Those were the days when budding guerrillas traveled their oppressed country on motorcycles; today they adorn designer shirts with a bit of rhinestone. Guerrilla marketing has developed in a similar way. In 1994, Jay Conrad Levinson and Seth Godin revolutionized the way products and services were advertised. Eleven years later, their ideas and strategies elicit a tired smile at best, perhaps a "do you remember?". Nevertheless, it is worth taking a look at this book (again). Not because of the advice, insights, concepts and checklists, no, because of the approach. The great strength of guerrilla marketing (and all the theories that derive from it) is to look at the problem from an unusual angle. This leads to unusual solutions when real guerrillas get to work - and not cardboard cut-outs who have been ordered by their agency boss to oversee guerrilla marketing. But if it goes beyond the conceptual approach, the book is outdated. There are now other ways to advertise efficiently and effectively, such as business campaigning. > The Guerrilla Marketing Handbook by Jay Conrad Levinson and Seth Godin. Campus Verlag, Frankfurt a. M. 1996, 180 pages, 89 francs.
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Magazines The first issue of XtraBusiness will be published on June 10 - a relaunch of the magazine XtraTravel, which was launched a year ago by the Zurich publishing house Tourism Trend Media.XtraBusiness aims to position itself as a trade magazine in the MICE sector (meetings, incentives, congresses, events) and is aimed at decision-makers and service providers in this industry with a circulation of just under 10,000 copies. Editorial director Michael Hutschneker secured an interview with Adolf Ogi for the effective launch.

AdScreen Naville, TSR and Publisuisse are putting together an offer on flat screens at kiosks What was already apparent in March is now definite: the portfolio of TV marketer Publisuisse will be enriched by another medium, and from fall 2005 it will also be acquiring advertising on AdScreens. It will make its debut in September with screens at kiosks of the French-speaking Swiss press wholesaler Naville. The company is currently in the process of equipping 100 of 185 sales outlets in French-speaking Switzerland with a 17-inch flat screen for half a million francs. The 100 kiosks have a total frequency of 1,300,000 customers per day, and the 100 screens are part of a large-scale presentation by French-speaking Swiss television broadcaster TSR: where the screen hangs in the kiosk, Naville offers TSR DVDs for sale and calls this area "Espace TSR". "This brings us closer to our audience," explains TSR spokesperson Manon Romerio.
The screens show more than just advertising: TSR provides a daily content loop of around six minutes, consisting of short news items, sports and weather information as well as program information - with original sound. The loop also contains trailers for the DVDs available at the kiosks - and finally also third-party advertising spots, which, as mentioned, are acquired by Publisuisse. In this respect, a relatively small proportion of the screens are also available to third-party customers. "All of the revenue goes to Naville - for its investments," explains Romerio.
However, Publisuisse Director Martin Schneider does not yet want to give any details on the rates, any combined offers and the time share for third-party advertising. What is certain, however, is that Publisuisse is open in terms of advertising formats: "Customers can choose specific approaches: From animated banners and sponsorship to the usual TV spot, many things are possible," says Schneider.
And what is Publisuisse's position on the new industry association IG AdScreen, which is to be founded this week? "When the time comes, membership could certainly be of interest to us," says Schneider.
Cinecom and IP Multimedia (IPM), both of which have been acquiring advertising for AdScreen networks for around two years, have reacted positively to the new competitor. "It's good for the market," says Roger Bauer, for example, who is responsible for screens at Cinecom. And his colleague Fredy Grau from IPM believes that Publisuisse's entry into the young medium proves "that IPM has set the right example with its AdScreen strategy". IPM already markets an AdScreen network of independent kiosks in German- and French-speaking Switzerland. It is currently being expanded to 200 locations.
Newsstand appearance: Soon also for TSR.
The impetus came from NavilleBecause the book celebrating TSR's 50th anniversary sold very well at Naville sales outlets last year, the press wholesaler wanted to sell other items from the TSR boutique - such as books, videos and DVDs - on its own initiative. TSR agreed, but also demanded promotional efforts from Naville. This led to the idea of screens above the "Espace TSR". "We are now starting to sell DVDs, but it is possible that we will add other items to our range," says TSR spokesperson Manon Romerio. Incidentally, it remains to be seen how the Swiss-German retailer Valora will react to the Naville screens with its k kiosks. At the beginning of the year, it also expressed a certain interest, but shied away from the investment. (mk)
Markus Knöpfli

