PeugeotWith the Salon de l'automobile barely over, Peugeot has ventured into the ad rating with a new campaign, evoking memories of May 68. www.werbewoche.ch/adrating?Aloe-Vera-Jogurt
Lessons learned, dear alpine dairymen from Lucerne? If you leave the advertising to the professionals, there will be no more scolding in the ad rating.
Top 24,97%
Flop 76,03%

The winners within all four target groupsGold 64% WWF Born to be wild (WWF Switzerland)
Silver 58% Helvetic Tours Children (Advico Young & Rubicam)
Bronze 57% British Airways Ocean of work (Publicis)

Crossmedia Axel Springer Verlag (ASV) and SevenOne Media, the marketer of the ProSiebenSat-1 Group, have agreed to cooperate in order to offer advertising customers integrated communication concepts from a single source. All of ASV's newspapers and magazines and the TV channels Sat 1, Pro 7, Kabel 1 and N 24 as well as the online and mobile offerings of the two media groups will be available. A similar collaboration is not planned in Switzerland, said Christian Gartmann, Managing Director SevenOne Media Switzerland.

Last year, the Commission for Fair Trading received 265 complaints (including preliminary proceedings), compared with 196 in 2001. The Commission is still primarily concerned with direct advertising. However, its share has fallen from 59.4 percent to 49.8 percent. The most complaints were about competitions (20.2 percent) and misleading advertising (16.6 percent). Sexism was the issue in 6.9 percent of cases. The annual report on the activities of the Commission on Fair Trading can be downloaded as a PDF document from the website www.lauterkeit.ch.

The pharmaceutical company Bioforce AG from Roggwil TG has entrusted the Nuremberg advertising agency Ideenhaus with its seven-figure advertising budget. The company, founded by the Swiss naturopath A. Vogel, produces and sells herbal and homeopathic remedies and is active in over 30 countries worldwide. The first thing Ideenhaus does is revise the brand design. The packaging is also optimized. In addition, the agency develops the communication strategy for the core markets of Europe, North America, South Africa and Australia. Ideenhaus' advertising measures will also be seen in Switzerland. According to spokeswoman Birgit Heinhöfer, Bioforce awarded the account on the basis of a "recommendation".

Affinity of ads with supporters in the "alternative culture "Gold (155) American Express Gratis (McCann-Erickson, Zurich)
Silver (150) Facts Pedestrian (Euro RSCG Switzerland)
Bronze (145) NZZ Folio Kama Sutra (Ruf Lanz)

Advertisements Daily newspapers lost 14.6 percent of their advertising space in February, according to VSW statistics. Job advertisements were again on a downward trend, losing 31.6% compared to the same month last year. Magazines did not fare much better (-9.1 %), with financial and business publications (-28.1 %) and women's and fashion titles (-17 %) suffering particularly badly.

Automotive industry Peugeot (Suisse) SA and its in-house agency Euro RSCG Switzerland are launching the new generation of FAP-equipped diesels with surprising advertisements. The transport minister Leuenberger sniffing the exhaust and "his" raccoons advertising the energy label for cars (see p.12) prove it: campaigns to combat traffic emissions are still an issue. The French car manufacturer PSA Peugeot Citroën is also convinced of this. This is why the Group is focusing this year's communication on its new diesel generation - equipped with HDI-FAP technology. Behind this technological gobbledygook lies an engine with high-pressure direct injection (High Pressure Injection) with a special particulate filter (Filtre à particules) developed by Peugeot. Without such a filter, a diesel vehicle produces a whopping 3 kilograms of soot over 80000 kilometers, with FAP not even 100 grams. This corresponds to a reduction of around 95 percent. This voluntary environmental commitment is now to be communicated in various countries. In Switzerland, Euro RSCG - contrary to the trend in car advertising - created an independent presence. The basic strategic idea is based on the concept of "high-tech for nature", as Euro CEO Frank Bodin explains. In order to show that "diesel can also protect the environment" - as the claim promises - the Euro-RSCG creatives were inspired by current events: A diesel Peugeot model is the centerpiece of a staged demonstration in downtown Zurich. While people around the world are protesting against the threat of war, the cheerful "environmental activists" in their smart attire are calling for "a chance for clean diesels" as well as a reduction in exhaust emissions.
Not exactly a familiar image. After all, environmentalists don't just come from the "hardcore Greenpeace corner", says Bodin, shattering the common cliché image of the copper-wool-bast-greens. Nevertheless, the team takes a gentle but perfectly placed swipe at precisely this corner: in one of the three advertisement subjects, demonstrators in a rebellious pose have chained themselves to diesel vehicles that are not equipped with an appropriate filter.
Environmental demo for a car: Euro RSCG stages the new Peugeot diesel generation.
Automotive industry Peugeot and Euro RSCG Switzerland take aim at militant environmentalists at the launch of the new diesel generation equipped with FAP >> p. 9
PSA Peugeot CitroënWhile Peugeot sales figures in Switzerland fell by 1.7 percent in 2002, the second PSA brand achieved record figures: the number of registered Citroën cars rose by seven percent compared to the previous year. This result is mainly due to the pricing strategy that the Group is pursuing for Citroën. The PSA branch is also managed by Euro RSCG in this country, albeit by the Geneva branch. In contrast to Peugeot, mainly international campaigns are adapted there. (sk)
Simone Keller

