Insurance After animated damage sketches for the viral scene, Wirz has once again made two films for Die Mobiliar, setting the bar high: Since the legendary milk commercial with the soccer-playing cow (1994), no other Swiss commercial has won as many awards as the Mobiliar film "Fotograf". More than a dozen major prizes have been won - including a Lion in Cannes - and the fortunately insured shambles has just been awarded the coveted Gold Cube at the Swiss ADC. So how do we go on and redo it? The creatives at Wirz und Wirz (advertising and film) did not dare to take the right path themselves and instead relied on a GPS. Unfortunately, the creatives dived horribly with it - and are now deep underwater again, well on the way to winning a few nice prizes for Die Mobiliar this year.
Film numbers 15 and 16 were once again realized by the same team. For CD Matthias Freuler's "favorite spot", director Ernst Wirz from Wirz & Fraefel had to dig a little deeper into his bag of tricks this time. The "Navi" commercial tells the story of a couple who rely entirely on the instructions of their GPS and get quite lost in the process. "Dear Mobiliar, my navigation device found the ferry straight away, but didn't recognize that it was on the other bank ..."
Of course, the car with the unfortunate couple is not under water. Like the fish in the studio, the wet element was added by computer. And as there was unfortunately no fish looking puzzled in the archives, this one was also made to look scary by electronic means.
Initially, the client had reservations about the idea because it was intended to dramatize a funny but nevertheless deadly danger. However, as the man was able to fill in a damage report, he obviously survived the underwater odyssey ...
Such an accident has actually happened before. Wirz Werbung drew inspiration for this film from a newspaper report. What is new in the concept of the series is that this is the first time that an accident has not taken place in front of a running camera, but has already happened. This makes it all the more impressive how the film team is able to build up suspense here - with just a couple sitting motionless in a car. "A mini marriage drama", says Freuler, because the man has relied entirely on the GPS instead of listening to his wife, who always knows everything better, as he did before.
 
The second film in the new series relies more on slapstick. In the "Kappelerbrücke" spot, we see a young man who is supposed to be filming a group of Japanese, but stupidly falls off the bridge in the process. Both spots were stylishly set to music by Jingle Jungle.
Andreas Panzeri

Print In the first nine months of financial year 2006/2007 (April 1, 2006 to December 31, 2006), Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG increased its sales, incoming orders and operating result compared to the same period of the previous year. Group sales rose by around six percent to 2.589 billion euros. "The positive development in the print media industry continued in 2006 due to the positive overall economic environment," explained CEO Bernhard Schreier in a press release. Both the capacity utilization of the printing plants and their production activity showed an upward trend in the two important markets for the company, Germany and the USA.

The head of the interactive remote control Betty TV, Daniel Gauchat, is leaving the interactive television service launched by Swisscom Fixnet at the end of March. After successfully building up the market in Switzerland, Betty TV launched its offering in Germany on February 1. According to a press release, this step means that the Betty TV Group will now be managed more centrally. The centralization entails structural and organizational changes. As a result of this reorganization, Gauchat has decided to leave Betty TV. 

After Sat.1 (Switzerland) and its programs "Joya rennt", "Celebrations" and football broadcasts on Sundays, the second channel in the SevenOne Media portfolio plans to launch an editorial program window in Switzerland. ProSieben (Switzerland) is planning a twelve-minute magazine from Monday to Friday from April. The new Managing Director of Sat.1 and ProSieben (Switzerland), Mike Gut, is responsible for the project. ProSieben wants to cover "the very German-heavy news" at 5.55 p.m. with short magazines that change daily. A cooking show, a dating show and magazines on fashion, trends, lifestyle and going out are planned. The shows will be produced by various freelance producers, "which could also include Ringier TV". The additional program window will be made possible thanks to the new Radio and Television Act (RTVA), which is expected to come into force on 1 April. 
Andreas Panzeri 