Public transport Ruf Lanz has staged the busy timetable for the Zurich transport company (VBZ) in an entertaining way. 196 million passengers were transported by VBZ streetcars alone in 2004. Together with the other public transport vehicles, they covered over 33 million kilometers on their routes. Zurich is not only envied for this dense transport network, but also for having the densest timetable in Europe, according to the VBZ. Streetcars and buses run every seven minutes, and at even shorter intervals during rush hour. This customer benefit is an important appeal factor for VBZ. That's why they update it periodically with new campaigns. In the last cinema spot, the in-house agency Ruf Lanz dramatized this with a Japanese tourist who was unable to take a photo of his wife in Zurich because a bus or streetcar was constantly passing in front of the lens.
In the new VBZ commercial, a local puts the dense timetable in a funny and completely natural light: the commercial shows a young Zurich man at a tram stop. But what does he use the streetcar for? To quickly tie his open sneakers on the folded-out footboard! He casually ties one shoe on the first streetcar and the second on the next. He then strolls towards Escher-Wyss-Platz, followed by the laconic fade-in: "And when do you use the busiest timetable in Europe?
Director Benjamin Kempf and producer Nadia Rosasco were behind the camera for the recommended switch to VBZ.
"I'm also a shoe-tying aid": TV commercial by Ruf Lanz.
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Media The 19 top media companies in Switzerland generated a combined turnover of over CHF 8096 million last year. PubliGroupe came top with CHF 1981 million, followed by SRG with CHF 1534 million, Ringier with CHF 1113 million, Edipresse with CHF 861 million, Tamedia with CHF 566 million, NZZ Group with CHF 481 million, Affichage with CHF 300 million, Basler Mediengruppe with CHF 292 million and Espace Media Groupe with CHF 260 million. These turnovers with background information and other figures can be found in the June issue of Media Trend Journal. Cover story: "2004 business results: money is being made again."

