Tourismus Wirz has reinvented the world for Kuoni and amazes vacationers with special destinations. 
We can only dream of such postcards. At least in this world. Wirz has designed a series of new vacation pictures for Kuoni that are intended to trigger something like supernatural reactions in the viewer.     
A year ago, Wirz launched a new advertising campaign for the leading brand in the Swiss travel industry. It was based on the concept of letting the subconscious of the target audience arrive at their vacation destination before they had even booked. The advertisers provoked such feelings, for example, with the Golden Gate Bridge - albeit not in the fog of San Francisco, but over the spray of Niagara Falls. The claim: "If you don't notice anything, we recommend a vacation."
The brief was to use classic vacation images for these montages. This also applies to the continuation of the long-term campaign in 2007. "It's not so easy to turn cliché images into eye-catchers," says CD Hanspeter Schweizer at Wirz. "Or maybe it is?" says AD Sascha Fanetti, who had "great fun" playing around creatively with these stock images together with graphic designer Kim Sokola. 
By combining two vacation images into one, "irritation is created and thus a stopper effect," explains Schweizer. If the wanderlust doubles when you look at them, then the posters have almost fulfilled their purpose.
The continuation of the campaign demonstrates its versatile potential: in addition to eight new poster and advertising motifs, two films have also been created for the cinema. Here, however, the irritation is not created by the image, but by the sound: an Aborigine elicits alphorn sounds from his didgeridoo and the mighty lion emits a plaintive cat meow, beautifully lip-synched.
In the shop windows of Kuoni branches, the idea is extended once again: almost imperceptibly altered national flags of classic vacation countries pose witty riddles. And the sweets handed out to customers as giveaways surprisingly taste nothing like what is written on the packaging.
Successful anniversary year 
Kuoni
increased its net revenue to CHF 4082 million in 2006. Switzerland's largest travel provider has successfully completed its 100th anniversary with a profit and the highest ever consolidated result of 116.7 million francs. In the anniversary year 2006, net revenue increased by 10.7 percent. Organizational growth was 7.9 percent.
Andreas Panzeri

