Study Marketers acquire the most important skills through practice. Today, marketing and sales specialists must above all be able to communicate and respond to customer needs. This is shown by a study conducted by the Private University of Applied Sciences in Business Administration (PHW) in Zurich, which focuses on current and future qualification requirements in marketing. In cooperation with Swiss Marketing (SMC), the PHW surveyed marketing and sales professionals from 511 Swiss companies. The survey also looked at careers and salaries, and if a distinction is made between technical, methodological and social skills, then social skills are the most important. These are largely acquired in practice. If you want to succeed in marketing or sales in the future, you need to have an increased knowledge of foreign languages and flexibility in the face of new challenges. Other key qualifications are a wealth of ideas and creativity, a willingness and ability to learn. Those surveyed consider the creation of marketing strategies to be the most important professional skill.
At all hierarchical levelsAlmost half of those surveyed work primarily in marketing or sales within the company. Over 30 percent work primarily in management and are involved in marketing and sales activities at the same time. This can be observed in small and medium-sized companies in particular. There, it is mainly generalists who are involved in marketing. In larger companies, on the other hand, specialists are more likely to be found. The larger the company, the greater the proportion of specialists who deal exclusively with marketing and sales. 93 percent of those surveyed are fully employed. Marketing and sales specialists can be found at all levels of the hierarchy, and 61% of Swiss companies have a marketing representative on the management board.
Overall, 70 percent of all respondents have a degree in marketing or sales.
Those 30 percent without a degree enter marketing two years later. This means that the lack of specialist training can be substituted by more experience. These people are more likely to be found in SMEs and earn around CHF 20,000 less per year than their colleagues with specialist training.
Training as a marketing planner is most in demand. One in five of the marketing and sales staff surveyed hold this qualification. More than half of them have another specific specialist qualification, in particular marketing or sales manager.
Career effectThe marketing planner is the basic training in the marketing sector par excellence. Despite its high prevalence, it is worthwhile acquiring it: 41 percent of trained marketing planners hold a managerial position. Among specialists without this training, the figure is only 26 percent. This "career effect" is reinforced for marketing managers: 77% of people with this qualification hold a managerial position within marketing. The picture is the same for sales managers, where 57 percent of those with a degree hold a managerial position, but only 26 percent of those without a degree. However, specific training is not required for every position in marketing or sales. 58 percent of those surveyed stated that none of the above-mentioned qualifications were required when they started their job.
In fact, marketing training is usually only completed after people are already working in marketing. On average, people without a university degree enter the world of work at the age of 21 and marketing at the age of 25. They complete an all-round marketing education at the age of 33. On average, university graduates enter the workforce at the age of 26 and work in marketing at the age of 29, i.e. before completing their studies at the age of 30. It can also be seen that the age at which people start working in marketing has fallen continuously over the years. The over-60s entered marketing at the age of 28 and the 30-year-olds at the age of 23. Around a third of marketing and sales specialists completed a commercial apprenticeship and 21% have a technical background. While the former enter marketing at the age of 24, the latter do not take this step until the age of 28. The later entry does not stand in the way of these people's careers. In general, it can be said that people who entered marketing late are overrepresented in senior management or in the executive board.
Big companies pay moreThe average gross annual salary of marketing specialists is around CHF 15,000. 36 percent of those surveyed earn more than CHF 140000. University graduates are best paid on average at 190000 francs, followed by diploma graduates at 177000 francs and graduates of universities of applied sciences at 157000 francs.
Salaries also increase with the size of the company: small companies (five to nine employees) pay an average of 105,000 francs, while companies with more than 250 employees pay 168,000 francs.
Portrait of a profession

