Packaging I Well packaged is half the sale. Packaging influences purchasing decisions via advertising or at the POS, and packaging design exploits all the possibilities of design and production to present brands at their best. This special discipline of visual design works in part according to its own laws, which are shaped by the possibilities of technology. Let's start with a folding box that has to prove its worth as outer packaging for a new brand perfume. Its career will one day end in waste paper, because its service is fulfilled when it is purchased. The decisive role is played in the phase before that: that of a seductive eye-catcher that attracts, arouses interest, convinces and ultimately favors the purchase decision. This is made possible by the sophisticated interplay of form, material, design and printing technology. From the basic conceptual idea to the production of packaging, packaging design is governed by rules that are different from those in other visual design disciplines. A classic advertising agency assumes that four-colour printing is the standard for the realization of classic media, for example. Depending on the area of application, bright colors - a corporate color or delicate print or special colors such as orange, silver or gold - supplement the spectrum. The Pantone palette is more prominent in the minds of packaging designers. Colors and special colors as well as the psychological effect of colors and color combinations are part of everyday design and an enormously important tool in packaging design. Combined with various printing and embossing processes, this results in an infinite variety of possibilities for creating targeted visual stimuli (haptics, cardboard, finishing, etc.).
 
In addition to offset printing, packaging design uses other printing processes such as gravure, screen or flexographic printing. It is worth following the technical developments and trends in printing in detail and incorporating them into the conceptual process. They allow an increasingly complex data structure as the number of printing units per machine increases and inline coating and finishing can also be applied in a single print run. It is astonishing that a four-color file can also be printed in eight colors in packaging design (reasons: transparent films, printing process, register accuracy, etc.). Color separation in the pre-press stage and data preparation are therefore among the most sensitive production steps. This is where the expertise of graphic designers and polygraphers is required, as well as cooperation with the print shop.
 
Maintaining the interface between graphics and print is becoming increasingly important. Keyword time factor: product life cycles are shortening and one product relaunch almost heralds the next. This leads to ever shorter lead times for creation and production, which can ultimately only be compensated for by the expertise of all those involved and an orchestrated workflow. The fact that data transfer is constantly improving and many interim presentations between customers and designers are also carried out electronically minimizes idle times in projects.
 
Three-dimensional display options, Illustrator, Photoshop and specialized 3D programs ensure lean work processes and new options that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. However, "de l'art pour l'art" is even less of an option in their application. The main task remains the targeted, focused implementation of customer briefings. A feel for what a client and their brands need cannot be developed via the electronic channel alone. This still requires all the more direct, intensive engagement in order for the folding box around the perfume to have an impact.
 
Röné Bringold

 The Feldwerbung.ch platform has redesigned its website. The company We:m Design from Bremgarten (AG) was entrusted with the project implementation. The new website offers a better overview, particularly in the area of location variants and location searches, according to a press release. The company behind Feldwerbung.ch, Fima Trend, has been active in the field advertising sector for nine years. During this time, this authentic platform has continued to develop and today enjoys a considerable level of recognition as an advertising platform at high-traffic locations in Switzerland and abroad, such as airports, railroad lines and highways. Platform sizes range from 1,000m2 to over 100,000m2. Field advertising is particularly suitable for image and brand advertising.

For Frisco, Genuss Publicis whets the appetite for cool snacks, just right for the hot summer, and Frisco has been the market leader in the impulse-buy segment for some time now. "Good taste simply prevails," says Alessandro Rigoni, Commercial Director at Nestlé Suisse, with conviction. And this applies not only to the delicious ice cream classics of the strong brand, but above all to the consistent further development of the staging of the product brand world. Nestlé relies on continuous collaboration with Publicis. At the advertising agency, the team led by CD Philipp Skrabal wanted to "subtly generate desirability with appealing stories", whereby the focus of the three new subjects "is on the color worlds of the product brands Pralinato, Extrême and Heaven", as AD Simon Staub explains. With this in mind, the gourmet worlds of the classic ice cream Pralinato shine in "outrageously chocolaty colors", those of the no less coveted Extrême in outrageously indulgent beige-pink and the popular Heaven in outrageously strawberry-colored coloring.
Andreas Panzeri