Reading research Le Matin reaches more than 50 percent of all managers in French-speaking Switzerland. In German-speaking Switzerland, NZZ Folio is number one. Every two years, managers and decision-makers in politics and business in Switzerland are asked about their reading habits. The currently published MA Leader 2007 by Wemf was conducted between September 23 and November 26, 2006 by means of interviews (around 4000 in German-speaking Switzerland, around 1500 in French-speaking Switzerland). The basic population of all people who, as decision-makers in companies and authorities, meet the Wemf definitions (see box) now amounts to 335,000 people. This is 15,000 more than in 2005, which shows that the improved economy has also left its first traces on the executive floors (see chart).Tagi overtakes NZZ among leadersThe increase is certainly significant, as this resulted in a percentage reduction in reach for some titles, even if - in absolute figures - they did not show a loss. It also happens that the reach fell even if the corresponding title was able to increase in absolute figures. In individual cases, not even a significant leader or top leader increase was enough to achieve a percentage increase over the 2005 level (example: Full House).
Le Matin Dimanche is clearly the best performer of all Swiss titles, and not just in terms of its language region: the Sunday paper is the only title that reaches more than half of all managers in French-speaking Switzerland (a total of 51,000 leaders and 24,000 top leaders) every week. Compared to the MA Leader 2003, in which the paper participated for the last time, it was even able to improve its figures.
Only the monthly magazine NZZ Folio achieves a similar performance in German-speaking Switzerland. It achieves a reach of 54.4 percent - albeit only among the top leaders - and a mere 46.2 percent among the leaders. However, the NZZ Folio is still the best in Switzerland in one respect: it reaches the most Swiss managers in absolute terms, namely a total of 80,000 leaders and 47,000 top leaders. Although it is on a par with the SonntagsZeitung (SoZ) in terms of Leaders, the monthly magazine was able to slightly increase its lead over the SoZ in terms of Top Leaders.
Another comparison of titles from the NZZ and Tamedia publishing houses: Tagi now has 2000 more readers than NZZ among the leaders; two years ago, both titles attracted the same level of interest in this target group. Among the top leaders, however, the NZZ is still ahead.
The magazine recorded the largest increase among managers in German-speaking Switzerland - because it is no longer only enclosed with the Tages-Anzeiger, but also with the Basler Zeitung and the Berner Zeitung. This expansion in distribution had a 34 percent increase among the Leaders, while the increase among the Top Leaders was 28 percent. The second largest significant increase in performance was recorded by NZZ am Sonntag, which grew by 6,000 Leader and 3,000 Top Leader, corresponding to an increase of 10 and 8.6 percent respectively. Geo also increased significantly in both target groups, by 4000 readers each (+6.6 / +14.8 percent). In French-speaking Switzerland, on the other hand, there were no clear increases in performance.
The biggest losses among decision-makers were recorded by Facts and Bilanz. Facts lost 13.5 percent of its leaders and 11.5 percent of its top leaders. Not for the first time: compared to 2003, the magazine now has a quarter fewer leaders (minus 16,000) and almost a fifth fewer top leaders (-5,000). As with Mach Basic, the decline in readership among decision-makers is largely due to the fact that the magazine has been published fortnightly for two years (previously monthly) and thus to the change in the survey. But this much can be said: Axel Springer Schweiz's magazine now reaches 17,000 leaders (27.2 percent) and 8,000 top leaders (23.5 percent) fewer per issue than two years ago. The situation is exactly the same for the Edipresse title Bilan in French-speaking Switzerland, where the publication frequency has also been increased. However, the decline was comparatively moderate: 12.5 percent fewer leaders, 8.3 percent fewer top leaders. And the loss among the top leaders was not even significant.
It is interesting to see which titles the leaders could easily do without. The study provides an answer to this thanks to the interview question "Would you miss the title if it no longer existed?". The result: the three titles that Swiss-German leaders would miss the most are NZZ, Geo and Tages-Anzeiger, all of which were mentioned by over 80 percent of their readers. The situation is similar for the top leaders, but they miss the Tagi even more than Geo.
By contrast, the titles that Leaders and Top Leaders would be most likely to do without are Panorama Raiffeisen, Bulletin Credit Suisse and KMU-Magazin: clearly less than half of their readers would miss them (between 32 and 42 percent).
These are leaders and top leadersAccording to the Wemf definition
are leaders at least 20 years old, resident in German-speaking or French-speaking Switzerland and employed at least part-time. They are self-employed and run a business with four or more employees.  
As freelancers, they have a higher level of education; as employees, they have a managerial role with influence on operational decisions.
 
The personal gross annual income is CHF 100,000 or more.
 
Top leaders are also either freelancers and in this function also the employer of at least one employee. Or they are employees and manage at least one employee. The annual income of top leaders is at least CHF 140,000.
Interesting to see who is no longer thereNot raised by the MA Leader
Brückenbauer and CoopZeitung, the two largest Swiss titles, were not included. 20 Minuten, the largest daily newspaper, is also not taking part, nor is its French-speaking Swiss offshoot 20 minutes. SonntagsBlick, which took part until 2003, will continue to stay away from the MA Leader, while Südostschweiz, Mittelland Zeitung, Neue Luzerner Zeitung and St. Galler Tagblatt have also recently said goodbye. Automobil Revue and its French-language sister publication, TCS-Magazin, are participating for the first time, while Touring is still not involved: The publisher, which had removed several titles from the study in 2005, brought back Le Matin Dimanche, 24 heures and Tribune de Genève. The new commuter paper Le Matin Bleu and its competitor 20 minutes, on the other hand, are not participating.
What is also striking is that all women's titles are conspicuous by their absence, as are TV guides. NZZ, NZZ am Sonntag and Le Temps, on the other hand, are exemplary. For the first time, they also allowed a survey to be carried out on the extent to which they are used by executives on the other side of the Röstigraben. (mk)
Markus Knöpfli
 
 