The study "Marketing and Sales: Qualifications - Careers - Salaries" paints a well-rounded picture of this professional field for the first time. It was compiled by the Private University of Applied Sciences in Business Administration (Zurich) in collaboration with Swiss Marketing and supported by the Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology.
The authors are Cedric El-Idrissi and Jürg H. Arpagaus.
The complete results are summarized in a 32-page report. It is available for CHF 25 from Media-Daten AG (the publisher of Werbewoche). Order address: Springer Switzerland, Sabine Iseli, Bahnhofstrasse 24, 8803 Rüschlikon. E-mail: [email protected]
Ensures transparency in the labor market for marketing professions: The Private University of Applied Sciences in Business, Zurich.
Indispensable for employers and employees in marketing: the first representative survey of a profession.
> Cedric El-Idrissi is a sociologist and research associate at the Private University of Applied Sciences (PHW).

Fundraising A TV advertisement by Swissaid and Lesch + Frei aims to dispel lies about genetic engineering Help that helps - this is the motto under which Swissaid supports the poorest of the poor - the people of the Third World. The foundation, which is independent of political parties and religious denominations, therefore works exclusively in self-help projects that are the result of the local population's own initiative. It supports projects that promote sustainable rural development - from organic farming, drinking water supply and irrigation to projects in schools and the health sector. In its work, the Swiss development organization relies on local experts, with whose help it monitors the use of the funds. Fighting falsehoods with irony
For several years now, the Zurich agency Lesch + Frei has been designing fundraising campaigns for Swissaid that dramatize a current topic. This year's campaign - consisting of a TV commercial - is intended to dispel the false promises of the genetic engineering industry. Under the slogan "Genetic engineering does not satisfy hunger", the aim was to convey the dangers and consequences of genetic engineering in agriculture in an informative but ironic way. The team led by CD Thomas Lüber opted for a collage-like short film. "The surreal design is intended to expose the misinformation provided by the genetic engineering industry," says Lüber.
In addition to raising awareness, the campaign also has a fundraising function. After the federal contribution of around six million Swiss francs (as of 2003), private donations make up the lion's share of the funding at over 30 percent.
The Swissaid TV commercial is intended to show the misinformation of the genetic engineering industry.
Simone Keller

Press The weekly newspaper (WOZ) has dissolved its editorial board. It will be replaced by a two-person editorial board. The position will be shared equally between domestic editor Susan Boos and life editor Esther Banz, who were elected by the WOZ collective for a period of one year. The expansion of the editorial team during the relaunch in fall 2003 made more binding structures necessary, explains Co-Managing Editor Verena Mühlberger: "As we have done several times in the history of WOZ, we have adapted our model of self-administration to the new requirements."
The tasks of the editorial management: It coordinates journalistic priorities and guarantees medium and long-term planning as well as adherence to the editorial budget. It also makes decisions on new appointments. The WOZ emphasizes that the editorial team will continue to decide on the content of the newspaper and the cooperative members will decide on the budget.
(sm)

Awards The launch film for IWC's new diving watch collection has been awarded a gold medal at the New York Festivals film and video competition. The film was conceived and realized by the Zurich agencies Futurecom and Frame Eleven. The film will be used at the POS and on the Schaffhausen watch manufacturer's website.

Shoes The Ruf ASW advertising agency in Eglisau is now looking after the five shoe labels "andrea by fricker", "Pasito", "Fricker", "Get-In" and "Schuhbazar", all of which belong to the Swiss subsidiary of the German Salamander Group. A separate campaign is being realized for each brand. The first results will be published in spring.