Mike Gut is the new Managing Director of ProSieben (Switzerland) and Sat.1 (Switzerland). He not only has three business cards - one for SevenOne Media, one for Sat.1 (Switzerland) and one for ProSieben (Switzerland). He also has various talents. Mike Gut lives in a constantly changing tension between his parallel jobs as a journalist and manager. He is therefore unable to say which of his cards is the best. However, one of the most interesting trump cards in his career is certainly the chance to turn ProSieben's Swiss advertising window into a real channel with an independent and Swiss program. With the new television law in Switzerland, this will no longer require a license application from April. These plans by SevenOne Media (Switzerland) have predestined Mike Gut to succeed Christian Gartmann as manager of the two channels Sat.1 and ProSieben. Someone has to be a journalist and manager at the same time if they want to recognize and play the right aces in the poker game for the audience.
Gut learned his media trade at Radio Z. "From trainee to management", he worked at the station for a total of 13 years from January 1990, the first 10 years as a journalist. Gut was an editor, presented morning shows, was head of duty and finally became head of sports. He then switched from programming to marketing. He thought about the offer for three days. "Do I miss the microphone?" However, he soon discovered that he "enjoyed media management even more". For three years and until shortly before the sale to the Energy Group, Mike Gut was Head of Marketing and a member of the Executive Board.
During his time as head of sports, he was the first person in Switzerland to introduce the resale of journalistic content. At major events such as the Olympics in Nagano and Atlanta, Radio Z financed its reporter's expenses by reselling the reports to twelve different private radio stations.
As Head of Marketing, Gut not only acquired sponsors for new programs. He was also able to become entrepreneurially active in the areas of personnel, finance and technology. After the repositioning as Hitradio Z, he oversaw the construction of a new studio in 2002, "the most modern in Europe at the time". He enjoyed pushing through the political and technical aspects of a 42-meter-high broadcasting tower in the Glattal valley. Mike Gut is described by colleagues as a "doer in the media". "Negotiating with lots of people and getting a result in the end" is what he sees as his greatest satisfaction at work.
Manager and presenter. To enable him to pursue his goals in a well-founded manner, Gut reduced his radio workload to 40 percent at short notice and completed a degree in business administration at a university of applied sciences. He also still teaches media studies at a higher technical college, the International School of Tourism in Zurich, "on the side".
The new CEO of ProSieben and Sat.1 (Switzerland) has "always known" that he wanted to work in the media one day. And in electronic media. As a teenager, "where listening to music plays an important role anyway", he was fascinated by the emergence of Radio 24 at secondary school. A group of his classmates even dreamed of having their own radio station. "We regularly played mind games and fantasized about concepts." The four of them weren't just dreamers. Today, one of them is editor-in-chief of Radio Zürisee, another is a reporter for "Tagesschau" and the third is head of publishing at the Olten Tagblatt.
And Mike Gut actually submitted his own license application to Bakom after leaving Radio Energy - shortly before this rebranding. He worked on the concept for a Zurich youth radio station for around nine months, looked for investors for his "Radio Max" and found them. However, the award of the license is still pending. As is well known, the first contract was awarded to DJ Radio. Giuseppe Scaglione's Radio 105 then lodged an appeal. This week, Scaglione and Mike Gut have now joined forces to submit a revised application. "We are two people who speak the same language when it comes to radio." If a license is granted, Gut would be involved in this radio station as a private individual.
In his TV jobs at SevenOne Media, Gut enjoys being able to come up with new concepts. Finding timeslots for the new window, creating price lists, talking to customers and producers, putting different elements together so that in the end "something is created that everyone likes - but not at the expense of others," says the managing director of two windows.
In terms of content, he wants to "make a strong contribution" - one reason why he was offered this job. As a program window is financed by sponsorship, "the sponsors want to have a say, and the producer is under pressure because he is financially dependent". In this area of tension, manager Gut wants to use his journalistic background to supervise and provide conceptual support for new programs.
For Gut, a job in television is not entirely new. He was already involved in Züri 1 in 1993, a project that briefly flickered across the screen even before Tele Züri. At that time, Züri Woche, IP Multimedia and Eden TV, among others, created a joint collection of programs on the Rediffusion test channel. In addition to a partner election and an animal program, Mike Gut also hosted a talk show in a cab and "Werbewoche-TV".
In his private life, the hyperactive media maker likes to live in the peaceful countryside of Au on Lake Zurich as an alternative world. In his free time, he loves cooking, and after a passion for snowboarding, he has now rediscovered skiing because of his eight-year-old daughter.
Andreas Panzeri