Truth Search "She's lethargic, just stares at the ceiling. After all, there's no TV." / "Besides, she has a TV and is allowed to watch DVDs." / "Hilton doesn't want to eat anymore. She's lost five kilos since going to jail. Now doctors are threatening to put her on an IV." / "Paris feasts so nicely behind bars. She gets to eat roast beef, spaghetti with meatballs, chicken fillets and fish." / "She even gilds her prison stay. The contract for the first interview is awarded to NBC for $1 million." / "For her first interview on star talker Larry King, Hilton isn't getting paid. The free gig fits the hotel heiress' apparent newfound spirituality." - All these truths have been printed alternately in black and white in Blick and Bild Zeitung in recent days. The great freedom in the media has broken out since Paris Hilton almost choked on sifted air. Fortunately, the man-turned-slut is now once again freely accessible to media seeking nothing but the naked truth. However, the fact that Paris is shopping in the Glattzentrum is really not true and just a publicity stunt by Visualix. (pan)?

 The German television group ProSiebenSat.1 is taking over the European broadcasting chain SBS Broadcasting. The two companies signed a corresponding transaction agreement on Wednesday, according to a press release. The takeover costs EUR 3.3 billion and had been planned for some time. The two financial investors KKR and Permira bought ProSiebenSat.1 at the end of last year with the aim of merging the broadcasting group with the SBS Group. The latter was already under the control of KKR and Permira (see
). The takeover of SBS is expected to be completed at the beginning of July. This will make ProSiebenSat.1 one of the largest television groups in Europe. The merger is expected to lead to savings of EUR 80 to 90 million per year. The transaction is reportedly not subject to antitrust or media regulatory approvals.
ProSiebenSat.1 intends to move closer to the European market leader RTL Group through the merger. In the future, ProSiebenSat.1 will operate in 13 European countries.
The new group includes 24 free TV stations, 24 pay TV stations and 22 radio stations, as the company explained. With a reach of more than 77 million TV households in Europe, ProSiebenSat.1 moves up to second place in the EU. The headquarters of the new group, which will continue to bear the name ProSiebenSat.1 Media, will be in Munich.
According to a pro-forma calculation for 2006, the acquisition of SBS will increase sales by 48 percent from EUR 2.1 billion to EUR 3.1 billion.

Tamedia Publishing has a firm grip on Bern’s media landscape. That’s why the NZZ is now pulling out. A complete surprise: The NZZ and PubliGroupe are withdrawing from Bund Verlags AG, turning Espace Media—virtually overnight—from a minority shareholder into the sole shareholder—and the owner of two daily newspapers. If Tamedia is later allowed to take over Espace Media, the Zurich-based company will control three to four daily newspapers in the Bern area with *20 Minuten* and its second planned free newspaper.  
The NZZ has now given in to this pressure. Beat Lauber, who is responsible for regional newspapers at the NZZ, explains the decision to withdraw as follows: Tamedia’s activities in the free newspaper market, combined with Wigdorovits’ .ch newspaper, would have consequences for the Berner Zeitung and the Bund—exactly what those consequences would be depends on how Tamedia positions its titles in the advertising market. «We can’t influence that,» says Lauber. That’s why it’s better to hand over responsibility for the Bund, especially since Tamedia has committed to continuing it. «A wholly-owned Bund is better cared for than one in minority ownership,» says Lauber.
 
The divestiture of its stake in the federal government is already the second NZZ withdrawal this year. About six months ago, it quietly reduced its stake in Tagblatt der Stadt Zürich AG from 40 to 15 percent, as Lauber confirmed. Tamedia now holds 85 percent. Here, too, Tamedia’s pricing in the new Tagi-Stadt split contributed to the NZZ’s decision, says Lauber. (mk)