Television The SRG's first channels lost market share slightly in 2004 - to the benefit of the second channels, but also partly to foreign channels.The time spent by the Swiss population in front of the television increased significantly in 2004 - although the number of available channels stagnated. People in Ticino continue to spend the most time in front of the television, with 178.1 minutes a day, almost three hours. The French-speaking Swiss watch 173.1 minutes of television, and the German-speaking Swiss still watch 147.6 minutes. However, the German-speaking Swiss population increased their TV consumption the most last year, spending more than 6 minutes longer watching TV than in 2003, while the Ticino population only watched 3.5 minutes longer and the French-speaking Swiss 5 minutes longer. This means that TV consumption has grown continuously since 1997 - by almost exactly 20 minutes in German-speaking Switzerland, 22 minutes more in Ticino and 30 minutes more in French-speaking Switzerland, although the SRG's first channels were unable to benefit from last year's increase. Across the board, they have lost acceptance among both the entire TV community and the main target group of 15 to 49-year-olds. This would probably have been even lower without the European Football Championships and the Olympics. With a decline in market share of just 0.3 percent, TSI 1 lost the least, but among 15 to 49-year-olds the loss amounted to a full 2.3 percent. The decline was the opposite for SF 1: In the 3+ target group, this channel lost 1.2% and only
0.4 percent in the 15/49 segment, while TSR1 fell by 0.8 and 0.7 percent respectively.
Losses also for RTL and Pro 7A further common factor in all parts of the country is that the respective second SRG channel was able to partially or fully compensate for the losses of the first. TSI 2 increased by 1.4% and 1.8%, the market share of SF 2 grew by 0.9% and 1.0% and that of TSR 2 by 0.5% in each case.
In German-speaking Switzerland, SF's strongest competitors RTL and Pro 7 have also lost market share in both target groups, resulting in a fierce battle for second place between SF 2 and RTL. SF 2 is slightly ahead in the 3+ target group, while RTL is still slightly ahead in the 15/49 target group with 9.7 percent. In fifth place is Schawinski's Sat 1, which gained half a percentage point in both target groups in Switzerland. There were no other major movements, with the Swiss private stations also remaining at 3% (previous year: 2.9%).
In both French-speaking Switzerland and Ticino, where the market is less segmented, foreign broadcasters continue to clearly outperform SRG second channels in both target groups. In French-speaking Switzerland, TF 1 is in second place, although it has lost market share slightly, but still has a market share of 16.5% on 3+, three times more than TSR 2. M6, F2 and F3 follow, with TSR 2 in sixth place.
In Ticino, the number 2 channel is Canale 5, which gained 1.9 percent among 15 to 49-year-olds and now has a market share of 15.7 percent, more than double that of TSI 2. RAI 1 and Italia 1 are also ahead of TSI 2. Private TV brings up the rear in both parts of the country, although it still has a market share of 1.2 percent at 3+ in Ticino, compared to 0.3 percent in French-speaking Switzerland.
Private TV: Difficult to measure market sharesOne reason for the low market share of Swiss private TV is its program structure with mostly hourly repeats: While the ratings can be cumulated per program run, this is not possible for market shares.
In French-speaking Switzerland, a value can be measured for all private broadcasters, but the Telecontrol case numbers are too low for most individual broadcasters due to small-scale broadcasting areas. For example, TVRL achieves 0.1% for the 3+ target group and Léman Bleu 0.0%, while the figures for the rest are statistically meaningless due to insufficient case numbers. For this reason, many broadcasters in French-speaking Switzerland have their market data collected by means of surveys.
Although Telecontrol is able to survey most of the individual stations in German-speaking Switzerland, their market shares are naturally also small: TeleZüri reaches 1.7%, TeleBärn 0.4%, TeleBasel 0.2%, M1/TeleTell 0.5% and TeleTop and TeleOstschweiz 0.1% each. TeleTicino in Ticino achieved 0.2 percent. (mk)
Struggle for audience favor: TV consumption increased in 2004, from which not all channels were able to benefit.
Markus Knöpfli