Alexander Roosdorp is to pick up on a trend and set up an independent advertising department at Farner alongside the PR agency. Farner Consulting in Zurich used to have a CD and also used to offer advertising for smaller budgets. They are already more specialized in the event sector. However, a proper advertising department with its own expertise is new. Now the disciplines of PR and advertising are to be accentuated accordingly and Farner Advertising is to be offered as an independent product under the management of Alexander Roosdorp. The core team with creation and consulting comprises four people. If the existing advertising-related capacities and the shared use of Farner PR's infrastructure are added, the new agency will be able to operate with eight people. With the inclusion of the event people, Farner Werbung is therefore one of the medium-sized agencies right from the start. A fact on which his colleagues "congratulated him with surprise", as Christian König, CEO of Farner Consulting as a whole, mentions with a grin.
In 1950, Rudolf Farner founded the Dr. Rudolf Farner advertising agency and, in the same financial year, Pressebüro Farner, the first PR agency in Europe. In 1972, the advertising agency was sold to Intermarco (later Publicis) and the PR agency became an independent company. Since 1999, Farner has been fully owned by the active management, who began to gently diversify the product range.
The decision to "forward to the roots" had therefore been made some time ago. However, König wanted to "wait for the right moment and the right integration figure for the management".
Alexander Roosdorp has acquired his merits in advertising, branding and product PR on the client side as well as in agencies. "However, we are not trying to offer complete mandates in the sense of: Our PR clients would be best served if they also did their advertising with us," says the new member of the management team.
It is also not primarily about integrated communication, but the various disciplines should be "close together". Interdisciplinary work and the establishment of separate advertising agencies is also a trend in the PR sector. "We will see the advertising agency becoming bigger than our PR ...", jokes Christian König.
Farner Werbung is open to all clients. "Our expertise is not aimed at specific sectors, but at the style of communication," defines Roosdorp, whose background is characterized by brand management.
Brand consulting was already the focus when Alexander Roosdorp worked at Wirz Identity from 1999 to 2002 as a senior consultant for brand strategy and CI/CD. Part of his philosophy is to "create efficient, long-lasting communication". Roosdorp is convinced: "This is achieved through a strategy that attempts to make the long-term brand values visible in the advertising again and again and, if necessary, to reinterpret them. Brand design and advertising creation must therefore be able to work closely together and challenge each other."
Roosdorp was already concerned with this question during his studies. His dissertation for his doctorate in economics at the University of St. Gallen focused on "Positioning management: phenomenon, challenges and concept". He did not want to develop new theories with his research, but rather to systematically work out the path from strategy to communication tool. How do strategies influence implementation and vice versa, and what do I achieve in the minds of the target audience? Roosdorp thus sees his work as an "interface between strategy and what is ultimately seen".
Communicating new products in an understandable way: That was also the challenge at T-Online International in Germany. From 2002 until he joined Farner, Roosdorp gained "extremely exciting experience" as Senior Manager Marketing Communications, Classic Advertising, Product PR and Brand Management at the German Internet leader in Darmstadt.
In a large market that is developing rapidly, is very dynamic and is characterized by many new developments, he was able to "learn something new every day" and, by establishing
As market leader, T-Online has a proven track record. The challenge was to "always feel and absorb the new, from market research to implementation in advertising, combined with ever new competition law restrictions when communicating in Germany".
The wind blows harder in Germany than in Switzerland. The balance of power between client and agency is different because the budgets are much larger. "That creates tension in the expectations."
Furthermore, Roosdorp does not want to get involved in "clichéd comparisons" of working styles. But he does say: "The quality of life in Zurich is better. Many colleagues in Germany envy me." And he reveals that he is particularly pleased to find a lake in Zurich again. The new Head of Farner Advertising's best outlet is sailing. In this sense, he has come back to Switzerland "pretty dried out".
Alexander Roosdorp wants to "make brand values visible again and again".

Andreas Panzeri

In spring 2004, the three large radio pools Swiss Radio Pool, One Pool and Pool 2000 founded www.radiopower.ch together with the marketers Radiotele, IP Multimedia, The Cover Media and Spot Promotion. The interest group organized the "Spot Award" for the first time this year. Thanks to a cooperation with Cinecom, the winners will automatically take part in the Cannes Lions in future. This will significantly raise the profile and status of the competition. The prizes were awarded for the first time on June 8 at the Lake Side Zürichhorn. Out of 300 spots, Bluewin "ADSL Wurfarm" by Jung von Matt/Limmat won ahead of Zürcher Brockenhaus "Jubiläum", Wirz Werbung and Die Mobiliar "Foul an französischem Auto", Publicis. It is striking that six of the top ten spots were produced by Jingle Jungle, ahead of Tonstudio tonton with two spots and Tonstudio Selmi and Z with one each. Among the agencies, Jung von Matt/Limmat shone with three spots, ahead of Spillmann Felser Leo Burnett with two awards.
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Magazines Jean-Frey CEO Filippo Leutenegger has announced his interim solution for the Weltwoche editorial team: the current editorial team will take the helm together. This includes Andreas Dietrich, proposed by the editorial team as interim head, as well as the unofficial crown favorite and deputy editor-in-chief, Markus Somm. The third member of the team is Walter de Gregorio, until recently correspondent in Rome. (See editorial on p. 5)

TV SRG marketer Publisuisse, Migros and the commissioned advertising agency Pucci Sulzer are confidently announcing a world premiere: on June 13, they are launching the first live TV spot campaign on the three SRG stations DRS, TSR and TSI. Every evening for two weeks, the competitions, which focus on Migros' commitment labels, will be broadcast from a different branch. Shopping vouchers can be won on site or by telephone from home. In addition to the competition, there will also be tastings and presentations. Migros spokeswoman Monika Weibel compared the multidimensional and national event to a roadshow.