Media How do editors-in-chief deal with the ever-increasing input from trained PR specialists? At the annual Epiphany Conference last January, Vice-Chancellor Oswald Sigg caused a stir among the ranks of publishers and media people with a simple figure. Within just a few years, Sigg said, the federal government had increased the budget of its communications experts from 25 to 600. It is not the first time that Sigg has addressed an audience with this figure, but it is getting bigger every time. What is happening in the Federal Administration is a sure sign that the PR industry is also arming itself in the private sector. It is becoming increasingly difficult for journalists to obtain unfiltered information. Whereas in the past you could get the managing director of a company directly on the line, today, in the best case scenario, his head of communications places messages in neatly balanced formulas (right down to the conforming spelling of the brand) that usually only he himself understands. The friction losses are enormous on both sides.
At first glance, one might think that the upgrading of the PR industry should lead to a strengthening of editorial teams. However, after the numerous rounds of cost-cutting that the industry has undergone, concepts are largely being used to make do. The concept of a lean editorial team has lost some of its budget-friendly urgency because the economy is on the up again. But publishers are at best investing in the editorial department where they are initiating new projects.
For example, Artur K. Vogel, editor-in-chief at the Bund since January, believes that the editorial team of the long-troubled newspaper is still large and well equipped. "There's no question of thinning out." Vogel is confident. Before his job in Berne at the Aargauer Zeitung, he produced the whole coat for the Mittelland Zeitung with fewer people.
Peter Buri, editor-in-chief of the same Aargauer Zeitung, sees himself in a more comfortable position. "We are in the process of hiring 15 to 20 new people for the editorial team," he says. The seventh edition of the Mittelland Zeitung planned for September naturally requires this massive expansion, admits Buri. However, both Artur K. Vogel and Peter Buri confirm the growing flood of administrative and corporate PR on their (electronic) desks. Trained people twist the information until it fits into the PR concept, says Vogel. When it comes to the Federal Administration, he and his editorial team are faced with a veritable phalanx of communications experts. This is detrimental to politics. "Politicians fade into the background and are no longer tangible."
Editor-in-chief Peter Hartmeier therefore sends his best people to federal Bern for the Tages-Anzeiger. "We have to offer a counter with journalists who can withstand the hustle and bustle of the PR managers." Hartmeier has therefore sent his deputy Roland Schlumpf to Bern, where the Tages-Anzeiger has five staff.
Turning the tablesThe Neue Luzerner Zeitung has also reacted in its political reporting. In view of the government and cantonal council elections on April 1, in which 526 candidates are running on 69 lists, the Neue LZ has turned the tables and set up a citizens' forum in the style of public journalism. There, readers can ask questions to stimulate political discourse. The deputy editor-in-chief, Stefan Ragaz, justifies the establishment of the forum with the editorial team's desire to involve readers in the choice of topics and in the political debate. Until now, the political agenda before elections has mainly been determined by the parties.
Editors are keeping their backs free with an increasingly complicated triage system. Most of the countless invitations and offers end up in the wastepaper basket. "Out of dozens of daily offers, there are perhaps one or two topics per month that can be used editorially," says Peter Buri. AZ uses a journalistic concept, whereby the editorial team first roughly scans the daily flood according to a defined criteria grid (relevance, topicality, etc.).
Back in 1996, at the time of the merger of Luzerner Zeitung and Luzerner Neuste Nachrichten, a separate PR editorial department was set up at Neue LZ to cater to the interests of companies and institutions. Of the 11,176 pages of text produced last year, the editorial team produced 650 pages that differ from the rest of the paper in terms of layout and typography. The trend is rising sharply. For Ragaz, it is also clear that editorial offices in general have repeatedly allowed themselves to be instrumentalized by professional PR when setting topics.
"How do we deal with this balancing act between PR and journalism?" For Colette Gradwohl, Editor-in-Chief of the Landbote in Winterthur, the question is not about editorial resources, but about the sensitivity of media professionals. Since its relaunch in the fall of 2005, the balancing act at Landbote has also involved an institutional interface between the publishing house and the editorial team. According to Gradwohl, however, the informal exchange, for example in discussions about media partnerships, is no longer as lively as it was at the beginning. However, her decisions as editor-in-chief have always been respected.
More commercial enquiriesAccording to editor-in-chief Markus Spillmann, the NZZ is largely above the fray due to the title's market position. Although there are more requests for commercial content, the interests are the same as they have always been. "We don't allow ourselves to be misled by communications experts," says Spillmann. However, the expertise on the other side is also appreciated.
Regardless of the fact that representatives of the PR industry can also be welcome door openers and alert editorial teams to important stories, maintaining relationships remains the be-all and end-all of a well-oiled editorial team. "We tend to have to bypass the PR people, because we need direct contact with those responsible," says Peter Hartmeier. The difference between title and press diversity is important to him. "If we want to afford editorial teams with proven specialists, then there won't be many titles left in the end."
"Unbelievable, shocking "End of January
the media research company Publicom published a study on the editorial handling of PR with a disappointing verdict for media professionals. Over 50 percent of the media had simply adopted the content of official media conferences without any additional input of their own. The electronic media performed worse than the print media. Print still enjoys the highest credibility with the public. The authors of the study also expect a further shift in the balance of power in favor of public relations.Tagi Editor-in-Chief Peter Hartmeier finds the result "unbelievable", while Bund Editorial Director Artur K. Vogel describes it as "shocking". This practice is also extremely delicate when editorial offices of small newspapers, which have to make do with few resources, simply take over information tel quel. Silvan Lüchinger, deputy editor-in-chief of the St. Galler Tagblatt, points out that the study was purely quantitative. "It often happens that we first publish the facts on a topic and then two or three days later, perhaps even weeks later, provide in-depth research." But under no circumstances should we do without our own research.
René Worni