Entertainment Hermann Schmidt Verlag's game "Brainstorm" is a satire on the industry. The Zurich agency KSSJ put it to the test.Tuesday before Christmas at KSSJ: a few of us want to meet in the large meeting room at eleven o'clock to play "Brainstorm". "The new game for anyone thinking of going into advertising. Or have always wanted to know how creative their roommates, friends or family are...", says the publisher's own description of the board game, although the consultant is still on the phone flirting with a supplier, the advisor is having an intense discussion with a customer about where to go for dinner, the CD is following up his third double espresso with a fourth and fifth, the intern is dealing with private emails and the copywriter is worried that she has to write this text, which is why she barricades herself in the toilet. Thanks to the conscientious AD who sets up the board, we finally get started at 11.30 am. Surprisingly quickly, the atmosphere is surprisingly good.
First, two teams have to be formed. Each consisting of CD, AD, copywriter, consultant and intern. Then they have to find an agency name. The yellow team tactically spares its creative energy and falls back on the tried and tested: the initials of the surnames. It enters the race with the powerful name BEK. And ten minutes later, the blue team is also ready: it will operate under the highly creative name BrainVertising (sic!).
Take a smoke breakSince a watch is required for some game processes, the three male players demonstratively place their Maurice Lacroix masterpieces on the table. Now the four-point briefing is put together from seven options. One team determines the customer and the product, the other team the target group and the claim. The result is a practical combination of Langnese, BH, 3 to 6-year-olds and "When so many good things happen to you". The players now experience everyday agency life by taking it in turns to draw the agency cards. BEK begins, CD draws the first card: Cigarette break! Never hurts, CD and the trainee decide and disappear for a moment.
ADs like to work overtime. After all, they can listen to music, do private jobs, eat at the agency's expense and take a cab home. For so much quality of life, the AD gets ahead by the age of the player. Card by card, BEK and BrainVertising fight their way through everyday advertising. In the process, they confirm all the clichés: coke-sniffing ADs, interns who sleep in, contacts who spend the whole day on the phone, copywriters for whom grammar is a foreign word, and CDs that are primarily interested in awards - and secondarily, too. At around 12.45 p.m., with the score tied, BEK and BrainVertising meet in Cannes - the big showdown. The task is to create a TV commercial in three minutes in which, in addition to the product (BH), the claim ("When so many good things happen to you") and the target group (3 to 6-year-olds), a palm tree, a Porsche and a bratwurst also appear.
Why am I in advertising? In no time at all, you're developing soft porn across agencies and completely ignoring the target group. And because you're so well on top of things, all the rules of the game are thrown overboard and the agencies are merged into BEKBrain. Without any annoying competition, you now not only have all the awards to yourself, but also all the customers. And you can go out to eat in peace.
Conclusion: A recommendable game for all those who want to know why they are in advertising, should be in advertising, are not in advertising or should not be in advertising.
How do you sell a bra to 3 to 6-year-olds? KSSJ in the play test.

Corinne Englert, copywriter, KSSJ

Corporate Relationship The Winterthur-based company Ambit has entrusted Fish-Wishion with its advertising activities for the current year.Corporate Relationship The Winterthur-based company Ambit has entrusted Fish-Wishion with its advertising activities for the current year. Ambit specializes in the introduction of corporate relationship management in medium-sized companies. According to the Zurich-based advertising agency Fish-Wishion, 2005 is an important year of expansion for the new client. Together with Ambit, FishWishion is developing a gentle relaunch of the look and feel, creating new content, producing an image folder with factsheets and implementing a practical portion concept.