Sponsoring The Swiss watch brand Tag Heuer has entered into a partnership with the first sailing team from the People's Republic of China to take part in the America's Cup sailing regatta.Tag Heuer is equipping the team with precision measuring instruments, wristwatches and sunglasses from its subsidiary brand Sport Vision. The partnership runs until the end of 2007 with an option to extend.

Parahotel industry "Holidays and savings in one" is a hot combination, according to the Swiss Youth Hostels. But all the more so against its high-price image. The low-cost offerings of the non-profit organization Swiss Youth Hostels (SJH) could actually have benefited from this. But these in turn are fighting against the image of dormitories, Birkenstocks and woollen blankets. Since the peak year of 2002 with over 875,000 overnight stays - also thanks to the National Exhibition - bed occupancy has stagnated. In 2004, the SJH recorded just under 839,000 overnight stays. Nevertheless, they have been doing relatively well in the tourism statistics for several years and have made people forget that the organization was almost on the brink of collapse before Fredy Gmür took over as CEO.
The SJH brand has also responded to the change in values in society by significantly reducing operations such as beds and, in return, increasing quality, the proportion of double rooms and its offers. Although the improvements were noticed by regular customers, they hardly reached the potential target groups. The dusty image of the Swiss classic with its early closing times, rather hostile management and groups of teenagers is still present among them.
The statistics themselves, which describe a completely new reality, show just how far off the mark they are: More than 43 percent of those staying are over the age of 35, and 60 percent of guests are individuals and families. The density of hostels and the prices for accommodation and meals are still attractive.
To achieve the targets - an annual increase in overnight stays of one to two percent and better positioning - the Zurich-based advertising agency has reverted to the well-known sales argument of price. "Most people know that we are good value for money. However, the image transfer of improved quality was not sustainable enough in the previous campaigns. That's why this time we are communicating it together with an indirect price comparison," says Tobias Thut, Head of Services at SJH.
Ambiguous claim
The new campaign not only brings the youth hostels back into the public eye, but also points out the benefits with cheeky humor: Those who book with the SJH get more out of their stay, i.e. more money for food, going out, sport or wellness - in other words, more pleasure. What is dramatized in the three motifs is summed up in the ambiguous claim: "Swiss Youth Hostels. For more than just one night."
The unusually self-confident tone adopted by the SJH in advertisements, posters, banners and cards for free - the last campaign was in black and white and focused on the community experience - is doing away with the well-behaved image of young people. The image change is also brought directly to the target group with BtL measures. At this year's Gurtenfestival, the world's largest youth hostel will be opening its doors - at least for four days, says Sarah Hiltebrand, creative director at Werbeanstalt. She is referring to the SJH's appearance as sponsor of the Sleeping Zone there, which will offer 12,000 people a tent over their heads during the festival. "And with hot water to boot," adds consultant Reto Dürrenberger. This is anything but usual for such events. Except at the Swiss Youth Hostels.
What to do when hotels are too expensive? The Zurich agency Werbeanstalt knows what to do.
Luca Aloisi

Free press On Monday, June 13, the commuter newspaper 20 Minuten launches its St. Gallen edition with an initial circulation of 40,000 copies, 5,000 fewer than announced in April. "As in Lucerne, we are starting cautiously," says Managing Director Rolf Bollmann, explaining the reduction. Over the first few days, the distribution network will be optimized and new distribution points added: "Then we'll immediately be at 45,000 or 50,000 copies."