Software Just in time for the launch of Windows Vista, McCann Erickson has come up with a brilliant advertising campaign for Microsoft's latest and most user-friendly operating system to date. The campaign focuses on the high user-friendliness of the new operating system and the inevitable "wow" experience associated with its use. The campaign for Windows Vista will be featured prominently in all media. A 30- and 60-second cinema spot with a laser show, numerous advertisements, large-format outdoor posters, rail posters and redesigned streetcars and buses are being used.

A new online cultural magazine is being launched under the name "TheTitel", which positions itself as a print newspaper on the Internet. The portal from Bern is to be published monthly, has the appearance of a glossy magazine and is free of charge, writes the news agency SDA. It will cover the areas of music, film, art, literature, comics, tips on where to go out, and thoughts - often in articles spanning several pages. The project, headed by Claudia Mühlebach and Rudolf Amstutz, aims to finance itself through advertising. The current prototype contains dossiers on Marc Forster, Nora Jones and Tom Waits, among others.

The administrative reform approved by the people in the canton of Bern is having an impact on the local press landscape. In the Bernese Oberland, people are already wondering what the future holds for the official gazettes and local newspapers. Due to the new administrative division, the question is how many official gazettes are still needed for the region and how and where the municipalities will publish their publications. Until now, the western Bernese Oberland consisted of four official districts, but from 2010 there will only be two, according to a report by the SDA news agency. The municipal publications were previously published in three official gazettes. Franz Zölch said on behalf of the publishing houses concerned on Wednesday that the business could only be run economically if one publisher could publish the official gazette and the local paper. Solutions have already been developed by Frutigländer Medien / Egger, Ilg in Wimmis, Kopp Druck und Grafik in Zweisimmen, Müller Marketing & Druck in Gstaad and Weber Werbeagentur und Verlag in Gwatt. In addition to the official gazettes, smaller local newspapers such as Der Frutigländer, the Obersimmentaler, the Anzeiger von Saanen and the monthly magazine Spiez Info are published in the western Bernese Oberland. They all exist alongside the larger regional newspaper Der Berner Oberländer. The small, local papers are important for local associations or events, as the larger the newspaper, the more expensive the advertisements, emphasizes Zölch.

The local television station Tele Züri is drawing attention to itself in the new campaign by Cavegn Werbung via VBZ. With this advertising message, Tele Züri travels all over the city, demonstrating its presence in the broadcasting area all year round - from early in the morning until late at night. According to the press release, the streetcar advertisements devised by Cavegnwerbung communicate Tele Züri's strengths in an original way. For viewers, Tele Züri is not just Tele Züri, but also TeleSechseläuten, TelePolizeieinsatz or TeleFCZ. Buzzwords on the rear windows of the bus draw attention to the individual channels. The campaign can be seen on TeleVBZ from February.

Gebäudeversicherung Bern (GVB) is celebrating its 200th birthday with numerous anniversary activities. The advertising agency In Flagranti from Lys communicates these and answers questions about the past, present and future of GVB. The company is celebrating its birthday with a new corporate design. In a question-and-answer game, In Flagranti brings GVB's achievements to the fore. For example: Why did the fire department used to have a long line? Why can you save the cook with a pan lid? Why should we talk more about the weather? These and over 50 other questions and their answers can be found in advertisements, on buses and in the anniversary streetcar, which will be running through Berne throughout 2007.

The American Society for Newspaper Design has awarded the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitungen (FAS) a prestigious title: The German paper can now count itself among the most beautiful in the print universe. In addition to the FAS, the jury also selected the Danish newspaper Politiken, the Estonian Äripäcv and the Spanish El Economista. It said of FAS: "This is a masterfully designed publication. Turning the pages of this newspaper is like walking through a gallery of sophisticated photography, with sensitive illustrations and almost perfect typography." The newspaper does not "shout", it "enlightens". So dear Swiss newspaper makers. Take a leaf out of the Germans' book so that next year we too can wear the newspaper crown.

National pride "How many Germans can Switzerland take?" That's what Blick is currently trying to find out as part of a major campaign. The series of articles is being promoted by the Zurich branch of the Berlin agency Scholz + Friends. As the new agency for Blick, the Zurich-based Friends are working with advertisements, online banners, PoS posters and a TV spot in their broad-based advertising. The latter focuses on polarization: the Swiss flag is first seen on a red background - accompanied by the sounds of the Swiss anthem. As the camera slowly zooms away from the flag, a yellow and a black bar gradually move into the picture at the top and bottom, threatening to displace the white cross on a red background. This visualization is new. However, the implementation on the posters is not entirely new, as Reinhold Weber noticed. Seven years ago, when he opened his agency in Berlin, he used the same gag and put up a series of posters on his own behalf - a campaign that was immediately widely reported in the Berlin press and won awards. Reinhold smiles: "How much German advertising can the gaze take?"