Oliver Classen on Martin Kall's liberation strikes and their consequences.
It can happen that quickly. At the beginning of December, Martino Bammater told this newspaper (WW 43/04) that he saw "no reason whatsoever" to deviate from the original takeover schedule. Less than two months later, the new Chairman of the Board of Directors of 20 Minuten (Schweiz) AG is Martin Kall - and Bammater, his predecessor by Schibsted's grace, can now devote himself entirely to his financial consulting business again.Kall is to be congratulated on this coup, as the weakening Tages-Anzeiger aunt can now finally rely fully on her niece, who is bursting with vitality. However, this coexistence of the generations (soon to be in the same room) is a source of controversy. The
Since taking over the first tranche of 20 Minuten almost two years ago, the real challenge for the Tamedia CEO has been to gain operational and strategic control of the commuter paper, which has gone from underdog to big seller.
Tamedia is also curious. For example, whose signature will the expansion of 20 Minuten to St. Gallen planned for the spring bear: that of the Group management or that of Rolf Bollmann, who is as reluctant as he is successful as managing director of 20 Minuten? The only certainty at present is that Bollmann's know-how is a key asset for the regionalization of the Tages-Anzeiger.
The acquisition of Winterthurer Landbote is also a liberating move with some potential for internal division. While the printing division will benefit immediately and sustainably, the deal only means additional costs for the newspaper business - at least for the time being (see page 17). This ambivalence is reflected in the share price, which fell slightly after the announcement of the double blow. In other words: not only the employees, but also the stock market players are now waiting for concrete integration measures and further signals of expansion from Tamedia's carpet floor.
> Oliver Classen, Editor

Advertising bans To combat obesity in children and young people, the EU is taking aim at advertising, giving the food industry one year to introduce self-regulatory measures, said EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou, according to a report in the Guardian. If there are no satisfactory results after this time, the EU will take legal action to ensure that children are no longer sold unhealthy products through advertising. Part of the problem is that obesity has traditionally been seen as an American problem in Europe: "We've kind of made fun of the Americans. Now it's a European problem." Talks between the administration and the food industry are also underway in Switzerland, reported the news agency SDA. However, the Federal Office of Public Health is not currently talking about advertising bans.

Outdoor advertising The traffic circles in the canton of Lucerne will remain free of advertising. Parliament has refused to support a postulate from SVP circles.the idea: companies design traffic circles and pay for their maintenance. According to the cantonal government, however, federal regulations do not permit the use of traffic circle interiors for advertising.