Sunday press A seventh edition is essential, according to Schaffhauser Nachrichten. AZ is ready to go ahead with its Sunday project. "We are not in negotiations with potential partners outside the MZ group," says Ueli Eckstein, who as COO of the AZ Medien Group is responsible for the planned Sunday edition of the Mittelland Zeitung (MZ). "However, we are in talks with the managers of Südostschweiz," adds Eckstein. What is being discussed is no secret in the industry. Südostschweiz am Sonntag, as even publisher Hanspeter Lebrument admits, is not doing so well after a year on the market. It is therefore quite possible that the seventh edition of the Südostschweizer regional newspaper network will one day be published under the umbrella of the Mittelland Zeitung am Sonntag.  
For the launch on September 16, however, the Aargau-based company has calculated without partners outside of the existing MZ network. "But if anyone is interested in our project," says Eckstein, "we are of course always open." This openness is also underlined by a "double branding" strategy. Those responsible recently decided on "Sonntag" as the main title of the Sunday edition of the Mittelland Zeitung. The figurative mark "Sonntag" is supplemented with the abbreviations of the individual regional newspapers in the MZ network. This also makes it easy to add other titles that want to join the association at a later date.
Part of the GesamtkunstwerkGreat interest in a Sunday edition for his newspaper is shown by Norbert Neininger. "A seventh edition is essential for every daily newspaper in the medium term, including us," says the publisher and editor-in-chief of Schaffhauser Nachrichten. But he doesn't want to be more specific. Just this much: "We haven't decided yet. But we want to make a decision by July at the latest." If one takes the statements of those involved at face value, it remains questionable whether Schaffhausen will turn to Aargau.
 
Neininger ambiguously points out that there are other options. But the small publisher leaves it open as to which ones. Because for Schaffhauser Nachrichten, it's about more than just a seventh edition. The independent publisher, wedged between the national border in the north and Tamedia territory in the south, would probably also benefit from a partnership-based management solution for the weekday editions of its newspaper in order to strengthen its independence. Neininger's statements in connection with Sunday plans must also be understood in this light. "Cooperation solutions," he says, "are always part of an overall work of art. Ideally, you work together with people with whom you also have other things in common."
Under observationFor years, the Mittelland Zeitung has signaled its openness towards the west. However, the Bieler Tagblatt is still missing from the network to round off the MZ area. When asked about this expansion possibility, Peter Wanner, publisher of the AZ Medien Group, said at the beginning of the month: "We have always said that we are open to further cooperation."
 
Is the Sonntagszeitung now the lever to get the people of Biel on board? Not for the time being, because the Bieler Tagblatt is contractually bound to the Berner Zeitung in the editorial area. "There is neither a need nor any effort to change this," says Marcel Geissbühler, Head of Media at Tagblatt publisher Gassmann AG.
 
The editor-in-chief of the Bieler Tagblatt is not quite of the same opinion. Last summer, Catherine Duttweiler had alternative mantle solutions examined for her newspaper because she was no longer satisfied with the quality of the texts delivered from Bern. The fact that the BZ has abolished its departments does not make things any easier for the Bieler Tagblatt. However, the review was terminated without result. "The fact that a publishing house examines alternatives from time to time is part of the business and is nothing out of the ordinary," says publisher Geissbühler, putting the significance of these investigations into perspective. When asked about the Sunday edition of the Mittelland Zeitung, he says that they are watching "with great interest what is happening there". And he says that "observation is the precursor to action", although he does not want this to be understood in connection with the Sunday newspaper. At the moment, Geissbühler is clear: "We won't be there on September 16."
NZZaS examines regional editionsUnless a newspaper jumps on the bandwagon at short notice, the Mittelland Zeitung will launch its seventh edition in its traditional circulation area in two and a half months' time. Another Sunday newspaper is unlikely to be launched until the fall. "I can't imagine that another publisher will also launch, the preparatory work is very extensive," says Ueli Eckstein. This also applies to the Neue Luzerner Zeitung, he adds, which was once said to be looking for a cooperation with the MZ.
 
But even without other partners, the newspaper is already perceived as a strong player on the Sunday market, so strong that the top dogs are thinking about counter-strategies. The clearest signals are coming from the smallest of the three Sunday newspapers. At NZZ am Sonntag, the launch of regional split editions is "under constant review", says publishing director Daniel Hofer. However, no decisions to this effect have yet been made at Falkenstrasse.
 