The AZ Medien Group has sold Meissner Bücher to the Thalia Group, the market leader in the Swiss book trade, with retroactive effect from January 1, 2007. Thalia will continue to rely on the Meissner brand as well as the expertise and commitment of the 45 employees in Aarau, Baden and Brugg. Manfred Beck will remain Managing Director of Meissner Bücher; the Aarau, Baden and Brugg locations will be retained. According to a press release, AZ Medien has decided to sell in order to ensure the continued prosperous development of the traditional bookstores and to secure their existence in the highly competitive book market. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.
Meissner Bücher has successfully positioned itself in the regional market. It generates sales of around CHF 13 million, stands out as a professionally competent bookshop and is also active in the mail order and online business. The branch in Baden was opened in the Langhaus in 2001, followed by the branch in the AZ Medienhaus in Aarau in 2005. The branch in Brugg will move to a central location on Neumarktplatz this spring.
For the Thalia Group, the purchase of Meissner Bücher is a further step towards expanding its market leadership in the Swiss book trade. On April 12, Thalia opens another bookstore in Aarau under the name Wirz Thalia.
Together with Stauffacher Buchhandlungen and ZAP, Thalia Bücher is part of Thalia Holding, based in Hagen, Germany. The group has a total of 17 locations in Switzerland and employs over 550 people. In addition to bricks-and-mortar retail, the group is also active in the online business. The parent company Thalia is part of the Douglas Holding.

The Lyss advertising agency is strengthening its team: Simon Kümin (25), international chess champion and professional poker player, is now venturing into advertising. In future, he will be working as a junior copywriter for the Lyss-based company. The agency is convinced that he will become an international advertising champion in the short or long term, according to a media release.

 The agency at the airport now has the textile logistics company Scherrer Transport from St. Margrethen on its business passenger list. Scherrer Transport, the logistics company specializing in the forwarding and packing of fashion and textile sports equipment, has commissioned the agency from Altenrhein to develop a new corporate identity and to oversee all communications. The first measures will be on display shortly. 

Fundraising Publicis is working with Terre des hommes to help exploited children The Swiss children's aid organization Terre des hommes is currently running a campaign on billboards and with advertisements to draw attention to the fact that countless children around the world are living in unbearable situations. The abuses are depicted in striking images. The help provided by Terre des hommes is symbolized on these posters by Publicis Zurich by a simple, knotted rescue rope. The message: "Terre des hommes as a way out of the predicament". In a first wave in November 2006, Terre des hommes - Children's Aid used an empty poster to attract the attention of passers-by. At the bottom of the poster was a silent cry for help scrawled by a child's hand. The jury of the Art Directors Club Switzerland awarded this poster series, also realized by Publicis, a bronze cube. However, the idea was not received so enthusiastically everywhere. The daily press felt compelled to discuss children in advertising.
In the current second wave, Terre des hommes' key issues are linked to the brand. Powerful images illustrate the topics of mother and child health, child exploitation and violence against children. The images depict the seemingly hopeless situation of a child - a life in illness, poverty or captivity. A simple rescue rope symbolizes the help of Terre des hommes, the way out of the predicament. The claim "There is a way out of every injustice" refers to the logo of the children's aid organization.
The poster display will be accompanied by a nationwide advertising campaign. Some of the poster sites will also be installed as a 3D version by hanging a real rope over the subject.
The Terre des hommes - Children's Aid Foundation is active for children in need in a total of 31 countries around the world.
Andreas Panzeri