Point-of-sale advertising The majority of consumers only decide which products go into their shopping basket at the PoS. Despite online, viral and guerrilla marketing or other modern forms of marketing, half to a good two thirds of all purchasing decisions are made at the point of sale (PoS), depending on the source. And the trend is rising. Fewer and fewer customers are taking the time to meticulously plan their shopping trip, which is causing the proportion of spontaneous purchases to skyrocket. The more the decision-making process shifts towards the point of sale, the more the store floor becomes the focus of marketing activities. Or to put it another way: the less a shopping list controls shopping behavior, the more the brand presence on site does. The moment of truth takes place at the PoS, which, from the brand owner's point of view, decides whether the "right" product ends up in the shopping cart.Secondary placement as a sales toolThe persuasion work is done via PoS marketing, which goes beyond the perfect assortment mix, an eye-catching packaging design and as many well-placed running meters on the shelf as possible. It creates additional incentives to buy. In the best-case scenario, these appeal to the entire spectrum of consumer needs - from the desire for an experience to curiosity to the search for a particularly favorable offer. In addition to all other display options and sales promotion measures, secondary placements play a decisive role.
A secondary placement creates additional "eye contact" between the buyer and the product in a different environment. It offers a second opportunity to force your way into people's consciousness and make a good impression. Secondary placements are particularly useful when a product launch or relaunch needs to be supported and when there is competition from other providers. They increase product presence and lead to variety and liveliness at the point of sale. PoS activities are therefore in the interests of both retailers and the brand industry.
Increased effectivenessEach special placement is an eye-catcher, cleverly and conspicuously placed in the customer's path. It is important to capture this fleeting moment of attention, for example by combining it with a tasting session. It extends and reinforces the contact time by adding an experience component.
The product is not only advertised boldly, but also physically. It can be experienced without being covered, it can be seen, smelled, felt, tasted ... And it can also be questioned by competent staff. All of this increases the credibility and therefore the sustainability of the PoS presentation. This is an advantage that should not be underestimated in the small Swiss market, where the comparatively small display quantities lead to high unit costs. The importance of secondary points of sale within the communication mix therefore needs to be carefully considered and the benefits optimized. If sales, brand image and customer loyalty can be targeted at the same time, the effort is certainly worthwhile.
The aim is to attract attention at the point of saleWhat goes into the shopping basket,
is very often only decided at the PoS. In addition to the promotional or tasting stands described in the article, ad screens are increasingly vying for customers' attention. The flat screens can be easily updated and therefore allow a particularly fast and direct approach. Shop-in-shop solutions are a special and very eye-catching form of sales. This form of PoS advertising is particularly popular with branded companies to ensure a uniform appearance. The products are usually presented on displays or corresponding sales stands.
Eye-catching displays at the PoS also vie for customers' attention. These advertising and promotional displays placed on the floor are used either as posters and placards for removable frames or as column displays. Contour die-cut displays (die-cut figures) in the form of people, cars, palm trees etc. are particularly eye-catching. This category includes floor displays and ceiling hangers.
In addition, self-adhesive floor graphics also have only one goal: to influence the customer's decision.
Röne Bringold, co-owner of D'SIGN Bringold & Cueni AG, Biel-Benken.

What is quite normal in other Western countries will soon be the same in Switzerland. The Zurich advertising agency Be loved has consistently focused on homosexuals since its foundation. As Oliver Eschler told the Tages Anzeiger newspaper, there is no gay-specific marketing in Switzerland. His agency aims to change that. Because gays are good consumers and often so-called dinks, "double income no kids", who have enough money for pleasure on the side. Until his agency was founded, the market had not been tapped by anyone and even now it still lies dormant. Many companies still don't dare to approach homosexuals directly because they are afraid of losing market share with heterosexuals.

The Basel-based communications agency Dialog Lucky Lack is supporting the Barbie exhibition at the Basel Doll's House with various activities. In collaboration with the toy manufacturer Mattel and the museum, the agency organized a design competition for a Barbie dress. Barbie fans can admire the entries on the agency's website. 

The Zurich agency for digital media and print, Gyselroth, has developed the entire corporate design for the newly founded Intercantonal Office for External School Evaluation (IFES). The brief included the logo, flyer, image concept, business cards, stationery with Word templates, folders, template system for evaluation reports and the website, which is updated using a content management system. All media intended for external communication were developed using the same design standards. IFES carries out external evaluations for vocational schools and grammar schools. Values such as reliability, seriousness, objectivity and independence are central to the work of the specialist unit and must also be communicated via the corporate design, according to a press release.

Zeitschriften Mediabox is massively expanding its print marketing. Advertisers can now advertise individually in over 30 trend and youth magazines. Who is today's youth? And where can you reach them? Marketing to this target group is not easy. Young people flirt with all media and are extremely fickle. Gone are the days when you could rely on a few magazine titles to cover your target group. What counts today is flexibility. Sandro Proietto from the marketing agency Mediabox has recognized this. For five years, his agency marketed a youth pool with the trendy scene magazines Kult, Forecast and 7Sky. The philosophy: instead of letting the youth magazines fight individually for small budgets, Mediabox marketed all three magazines together. There was a magazine in the pool for each interest group. The advertising client was thus able to reach the entire youth with one booking. Following the discontinuation of Forecast, Mediabox removed the youth pool from its offering and has been focusing on diversification since December. The agency now offers its clients the opportunity to book individual ads in around 30 different independent and youth magazines. The aim is to reach the young audience even more precisely than before.
The impetus for the realignment was not primarily the discontinuation of Forecast. Rather, the reason was the diversity of Swiss youth magazines. "We wanted to show the market how diverse the print offering in the youth segment is," says Proietto. The range is indeed broad: In addition to established independent magazines such as 7sky or soDA, advertisers can now also place individual ads specifically in various snowboarding or nightlife magazines.
Mediabox takes countermeasuresUntil recently, this was possible for larger customers, but involved a great deal of effort. The reasons for this were the lack of professionalism and know-how that large advertising clients wanted. Proietto explains: "Many magazines put all their energy into the magazine. The professional advertising business falls by the wayside." Mediabox wants to counteract this with its new offering. The aim is to establish Mediabox as a reliable intermediary and a seal of quality so that interested customers can actually advertise in youth magazines.
Thanks to the new orientation, customers are able to better coordinate editorial content and advertisements in order to address the target audience in the right environment. Proietto sees another decisive advantage for the industry. Although the entire print market has seen a decline in advertising in recent years, the youth sector is a very innovative and open-minded print segment. This is because, unlike the Internet or free newspapers, youth magazines enjoy a high level of advertising acceptance and are particularly suitable for image advertising. Proietto: "We live in an extremely fast-moving advertising world. You have to be careful that the whole image area doesn't get lost. Brand awareness is still being built up among young people."
With its offer, Mediabox opens up easy access to a print segment that is difficult to access. Media agencies are already responding with interest. "Thanks to the diversity, customers will have the courage to invest in young people again," predicts Proietto.
 