Propaganda Zurich is strengthening its team with Roberto Ferrari. The advertising expert will support the team of consultants at the specialist for ambient media and guerrilla marketing. Ferrari can look back on various positions in sales and marketing at various agencies. Most recently, he worked at Jean Frey Verlag and was responsible for the advertising market of Bilanz as project manager. In order to meet the constantly increasing demand for ambient media and special forms of advertising, Propaganda is also expanding its team of consultants in the office area, according to the company's press release. Karin Streuli, Cornelia Klaus and Ivan Folda will provide additional support to the agency. With these personnel changes, Propaganda aims to strengthen and expand its leading national position as an ambient media agency.

The advertising pages of the Swiss press were exceptionally well filled in January. Compared to the same month last year, the total volume in the daily and regional weekly press increased by 11.4 percent in franc terms. As the Wemf advertising statistics for the Swiss press published on Wednesday show, commercial advertisements recorded an increase of 12.3 percent. Job advertisements continued to benefit from the positive development on the labor market. Although slightly less than in previous months, they increased by 22.9%. By contrast, advertisements in the Sunday press declined by 0.3%. In the business and financial press, they increased by 41.7 percent. In terms of francs, the total volume of the general press was 21.2% higher than last year. The specialty press recorded an increase of 4.8 percent in terms of page volume. The volume of advertisements in the trade press increased by 2.5%. 

Paper III Inapa refreshes themed volumes. As autonomous sales organizations within Inapa Schweiz AG, Baumgartner Papier and Biber Papier have their own product ranges - and therefore their own paper collections. Each individual product is available in the form of a paper sample, which gives a good impression of the corresponding substrate. The collection will be expanded on March 27 and will now comprise 20 volumes. The additional themed volume "Coated" contains coated papers in all standard qualities. An additional module for mailings, brochures and documentation completes the collection. Furthermore, additions have been made to the "Offset" themed volume; at the same time, some adjustments have been made to the range. The collection will therefore be up to date again at the end of March.
Inapa attaches particular importance to on-site paper consulting by its own advertising specialists. Werbewoche spoke to consultant Albert Oehler and Inapa marketing manager Marco Bieri about this (see interview below).
"We rely on advertising consulting" WW: What role does a paper collection play in paper consulting? Albert Oehler: If a theme is to be ideally implemented in terms of image, text and feel and needs to fit together, then collections play an important role. For large objects, I sometimes recommend having a 1:1 sample produced using the digital printing process. By printing on different papers, it is relatively easy to make very meaningful comparisons directly. WW: Are paper collections still relevant in the digital age? Marco Bieri: Definitely yes. For many customers, the collection is the first tool they use when deciding on paper. Collections are also an important tool for us internally. Because even if you've been in the industry for a long time, it's no easy task to decide on a paper based on an often small sample. WW: How do you approach sales and discussions with agencies? Albert Oehler: I try to limit myself and not show too many products. I only present products that are suitable for the project - and preferably only a maximum of three papers per project. This requires a lot of experience and knowledge of your own products. WW: What characterizes the extensive Biber/Baumgartner collections, which will be expanded at the end of March? Albert Oehler: Our collections, which are designed as working tools, are grouped thematically, and parts of them can be removed at the same time. This makes it easy to compare whether different papers match each other.   
Jürgen Franck

The website of the Federal Office for Spatial Development (ARE) has been given a fresh new look. It now meets the federal government's design and accessibility criteria. The Federal Office of Information Technology and Telecommunications provided technical and conceptual support for the implementation of the new website. With the new website, the ARE is implementing both the federal government's corporate design and the requirements for barrier-free access for the disabled. All previously available information can be found on the new site. Password-protected areas for specialists round off the offer.