Media agencies m&m Holding took over the Schreiner & Van Bokkel Group in Holland at the beginning of the year (WW 1/05). Werbewoche spoke
with Wolfgang Mecklenburg, Pierre Schreiner and Frans Van Bokkel.
WW: Mr. Schreiner, Mr. Van Bokkel, why did you sell your company to Switzerland of all places - and why to Mr. Mecklenburg? Pierre Schreiner: Our company has existed for 14 years, and we were courted right from the start. But we didn't want to join a large international network ...
Why not?
Schreiner: We are a family business, we are also a family business. That's why we always said: if we sell, it will be to a small group that is similar to ours. There was no need for a quick sale, our group is doing well.
Wolfgang Mecklenburg: That's important: both in Holland and here, every unit is on a sound footing. They didn't have to sell.
Schreiner: Even our name remains the same, we attach great importance to that. We are both well-known in the Dutch industry from our previous activities, which also helped us to find clients for our agency.
Frans Van Bokkel: It was also attractive that m&m, like us, is independent of advertising agencies and clients. There are not many such agencies in Europe. However, we didn't look around too much. We came into contact with Mr. Mecklenburg - and the atmosphere was right.
In Switzerland, Mr. Mecklenburg is known as a tough negotiator.
Media buyer ...
Van Bokkel: We appreciate that.
But did you also suspect that the negotiations with him could take over a year? No, but that doesn't matter. Serious decisions have to be carefully considered. If you want to expand in Europe like m&m, you have to clarify a lot of things with potential takeover candidates. And you have to sleep on it. It was no different for us.
Schreiner: Then there's the distance between Holland and Switzerland and the different languages, all of which takes time. What's more, the two of us are not easy negotiating partners.
Van Bokkel: That's why I like the fact that Mr. Mecklenburg is also a tough negotiator. But we also laughed a lot.
Mecklenburg: I can say that I feel comfortable with them and am always happy to see them. But that had to grow first.
So you have the same philosophy? Van Bokkel: Yes, but not only in the commercial sector. As at m&m, the decision-making channels at Schreiner & Van Bokkel are short and the individual employees are not numbers.
Mr. Mecklenburg, you had hoped for an earlier end to the negotiations. Did you miscalculate?
Mecklenburg: In part, yes. Swiss, Dutch and EU law had to be taken into account in the contracts, which made everything very complicated. Then there are the tax aspects. Thirdly, the trade unions in Holland have a completely different position to ours. If you don't take a close look at all these things, a mistake can cost a lot of money. Then there are the contracts with the old owners: We didn't want to simply pay off Mr. Schreiner and Mr. Van Bokkel, we wanted to involve them. After all, we are essentially taking over their contacts. What good is the takeover if the customers don't go with us? Or the employees, with whom the two have very close personal relationships. If you don't approach all of this carefully, there is a risk that very good employees or customers will leave.
Will the transition with customers and crew be seamless? Van Bokkel: We have only received positive feedback from customers so far. They are very satisfied with the new solution.
Mecklenburg: The Dutch employees also told me they were relieved. That's why I don't like to talk about a purchase. It's more like the three of us together at the end of our professional lives have provided something that another generation can now take over.
You mention the succession, which you have basically already arranged.
Mecklenburg: That is another stroke of luck in this story: Mr. Schreiner and Mr. Van Bokkel have no family members who are interested in continuing the company. But the group has excellent management. I, on the other hand, have a young woman who is very well educated and wants to take over the management. What's more, the managers in Holland and my wife are roughly the same age, have similar educational backgrounds and get on well.
So far, m&m has moved with customers abroad and grown there. Now it's different in Holland, where you've suddenly become a major player in the market. Isn't there a danger in such a strategic break?
Mecklenburg: I don't see a break, but rather an opportunity. When we expanded into the EU, we never aspired to be present in all countries, which is why the gap in the Benelux countries didn't bother us. But then we met Mr. Schreiner and Mr. Van Bokkel - and everything fell into place perfectly. With such a stroke of luck, you can no longer ask whether it fits in with the previous strategy or not.
Van Bokkel: We don't see a break either, just a new direction. We are experiencing something similar with our company: just one year after founding it, we set up two more agencies in Holland. And later two more. By joining m&m now, we are taking another step, this time into the international market.
But it is certainly a completely new experience to start from scratch in Holland.
Mecklenburg: Yes, we are moving from the regional to the Bundesliga, so to speak. This confronts us with completely new issues. For example, we have to introduce international controlling - something we didn't have to this extent before. Coordination between the countries is becoming more difficult. The Swiss holding company will therefore have additional tasks that go beyond controlling the media business.
One important task will be to bring together the two different corporate cultures in Holland and Switzerland.
Schreiner: We started this very early on. The management from all m&m country offices and from Schreiner & Van Bokkel went to Hungary for three days in the summer, with partners and children. There were about 30 of us. That was very confidence-building.