The Zurich-based company Web2com has been strengthened in its sales team and in the area of Siterelation: Karin Schmid has joined the sales team as Account Executive and Oliver Frank as Account Manager. As Product Manager, Urs Bühler is now responsible for the Siterelation division. Schmid graduated as a communicator FH in September 2006. During her studies, she was able to gain valuable experience in various areas of communication. Frank has been working in the Internet environment since 1995 and has experience and know-how in the areas of online advertising and search engine marketing. He was previously responsible for the sales and product development of an online portal. Bühler has experience in advertising, PR, web and multimedia. He was previously responsible for the coordination of web and multimedia applications as well as technical and graphic implementation in the field of digital media. According to a press release, Web2com is looking to expand its market presence and customer support with this addition to the sales and siterelation team.

The Zurich advertising agency Hochspannung has acquired several new clients in recent weeks. For Lotos, a store specializing in Asian furniture and home accessories, the first subjects of the campaign will already be in use from Wednesday at Giardina Zurich. A poster campaign, advertisements and various special appearances in the city of Zurich are also planned. Another new addition to the portfolio is the Zurich bedding store Bettgeschichten. In addition to the development of a new overall image, the contract also includes the realization of a TV commercial. Posters, advertisements and cinema slides are also planned. Hochspannung landed its latest coup with Promotion Tools, a leading service provider in below-the-line marketing. Promotion Tools chose Hochspannung after an agency evaluation among four competitors. The contract includes the development of a new overall image as well as the conception and realization of a new website.

Swisscom's Internet guide SchoolNetGuide is entering its 10th round - for the first time as a cooperation between Swisscom and Maxomedia. The Bern-based agency won the pitch against several competitors. The SchoolNetGuide is published throughout Switzerland in three languages with a print run of over 250,000 copies. In addition to the brochure, more focus will be placed on online content in the future, according to a media communiqué. Maxomedia is responsible for editing, design and the online expansion of the SchoolNetGuide. The upcoming edition of the SchoolNetGuide will focus on the topic of "Virtual Identity". The guide is primarily aimed at teachers and parents. The aim is to reduce the knowledge advantage that children and young people often have over teachers and parents when it comes to the Internet. It is also intended to arouse interest in the topic of "virtual identity" among all age groups and provide information about the opportunities and risks.

The Bern agency PR Access and the Zurich agency Trimedia have successfully passed the CMS II quality certification. The CMS II certificate recognizes agencies for the highest internationally recognized quality standard in the PR industry. CMS II - Consultancy Management Standard - is a certification program specially tailored to the communications industry that combines elements of the ISO system with those of the "Investors for people" system. To obtain the coveted quality certificate, candidates must undergo a rigorous examination in eight areas: Leadership and Communication, Corporate Planning, Corporate Development, Financial System, Projects and Campaigns, Customer Satisfaction, New Business and Human Resources Management. With this certification, the two agencies now have an internationally recognized credential that attests to the quality of their advice and professionalism in all business matters.

The Web2com index rose to 104.0 points in February 2007 and is thus higher than in February of the previous year. In addition to a general upturn in the advertising industry, and in Internet advertising in particular, this upward trend is being boosted above all by a number of important sectors such as tourism and finance. As a recent study (Outsell) from America shows, Internet advertising is also expected to grow in the USA in 2007 (+18 %). The largest increase is expected in search engine marketing (+ 39 %).
The Web2com Index is based on monthly surveys of investments in commercial advertising on national and international online platforms. It is therefore intended to show how internet advertising is developing in Switzerland.