Education Pia Kasper is Director of the Swiss Training Center for Marketing, Advertising and Communication SAWI. In an interview with Werbewoche, she talks about SAWI degrees, their value and the institute's new direction. WW: Ms. Kasper, what is the situation in Switzerland with young advertisers? Pia Kasper: The advertising industry is an incredibly attractive environment for young people. The trend toward the communications industry in all its facets is unbroken and is also a positive development for SAWI. WW:How busy are SAWI's courses?Pia Kasper:There is a great demand for our training courses. Especially from the Zurich area.WW:What is the best way to start your career in the advertising industry? Pia Kasper:The most common way is still to do an apprenticeship and attend a vocational college. Then you look for a job and complete the part-time training as a communications planner. The next career step is secured with further training as a communications manager. By the way, the above-mentioned courses are very well attended at SAWI.WW:And if you can't find a suitable job?Pia Kasper:Then full-time training is an ideal solution. SAWI offers two options. Either one attends a one-year training program with a focus on marketing/communication, with a degree as "communication planner". Or one takes a three-year full-time course at Polycom. It leads to a diploma as "Consultant for Corporate and Marketing Communication" and can be described as a holistic communication education par excellence. Polycom trains exactly the consultant segment that meets today's market requirements. They are professionals in all areas of integrated communication who master all communication tools.
WW:So the ideal path leads via SAWI? Pia Kasper:The big plus of our training courses is practical experience. Both our one-year and three-year training programs are inconceivable without corresponding internships. This is in contrast to entering advertising via studies at a university or university of applied sciences. Back to your question about the ideal path. It leads via the SAWI: either apprenticeship with corresponding SAWI further education or the SAWI day schools.WW:Where does the SAWI position itself and how do you qualify the SAWI degrees?Pia Kasper:The SAWI positions itself with practice-oriented training programs and degrees in federal professional examinations. As of 2008, we will also be offering training courses with degrees in higher vocational schools. In contrast to the university, we do not have a research department attached. However, our graduates already have tangible experience. SAWI degrees are qualified by their practical relevance. This means that someone with a SAWI degree can be deployed efficiently in the workplace immediately. This is not least because our militia system means that we have a teaching staff of practitioners and because we also carry out internships during the training as far as possible.WW:What is your opinion of the university courses that are mushrooming? Is it possible to study communication professions?Pia Kasper:Absolutely. Various universities offer corresponding courses of study. These courses tend to be more scientific and research-oriented, often without a corresponding practical orientation. It is mainly high school graduates who attend these courses. Not least because they assume that their market value is greater with a bachelor's degree. I can certainly understand that. But those who want to complete an experience-oriented education still attend the SAWI. The business world appreciates the value of the SAWI diploma. It is not without reason that job advertisements often include a reference to a SAWI diploma.WW:The media are changing, new communication channels are becoming established. Is this also taken into account in the SAWI training program?Pia Kasper:Keeping up with the times is a must for a progressive training center. We are keeping a close eye on the changing needs of the economy, especially the advertising industry, and in particular the new communication channels. We want to secure the future of the industry with competent young talent by offering targeted training programs. As an example, I would mention Expo Event Marketing. But the opportunities offered at SAWI to apply and teach multimedia forms of communication are also one of our great strengths.WW:Topic Location. The big advertising agencies are in Zurich. Is SAWI coming to Zurich? Pia Kasper:We live in the 21st century. The needs of our clients have changed a lot since SAWI was founded. In the past, people traveled from all over Switzerland to Biel in order to acquire solid know-how in the communications industry at SAWI. This self-evident focus on Biel as a training location is now a thing of the past. As a result, the number of our students in Biel has dropped to 28 percent, while in Zurich it has risen to 62 percent. Zurich is the mecca of advertising; the big agencies are here. That's why we're going to expand our offering in the Zurich area enormously.WW:Is that even possible at your current location in Zurich-Stettbach?Pia Kasper:No, it was long outdated. In the cramped and scattered premises with an outdated infrastructure, it was also becoming increasingly difficult for the lecturers to maintain the quality of teaching. Neither in terms of space nor in terms of personnel did we see ourselves in a position to provide professional support for our growing clientele. Therefore, we will move to a new location in spring 2007, where we will have sufficient training rooms.
WW:Where will the new premises be located? Pia Kasper:At Stettbachstrasse 6 in Zurich-Stettbach. In other words, very close to the old location. The premises will be refurbished to the highest standards and equipped with the latest infrastructure. The new location is to become the epitome, the standard of modern communication culture. WW:You have been director of SAWI since October 2006. What are your concrete goals?Pia Kasper:A central concern is the quality assurance of all training courses at a high level. This is one of the reasons why the improvement of the infrastructure has already been vigorously initiated. Furthermore, a more differentiated profile in the Swiss training market seems essential to me. SAWI must be perceived as a strong national brand. After all, it is supported by all professional associations. Then the image of SAWI as a sustainable and practice-oriented training institute must be further developed. And last but not least, the new premises in Zurich-Stettbach offer the opportunity to establish a powerful competence center for communication in German-speaking Switzerland.Training at SPOK and AKADFor the further training to become a marketing communication planner
(formerly Advertising Assistant), AKAD offers courses in cooperation with SPOK (School for Practice-Oriented Communication). The school operation is organized by AKAD. SPOK acts as an expert advisor to the course management, which has many years of experience in the field of communication and advertising. Special emphasis is placed on the practical part. During the course of study, practical parts are continuously incorporated, sometimes in companies on site. After the two semesters there is a three-month practical part, in which the participants have to solve an appropriate task. Interested parties can obtain detailed information at www.spok.ch or at www.akad.ch. The course rooms for the course are located in Zurich in the Publimedia building.
Interview by email: Christian Lüscher