Van Bokkel: Before we were two families, after the meeting in Hungary it was one family.
Mecklenburg: All the children were there, from six-month-olds to teenagers. It worked quite naturally. And when you see each other again, you ask about the family, about the children's progress at school. It's a different relationship than in large international groups, where things are more anonymous.
Van Bokkel: We were basically already in agreement before the trip to Hungary, but it was important for us to see that the other family of companies had the same attitude. That gave us the certainty that we could play a good match together.
Mr. Mecklenburg, at the beginning of 2004 you were still planning to move to Belgium with the Belgian Alcopa Group.
Mecklenburg: At the time, Alcopa was able to take over various areas from the bankrupt Erb Group - and we initially kept the budgets. This contact gave us the opportunity to apply to become Alcopa's media agency in Belgium. But it didn't come to that after all. In the middle of the year, Emil Frey AG in Switzerland was awarded the contract for the Suzuki import, which had previously been with our other major client, Alcopa. Because the two companies now had different interests, we were suddenly caught between two fronts and had to make a decision. We chose Emil Frey AG because it is an important customer for us in France and Germany.
Assuming you could have gone to Belgium with Alcopa and also taken over Schreiner & Van Bokkel - would you have been able to do both? Mecklenburg: Yes, we would have done both at the same time. That will continue to be the case: If we win a customer who is active in Belgium, we would immediately step in with our "subsidiary" in Brussels. Just as we are doing now in Eastern Europe.
Mr. Van Bokkel, Mr. Schreiner, you continue to manage your agency in Belgium. Please describe this company?
Schreiner: Ten years ago, we took over a one-man agency in Brussels with a single, very large client. Because we as Schreiner & Van Bokkel were not as well known as in Holland, it was important to have Belgian management in order to gain more Belgian clients. Today we work there for the travel company Correndon, for the insurance company Delta LLozd, Fruits of Florida and others. The connection to m&m Holding will also help us. Last year, our 14 employees generated sales of 78 million francs.
Mecklenburg: You should know that the financial part of the Belgian agency has not yet been integrated into m&m Holding, whereas the operational part will be integrated via the country board. We are also keeping the company name. But because the agency is still on shaky ground, we are being cautious at the moment.
Are there any chances of the company being integrated one day? All three: Yes.
Mecklenburg: For us, it is more urgent to win over Hungary and the Czech Republic now than to solve the financial part of Belgium. Belgium is already a de facto member today.
You will soon be going to Eastern Europe. What strategy are you choosing there?
Mecklenburg: We are proceeding in the same style as before: We have been offered budgets for Eastern European countries from various sources and we said yes, even though we have little knowledge of these countries. We will decide in mid-February with whom and how we will take this step. I am of the opinion that you should use your opportunities flexibly. But I will only go as far as I can bear the risk for our Group. We now have one advantage: We are one group, we can now draw on knowledge at different levels.
Will the four-member Board of Directors of m&m Holding involve Mr. Van Bokkel and Mr. Schreiner in such decisions - or will they be spectators? Mecklenburg: Although they are not members of the Board of Directors of m&m Holding, I would still describe them as "participants". Because I attach great importance to them expressing their views on our ideas. I value their experience and knowledge and am counting on them to support us. After all, Dutch companies are also interested in expanding into Hungary or the Czech Republic.
So it could be that Mr. Van Bokkel or Mr. Schreiner travel to Hungary to see what's right?Mecklenburg: Yes. The ownership structure is of secondary importance in such cases. We negotiated until the end of 2004, now we are starting to work together. Or to put it another way: now we're putting all our horses together and setting off ...
Three media agency alumni who met at the round tableWolfgang Mecklenburg zu Liddow (65) was appointed Head of Planning and Media Research at Lintas/ Unilever Switzerland in 1970 - after nine years in management positions on both the agency and publishing side. From 1976 to 1982, he was a member of the management team at Jean Frey AG, where he developed the company's advertising marketing. In 1982, he founded m&m Marketingservice AG as a service company for media publishers. In the mid-1980s, he transformed m&m into one of the first media agencies in Switzerland.
Frans Van Bokkel, Media Director Lintas Holland, Founder and Director Initiative, Director The Media Buying Company, foundation and development of the media agency group Schreiner & Van Bokkel.
Pierre Schreiner, General Director of Admedia-VNU (United Dutch Publishers), founder and General Director of The Media Buying Company, foundation and development of the media agency group Schreiner & Van Bokkel.
Pierre Schreiner: "We didn't want to join a large international network."
Frans Van Bokkel: "Mr. Mecklenburg negotiated hard. But we
also laughed a lot."
Wolfgang Mecklenburg: "We didn't want to pay out Mr. Schreiner and Mr. Van Bokkel, we wanted to involve them."
Frans Van Bokkel, Wolfgang Mecklenburg, Pierre Schreiner, Markus Knöpfli (from left to right).
Interview: Markus Knöpfli