Commuter newspapers The Neue Luzerner Zeitung joins forces with the two leading free newspapers in Central Switzerland - and thus defends its reader and advertiser market shortly before the launch of the Express.The situation is not just dicey now. The commuter newspapers in Central Switzerland have been waiting in the wings for a long time - but the established print media have so far failed to take any countermeasures. This was already the case when 20 Minuten was launched three and a half years ago and, at the same time, the Tagblatt der Stadt Zürich, which had been transformed into the ZürichExpress, briefly extended its distribution area to Zug and Steinhausen. The top dog in the Central Switzerland newspaper market, the Neue Luzerner Zeitung (NLZ), refrained from reacting at the time, as did the two largest free newspapers in the region, the Anzeiger Luzern and the Luzerner Woche. Nor was 20 Minuten's constant flirting with the Lucerne market able to shake things up. Only now that Tamedia is once again on the doorstep with the Express, but this time equipped with all the refinements of a commuter newspaper, do the Central Swiss feel pressured to act.
In recent months, the NLZ has prepared two scenarios. "Either we launch our own free newspaper, for which we have a ready-made concept in the drawer. Or we team up with someone who already has free newspapers," explains Erwin Bachmann, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the NLZ. He decided to go the second way. As part of a capital increase, LZ Medien, the parent company of the NLZ, took over a 30 percent share of Anzeiger Luzern AG. With its two newspapers Anzeiger Luzern and Luzerner Woche, the latter holds a similarly dominant position among the free newspapers in central Switzerland as the NLZ in the newsstand newspaper sector.
Money for the construction of bulwarks
With this investment, Anzeiger Luzern AG is increasing its share capital from the current 250,000 to 500,000 francs. But exactly what is planned with the money is not yet ready for decision. "We have just signed the contract. The discussions about what we want to change are only just beginning," says Bachmann. Walter Liniger, Chairman of the Board of UD Print AG, to which Anzeiger Luzern AG belongs, is somewhat more explicit. "Our main concern is to make it more difficult for new competitors to enter the market. The capital increase will give Anzeiger Luzern the necessary leeway to do so."
One thing is clear: In view of the advance of commuter newspapers, the partnership is of vital interest, especially for the NLZ. Especially in the tense economic situation, previous buyers and subscribers might think twice in the future whether the free reading material is not enough. What this could mean for the development of the NLZ has been drastically demonstrated by the sharp drop in circulation of the Tages-Anzeiger. It is therefore not surprising that the NLZ in particular had pushed for the partnership, as Liniger confirms.
NLZ boss Bachmann, however, does not only cite dangers emanating from commuter newspapers. "In general, new free newspapers are constantly appearing in our catchment area and absorbing advertising market shares." Another reason: especially in economically difficult times, he says, it is a matter of urgency to provide SMEs with cheaper advertising space in addition to the NLZ. "A free newspaper is ideal for this," explains Bachmann.
Tight market for commuter paper
However, the small size of the Central Switzerland market stands in the way of a separate weekday commuter newspaper. The managing director of Anzeiger Luzern AG, Peter Wüthrich, estimates the number of commuters in the Lucerne area at only 6,000 to 7,000 people. "That's not enough. At the moment, we would even have trouble expanding our two titles to three issues a week," he calculates. He says the talks now beginning between the two media houses will clarify what is possible.
The fact is that SBB Central Switzerland has already received several requests for newspaper boxes at stations (see front page). Bachmann is also one of those who have made representations. What exactly is to be put in the boxes, however, is still open, he explains.
Both 20 Minuten and Express are being unobtrusive at the moment, both denying that they will soon be entering the market in Central Switzerland. Asked about the inquiries that have been made for SBB newspaper boxes, Express managing director Marius Hagger defends himself. "We have nothing to do with that. Before we consider expanding our distribution area, we first have to do a good job in Zurich," he explains.
This restraint is almost imperative for Tamedia due to the Neue Zürcher Zeitung, which holds a 33 percent stake in LZ Medien. Now that the NZZ, as co-owner of the Tagblatt der Stadt Zürich AG, has given the green light for the Express, Tamedia must be careful not to appear as a competitor to NZZ holdings with the new commuter paper.
Market leader in Central SwitzerlandAnzeiger Luzern and Luzerner Woche, the two titles published by Anzeiger Luzern AG, are the market leaders among the free newspapers in Central Switzerland. The Anzeiger Luzern (certified circulation: 110438 copies) is published every Friday for the Lucerne region. The Luzerner Woche (132022 ex.), which has a more developed editorial section, reaches households on Wednesdays, serving not only the Lucerne region but also households in Nidwalden. (dse)
Daniel Schifferle