 
Niche expertsThe marketing company Mediabox
operates a pool to which over 40 providers with a total of more than 70 individual media are currently connected. The marketing pool includes all below-the-line measures and special forms of advertising offered in Switzerland. In addition to special forms of advertising, Mediabox markets youth magazines and niche titles. Title overview on www.mediabox.ch. As of March 1, 2007, Nico Keramaris will join the Mediabox team as operational manager of the print department. Mediabox has set itself the goal of supporting independent and youth magazines and championing the genre. Managing Director Sandro Proietto himself is one of the founders of the magazine Kult.
Christian Lüscher

Guest commentary The Blick lost its future because too many aesthetes were stirring the pot, says Peter Uebersax As a newspaper man who still honors the tried and tested tabloid rules, today's Blick seems to me to be a journalistic disaster. The old tabloid aunt is no longer a NEWS-paper. It is a hodgepodge of prize competitions, people-allotria and politics that uses left-wing populism to implement a federal culture of envy. The only person who writes in the paper with wit and charm (albeit without any deeper meaning) is senior editor Jürg Ramspeck, soon to be 70. When I left 20 years ago, I left behind a tightly organized newspaper with a paid circulation of just under 400,000. What is left of that? Around 250,000 in circulation and a newspaper that rubs Blocher the wrong way with increasingly monotonous grumblings. Or organizes beauty contests for readers' dogs. Once upon a time, Blick grabbed hold where there was something to harvest - with peppery campaigns against our then disastrous DRS television. With doubts about the then equivalent of today's climate hype, forest dieback. Or with frenetic cheerleading for the best skiers in the world, Pirmin Zurbriggen & Co. Back then, Blick consisted of 70 percent hard, crisp news, 15 percent polemics and provocation and 15 percent sex. Blick made Marta Emmenegger a national figure. Her tips brought joy to traffic-calmed Swiss marital and other beds.
But various aesthetes stuck their fingers into the inheritance that I left behind at Ringier. Frank A. Meyer announced an editorial program for the "emancipation" of Blick. He described his ideal Blick reader as a truck driver who dips his croissant in his latte at the highway service station "and thinks about Europe", who looks for announcements of upcoming art exhibitions in the Blick culture section and generally yearns for a better world. As a "people's newspaper" (the word "tabloid" was out!), the ethically revamped Blick was intended to attract new readers.
Think again. Because this is exactly where his gaze began to plummet. It accelerated as its heart beat ever more to the left. What nobody at Ringier seemed to consider was that Blick is published in the most bourgeois country in Europe. The Swiss accept a cheeky, rude tabloid - a left-wing one annoys them.
When the readership figures and advertising volume of Blick go downhill, Ringier blames the free papers and the Internet. Blaming your own product is apparently not cool. And no one would admit that Ringier had a perfect defense weapon in its hand the moment free papers appeared - to turn Blick into a free paper as well.
The selection of the rapidly changing editors-in-chief was also a matter of sleep. The best man for the job once worked at Ringier, but had to emigrate to Switzerland. Peter Rothenbühler, successful editor-in-chief of Le Matin, would have managed to give Blick a future again.
Peter Uebersax, 81, was editor-in-chief of Blick from 1980-86. He lives in Herrliberg and southern Spain

Fashion Patrick Ponetz has a store on Zurich's Widdergasse that is stocked exclusively with exquisite goods. This includes Kohzo Denim. Exclusive jeans made from 100 percent natural materials, including fibers from the mulberry tree, which is called "Kohzo" in Japanese. It is thanks to the use of these pure and special materials that the jeans are extremely hard-wearing. This inspired Euro RSCG Zurich to launch a "Karate Jeans" campaign. The motifs strikingly emphasize the stability of Japanese jeans.