Nick Lüthi

The daily newspaper *Blick* is being promoted with a new campaign by Scholz & Friends Zurich. The goal is to reposition *Blick*. Werbewoche asked Ringier Group spokesperson Marco Castellaneta how exactly Blick intends to market itself and whether the campaign is related to the new plans for Blick, known as «Blick 2010.» Werbewoche: According to a press release from Scholz & Friends Zurich, Blick aims to reposition itself with this campaign. What exactly does this positioning entail? Castellaneta: With its current image campaign, Blick is positioning itself as a media outlet that conducts investigative journalism and provides background information, takes a stand, highlights the positive and exposes the negative, and is both thought-leading and surprising. The tagline «Im Blick kommt’s raus.» and the striking, emotional visual language capture this perfectly in the campaign. The role as a voice for the Swiss people is to be emphasized and illustrated with current topics: issues that move Switzerland—whether polarizing, negative, or uplifting—but always drawn from real life.
Werbewoche: Is the campaign aimed at positioning *Der Blick* against the competition from free newspapers? Castellaneta: With the new campaign and the new tagline, *Der Blick*—as the best-selling daily newspaper—wants to show its true colors. The aim is for *Blick* to gain even greater recognition for its values and content. This clearly shows consumers what *Blick* is all about.
Werbewoche: According to Scholz & Friends Zurich, the campaign was carried out in collaboration with the editorial team. Did interim editor-in-chief Rolf Cavalli play a role? Castellaneta: The campaign, which was supported by the editorial team, deliberately uses images with a reportage-style and editorial look; however, the actual creation of the campaign was ultimately the responsibility of Blick’s communications department.
Werbewoche: Does the campaign have anything to do with the «Blick 2010» project? Castellaneta: No, it doesn’t.
Werbewoche: Why is Blick launching yet another repositioning campaign when a new positioning will take place anyway once «Blick 2010» is completed? Castellaneta: The current campaign represents the values and content of Blick, which we will continue to stand for in the future. We will not be commenting further on the «Blick 2010» project at this time.

Football Publicis launched a huge fan show with the M'08, delivering perfect ambush marketing. Jörg Stiel was fully in his role and wanted to contribute as much of his knowledge as a footballer as possible. But he was stopped in his tracks. The figurehead of the M'08 was asked for this job because of his popularity as Switzerland's national goalkeeper for many years. However, the word "football" should not cross anyone's lips during this new type of championship on SF1. The M'08 is perfect - and therefore legal - ambush marketing by Migros parallel to Euro 08, but deliberately not synchronized, because the M'08 wants to set the scene before every pizzeria with Euro menus or the village butcher's shop with Köbi Kuhn sausages jumps on the Euro 08 bandwagon. "When the Euro takes place in Switzerland next year, everything will be football. Then the battle for attention will be fierce," says Jean Etienne Aebi.  
The freelance CD has assumed overall responsibility for the conception and communication of M'08 for Publicis. With this show, Migros is having 16 fan clubs compete for the title of "first fan champion in football history" and for fantastic prizes with a total value of around a quarter of a million francs. However, this is almost nothing compared to the cost of the show. The "Fan Games" were produced by tpc in Studio 1 in Leutschenbach as a large box set. Director Harry Heusser was allowed to "play with all the effects" with eight cameras, lots of special technology and almost three days of post-production per episode, as Aebi enthuses. In addition, the entire advertising block before the "Tagesschau" and "10 to 10" were purchased exclusively for Migros for all episodes of M'08 on 17 days.
 
Publicis has designed advertisements for heute and 20 Minuten as well as publicity reports in the Ringier press and in Migros Magazin. A website www. M08.ch also offers various buttons for the fans of the fans to play along with.
 
Andreas Panzeri?

Lifestyle Nespresso wants to be more than just coffee, it wants to convey an attitude to life. The clever marketing strategy makes this possible. 
He doesn't exist as a cardboard figure in shop windows, and he doesn't tolerate commercials in his home country, the USA. Nevertheless, George Clooney keeps the cash registers ringing at Nespresso. "We owe a quarter of our growth to him," explains Gerhard Berssenbrügge, CEO of Nespresso, a Nestlé subsidiary. Before hiring Clooney as a cool yet cheerful Nespresso ambassador, the company polled members of the Nespresso Club, which the company uses to retain its millionaire clientele. James Bond actors were on the shortlist, as were Sharon Stone and Placido Domingo. "Clooney swung to the top," says Berssenbrügge, "Women and men like him because he's good-looking, intelligent and has a sense of humor." The movie star enjoys capsule coffee in television commercials, shines in glossy ads in exquisite print media, or opens Nespresso boutiques for a change. For this he gets several million a year, how much they don't want to reveal, but obviously the heartbreaker is worth every dollar.