Regional TV The local television project Interjura-TV has failed: President Pierre Steulet was unable to find new financial backers after the withdrawal of his two main partners. Originally, Steulet himself had contributed 35 percent of the start-up capital of CHF 450000, while 22.4 percent each came from the publishers Michel Voisard (Quotidien jurassien) and Marc Gassmann (Bieler Tagblatt, Journal du Jura). Gassmann retired in September last year; Voisard followed him in December.

The Swica health organization is having its advertising revamped by Advertising Art & Ideas (AA&I.) The Zurich agency is to strengthen the brand, which has been subject to erosion in the recent past, explained Creative Director and CEO Stefan Winzenried. Swica used to have a strong image thanks to innovations such as the renaming of the health insurance company to health organization or commercials such as "Forever Young" by Studer & Wohlgemuth with a senior couple making love. Since the beginning of 2001, however, the company has relied on the services of a direct marketing agency, Wirz Brugger Lüthi. Alongside AA&I and two other agencies, the account holder had also been invited to the competition presentation. The new brand campaign from AA&I is due to be launched in August.

Erich Baumgartner will become Managing Director and member of the Executive Board of Lowe on April 1.Erich Baumgartner hardly reveals anything about his private life or himself. The pragmatist prefers to talk about the industry or the Lowe agency, where he will officially take over from Managing Director Daniel Keller at the beginning of next month. To ensure an "organic handover", the 42-year-old has been in and out of Talstrasse since the beginning of the year. This also explains why he asked for
Baumgartner is well aware of the weaknesses of Switzerland's fourth-largest advertising agency, which is in seventh place in the creative ranking: "Lowe can exploit its potential much better." Baumgartner is convinced that every agency today has to offer more than the creative excellence that is already required. He sees this added value in comprehensive strategic consulting that has entrepreneurial expertise and an understanding of a heterogeneous clientele. "Consumers can no longer be bombarded as a universe with GRP shot. Each individual must find an individual benefit in the offers," says the Managing Director.
The always elegantly dressed businessman summarizes the key to this under the term "diversity". He understands this to mean a diverse way of thinking that seeks new paths and does not adhere to dogmas. "An approach that would be good for all agencies here in Germany in order to prevent budgets from migrating abroad," explains the strategist. Lowe's multicultural team is already a prerequisite for a polyvalent perspective. And even if the Zurich native has to come out as a "native par excellence", he wants to give the hotel an identity with vision through "structured lateral thinking". This credo also expresses Baumgartner's basic attitude as an advertiser and manager. Wherever he has worked in the marketing and communications industry, he has tried to optimize the core business through "critical questioning".
Erich Baumgartner has felt at home in this field for more than 20 years now: after working at McCann-Erickson, GGK Zurich and DDB(+WDW), among others, he switched to the client side as Head of Marketing Communications at Philips. The incentive to combine business interests with intuition led him back to his roots. The graduate marketing manager subsequently held management positions in agencies such as Advico Young & Rubicam, Publicis and Matter & Partner, where he was involved as Managing Partner.
"To look at the industry from a different angle", Baumgartner went into business for himself as a consultant in 2002. Despite his intention to explore new avenues in consulting on his own, he couldn't resist Lowe's offer: "The opportunity to strategically manage a large agency with an international environment, a broad client base and a professional team doesn't come along every day." The fact that hobbies such as reading or a good meal fall by the wayside is of little concern to him: "Lowe is what I enjoy most at the moment."
Reflects on advertising around the globe with a critical eye: Erich Baumgartner.
Carole Koch