sought-after target group for corporate and consumer magazines. Their limited attention can only be won with customized communication media. Microsoft Switzerland faced this challenge. The company planned to publish a Swiss magazine for executives. The primary target group was to be managers who do not have in-depth knowledge of IT. Needs evaluatedAt the beginning of the concept phase, Schneiter Meier Külling carried out an evaluation of the target group. "Microsoft's executive magazine should be anything but technical," explained a CFO of a medium-sized, internationally active company. "Rather, it should show me connections and provide impulses. I want to be able to ask the CIO a question afterwards that he can't answer immediately."
The survey revealed the information needs of executives. They wanted management content such as "IT and management processes", "Cost reduction and IT" and "Dealing with the complexity of IT". Executives were also looking for future topics such as: In which direction is IT developing? How will we work the day after tomorrow? If possible, the articles should be documented with facts and figures. Under no circumstances did the respondents want pure product information. Schneiter Meier Külling recommended positioning the executive magazine as a company magazine with a strong tendency towards a consumer magazine. In the future, a further move towards a consumer magazine is conceivable.
Wishes realizedThe highest quality in project areas such as text, design, photography and print can be used to attract the attention of executives. "Envision is ideally tailored to executives in terms of content and design," explains Christof Zogg, Head of Central Marketing Group at Microsoft Switzerland. Among others, Schneiter Meier Külling sought cooperation with Medard Meier, the former editor-in-chief of the business magazine "Bilanz". Together with business journalists, he ensured that the texts were tailored to the target group. The varied dramaturgy and different text forms support the attractiveness of the magazine.
Varied contentMain article of the magazine is the study "Ready, Willing and Enabled" by the Economist Intelligence Unit, which was commissioned by Microsoft. This article is about how employees use efficient IT tools to take responsibility for their own actions and increase the value of the company with their high level of commitment and productivity. The article is underlined with facts and figures and thus corresponds to a wish of the target group from the survey carried out.
This survey also provides tips on how a manager can manage the conditions for IT project success and the four hurdles that need to be overcome to ensure a successful IT project. In an interview with Elmar Ledergerber (Mayor of Zurich) and Peter Waser (General Manager of Microsoft Switzerland), readers can also find out more about the development of Zurich as an IT location and how to solve problems with the next generation of IT staff.
Attractive design The modern design of the magazine adapts the reading habits of the Internet. Various entry points (title, generous lead for main articles, highlighted quotes) and intuitive reader guidance with individual entry options support the reading experience. Studies and articles are attractively presented (concise text-to-image ratio) and enable cross-reading. The attractive design is also continued on the "Envision" website (www.microsoft.ch/envision). The handy format (26.5 cm x 20 cm) is also impressive. Alexander Scanderbeg from Zurich photographed the majority of the images and thus consistently implemented the visual language.
Facts & Figures about the Executive magazine From May 2008
the executive magazine Envision is published twice a year in Switzerland. The online edition can be found at Concept, editing & design: Schneiter Meier Külling, Zurich,

 
Prisca Huguenin-dit-Lenoir is replacing Peter Schmidlin as Head of Corporate Communications at tour operator M-Travel Switzerland as part of a reorganization of the company's corporate communications. According to a press release issued on Wednesday, the 35-year-old will work closely with the Head of Marketing, Silvana Ripa, to support the various M-Travel Switzerland brands in the area of communications. Schmidlin has decided to leave the company.Huguenin-dit-Lenoir
joined Hotelplan last fall as Deputy Head of Corporate Communications & Media. She previously worked as a media spokesperson at Chopard and as a PR consultant at the Trimedia and Viva agencies.

 The French-speaking Swiss media group Edipresse is taking over the Singapore-based publishing house Appetite Media, which publishes three lifestyle magazines. With the purchase of the company with 18 employees, Edipresse is continuing its expansion in Asia, according to the press release issued on Tuesday. The terms of the transaction are not being disclosed by the contracting parties. Appetite Media publishes the luxury and lifestyle magazines Appetite, Luxury and Grandeur. The acquired company will be renamed Edipresse Appetite Media and will continue to operate as an independent division of Edipress Group Asia.