Initially not a success In 1986, Nespresso was not really a success story for many years. The pile-driving days of the capsule era hardly indicated that the concept would generate around 1.16 billion Swiss francs in sales in 2006. The innovation was initially marketed in four portioned coffee blends, which were produced in Switzerland and launched in faraway Japan. This country was chosen so as not to lose face in the event of a flop in Europe.
 
Despite a slow start, Nestlé's technicians consistently improved the capsules, optimized the machines, and the specialists sought out the world's best coffee blends, which got around among connoisseurs. After ten years, the new form of coffee enjoyment finally broke even, but then things started to look up. 
Capsules, machines and a club "We have combined several existing elements into a new whole," says Gerhard Berssenbrügge. Today, Nespresso is a closed system from which the customer, once won, is never released. Only the Nespresso capsules, which are not quite cheap at around 40 centimes each and contain a selection of the best coffees, go with the inexpensive, distinctive, stylish and practical coffee machines. At the beginning of the 1990s, marketing professionals launched the Nespresso Club, a clever move that tied customers to the brand.
 
As early as 1998, a website was set up (www.nespresso.com) where customers could order capsules and automatically become Club members. All elements of marketing played together to support the brand. "Nespresso. The magazine for life's precious moments" was launched, a pleasantly soft-spoken panorama of the beautiful things in the world such as design, travel, upscale living, and good food. In 1999, the company achieved sales of 154 million and had half a million club members; today, there are more than two million members who receive the magazine three times a year.
 
According to Berssenbrügge, the company spends around 20 percent of sales on marketing, advertising and PR, because Nespresso is now developing into a global brand in leaps and bounds. Country after country is being conquered, which requires high investments. "We want to become a global quality brand like Mercedes or Nike, which is already immediately recognizable worldwide by its characteristic 'N,'" says the CEO. With sponsorships such as the Alinghi yacht at the America's Cup, Nespresso achieves global media presence.
 
After the turn of the millennium, the company focused its energies even more intensively on the creation of the global brand. It moved into its headquarters in Paudex near Lausanne, a global competence center. Although Nespresso is part of the Nestlé Group, it is positioned as an independent company with a unique business model within the Group. More and more Nespresso boutiques are springing up on prominent streets and squares in many world cities, classy places to enjoy a fine Nespresso and at the same time focal points for marketing and sales. In 2001, the first concept machine, created by designer Antoine Cahen, was launched, functionally focused on the capsule and radically renouncing conventional coffee machine design. Since then, all Nespresso machines have been related in design and are a distinctive customer engagement tool.
Internet as a powerful platformThe attitude to life that the brand exudes is conveyed in advertising films and on the website, which is becoming increasingly important because a large proportion of capsule orders are placed electronically. The Internet has become a powerful platform. The latest commercials featuring George Clooney are also posted here, which customers can forward to friends at the click of a mouse.
 
Nespresso invests 60 percent of its media advertising budget in TV advertising and 40 percent in upscale print advertising. Considerable funds are flowing into the development of the global chain of boutiques; a 1500-square-meter boutique is to be opened on the Champs Elisées in Paris in the near future. The coffee machines for the colorful capsules are sold in specialty stores such as Mediamarkt, Manor and Globus. At these points of sale, Nespresso is represented with luxurious advertising. Here, as well as in the club magazines and on the Internet, customers learn about the new accessories and freshly styled machines on the market and that Nespresso does not forget the farmers in Kenya or Costa Rica and pays fair prices for first-class products. Or that it cooperates with the environmental organization Rainforest Alliance to develop sustainable concepts in coffee cultivation. Motto: Do good and talk about it.
Clooney for two more yearsThe celebrity campaign with George Clooney in 2006 was one of the most successful advertising campaigns in Europe, as Berssenbrügge points out. While several highly paid stars such as Cindy Crawford and Nicole Kidmann smile for the Swiss watch in Omega's "My choice" campaign, Clooney shoulders his Nespresso job alone.
 
Nespresso aims to become the "global icon for perfect coffee" by 2010, with the goal of doubling sales to two billion Swiss francs. Globally, capsules from all manufacturers account for three percent of coffee volume, but in terms of value, the figure is seven. Customers are therefore paying a high price for the quality and ease of use of the system invented by Nespresso and copied by others. Nespresso already employs 1700 people and is constantly creating new jobs in production and new boutique bars styled by French architect Francis Krempp in new markets such as Mexico City, Singapore, Shanghai, Beijing and Dubai. Says Berssenbrügge, "The boutique bar is the ambassador of the Nespresso brand and signals a new marketing strategy."
 
George Clooney will continue to shine as a figurehead for Nespresso for another two years. Then it will probably be time to say bye-bye, because nothing would be more counterproductive for a dynamically expanding brand than a déja vue effect. 
   
Werner Catrina
Nestlé Nespresso, a success storyNestlé Nespresso S.A. is one of the fastest growing businesses in the Nestlé Group and the global pioneer of portioned coffee. The Nespresso concept is based on hermetically sealed, portioned coffee capsules with a rich selection of Grand Cru coffees, the specially designed and easy-to-use coffee machines, and the Nespresso Club with its personalized service. Furthermore, Nespresso offers a range of portioned coffees, machines and services tailored mainly to the needs of upscale restaurants, hotels and cafes, catering companies, customer care and exclusive retail outlets, care of first class passengers in airlines.
Nestlé Nespresso S.A. is headquartered in Paudex/Lausanne, employs more than 1700 people at the end of 2006, sells its products to end consumers in more than 50 countries and currently operates 79 exclusive boutiques in world cities. In 2006, the company achieved a growth rate of 42 percent and sales of CHF 1.16 billion.

Marketers On July 1, Publisuisse subsidiary MediaSense will start marketing the Swiss Radio Pool (SRP), while at the same time offering all media agencies, intermediaries and radio stations its Publiplan booking tool as an industry solution (see p. 17). 
Meanwhile, competitor IP Multimedia is in the process of launching a tool called MediaPro - for TV, but also for radio and AdScreen. IP already processes its bookings via the tool and has also presented it to agencies. Adjustments are still being made based on feedback, says project manager Fredy Grau. Interfaces to TV stations and Radio Energy Zurich already exist, and there are plans to add interfaces to all radio stations at a later date. And the agencies will be given access via an online portal.
 
PubliGroupe is also taking part in the race. The company is working on systems that will "play an integrating role" in future all-media marketing, says Christian Gartmann, Head of Electronic Media. (mk)

 Druckerei Flawil has revised its corporate strategy in recent months. In addition to investments in the new print finishing division, the changes also include organizational changes: The printing and publishing divisions will be separated in terms of organization and management. The move is being made in order to be able to respond to specific market requirements in a more targeted and flexible manner, as detailed in a press release. This is accompanied by personnel changes: the previous Managing Director Erwin Lüber is leaving the company at his own request. According to the press release, he did not fully support the measures and changes associated with the restructuring of the company. As of mid-June, Pascal Schwarz, previously Head of Marketing and Sales, has taken over the management of the company ad interim. Parallel to the evaluation of a new managing director, management skills are also to be further expanded in the publishing division in order to secure additional market strength for the business division. The Board of Directors is committed to dynamic and customer-oriented management, says Chairman of the Board Hans-Jakob Schoch in the press release.
With an annual turnover of around CHF 20 million and 110 employees, Druckerei Flawil is one of the most important graphic arts companies in Eastern Switzerland. With the decision to invest in the print finishing division, Druckerei Flawil aims to strengthen its strategy of innovation and growth. The investments also include the purchase of a Hibis 104 UV varnishing machine from St.Gallen-based machine manufacturer Steinemann Technologies. According to the press release, only one machine of this generation is currently in use in Switzerland.
Druckerei Flawil has had a national presence for over 110 years, today for example with the Wiler Zeitung, various regional advertisers and the St.Galler Bauer.