On August 1, Daniel Schüpbach, Head of Marketing and Sales at Publicitas Basel, will take over the management of Publicitas International Switzerland. His predecessor Daniel Hofer has been appointed Head e-Business & Strategic Business Development at the head office of Publicitas Promotion Network.

Equality can manifest itself in many ways. Some people protest for higher wages, others dress like men, and still others hire male secretaries. Despite all this equality, however, gender differences continue to haunt us every day—especially when we go to the restroom. Because, even though women now fly to the moon, serve in the military, and are no longer the only ones who have to show bare skin on advertising posters, no gender-specific restroom has yet been designed for them. Looking at this ad, it’s definitely clear why she isn’t wearing pants this time. Right? Then, as a member of the female gender, it’s worth trying out this unusual experiment for yourself. Finally, the question remains: Is she perhaps up to the task after all? Or: Do the Sicis managers reach their climax faster when looking at this image? Maybe. Because on the website www.sicis.com, you can find even more amusing metal images. For tile setters only. Chandra Kurt Column

Invisibility
from Mike Müller
On my fridge it says: “I haven’t had my coffee yet, don’t make me kill you.” In the early hours of the day, I’d like to hold this saying up as a shield, though even that would be too much communication. I once learned that non-communication is also a form of communication. Nonsense. Non-communication is not being on the air—in such a way that the other person doesn’t even notice. You can practice that. I was at my best and most successful at the Theaterhaus Gessnerallee in Zurich. But nobody noticed—and that was precisely the point of my success. For a performance in the beautiful beer garden—where we’d built a tennis court—I had to sneak around the building dressed as a vagabond and scramble down from the street through the bushes to the Landwehr Canal. Unfortunately, an unauthorized demonstration was taking place at the same time, and several buses full of Zurich police officers were parked in the lot I was just about to cross. So I made myself invisible; I played myself out of the scene, adopted an inconspicuous gait, let my shoulders droop slightly, and tried to put on an incredibly apolitical expression. It worked.
At the newsstand in front of my house, I’ve tried this half-hearted attempt at invisibility countless times. Without success. Unshowered, unshaven, wearing a baseball cap, and with no socks in my shoes, I keep trying to make what’s known as a “silent purchase” (OR 184, paragraph 1). The friendly newsstand lady takes pity on me every time. With a motherly gaze, she looks me in the eyes and tries to talk me out of it, even wishing me a particularly nice day. Tomorrow I’ll try a new strategy: Shaven and wearing a tailored suit, I’ll stride purposefully toward the newspaper display. On my cell phone, I’ll pretend to be on a call: I’ll hold my—
a lecture to an imaginary listener about people who aren't morning people.
[email protected]
Mike Müller is a performer.
Language Observer

"You" (II):
Me too!
With the informal “du” and the formal “Sie,” German allows two people to jointly determine the level of distance they wish to maintain between themselves. “Du” is the informal form of address: parents and children use “du” with each other, as do relatives, friends, and lovers. There is also a “du” used to express contempt: in the past, bosses would use “du” with their subordinates, while the subordinates had to use “Sie.” Police officers use “du” with cyclists who refuse to dismount when cycling is prohibited. Prisoners, foreigners, people with disabilities, and young people are generally addressed informally. Furthermore, the informal “Du” is used in the SP, at the bar, and in self-help groups and package tours. A temporary “Du” exists in mountain huts—and on a rope, of course.
The informal “du” can convey intimacy, condescension, solidarity, hierarchy, or youthfulness—in all possible combinations! The confusion is complete. The shift between informality and formality, between a private, familiar tone and a distant, hierarchical one, is handled differently in virtually every (corporate) culture. It’s especially important to strike the right tone during contract negotiations. Too much formality has ruined just as many deals as overly blunt familiarity.
According to a 1998 court ruling, a company may require the use of “Du” as a form of address. But does that make sense? Aren’t just two options for addressing someone already woefully inadequate for the full range of emotions with which people interact? Hate, fear, mistrust, distance, respect, openness, willingness, trust, affection, love…
A progressive corporate language values openness and clarity more highly than a forced sense of closeness, which in and of itself has no value. It values productive tension as a driving force and is careful not to level out differences. A constructive exchange of views initially involves creating more distance, after which the participants can move toward one another again—under new conditions.
Resolving disagreements doesn’t depend solely on the form of address, but it does send signals. Mandating the informal “du” can be perceived as a restriction: Employees are no longer free to decide for themselves how much distance they want to maintain with whom. Everyone is supposed to be equal, yet everyone knows that the company can’t function without a hierarchy. Should it be concealed? Who wants such a shadow hierarchy? And when the going gets tough: What good does it do the employee if the boss says “You idiot!” to him instead of “You, idiot!”?
As with political correctness, new terms obscure the facts that people would rather not mention. But that doesn’t make the facts go away. An idiot doesn’t become any smarter just because he’s called “cognitively challenged”—on the contrary: at least he still understood the word “idiot.”.
Beat Gloor, www.textcontrol.ch

Objective: To massively increase awareness of the Moneycab platform.Moneycab advertising material: Gif banner (various sizes).
Client: Moneycab, Zurich. Agency: Bemberg Gedenk Media.

Eveil Culturel editor Nicole Steffen believes in a successful blend of music and lifestyleTwo years ago, Nicole Steffen quietly and secretly took over the management of the cultural magazine Eveil Culturel from her husband. This spring, she has definitely left her mark on the bilingual magazine. A revised layout and the new subtitle "The Swiss music and lifestyle magazine" indicate the direction in which you are heading.you no longer refer to your magazine as a culture magazine, but as a lifestyle magazine. Are you not afraid of blurring the magazine's profile by opening it up thematically and turning it into a bazaar?
Nicole Steffen: I will make sure that I continue to offer a high-quality product. By lifestyle, I don't necessarily mean topics about gastronomy, oenology, wellness and more. But Eveil Culturel is also not intended to be purely a music magazine for a specialist audience. I simply want to open a few doors. There is so much going on around music. It's important to me to bring people closer to the world of music in an unconventional way.
Could you give an example?
Steffen: To portray the young Swiss soprano Rachel Harnisch, we didn't just visit her in her box at the Bern City Theater and do an interview. We dressed her in designer pieces at the Ciolina fashion house. The result was a series of pictures of the artist, the likes of which you don't see on stage.
Aren't you afraid of annoying or even losing regular readers by mixing up the topics?
Steffen: The topics on classical music will continue to be the pièce de résistance. But even a magazine like Eveil Culturel must continue to develop. That's why we'll be focusing more on the connection between classical music and other styles. In this way, we hope to attract new readers and interest our regular readers in new things.
Have you been asked by advertising clients to open up?
Steffen: If you look at advertising for luxury goods, it's easy to see that it has changed a lot. Luxury goods advertising is aimed at a young audience. We are therefore forced to adapt the editorial section, i.e. to rejuvenate it.
If the magazine is now also aimed at a young audience, we will probably no longer only see advertisements for luxury products. How does H&M advertising fit in with an ad for Hermès?
Steffen: We will be very selective with regard to advertisements for consumer goods that do not belong to the luxury goods sector.
What were the reasons why your husband handed over the management of the magazine to you?
Steffen: As my husband doesn't speak German, but Eveil Culturel now has the majority of its subscribers and readers in German-speaking Switzerland, taking over the project was a logical development.
So you are editor-in-chief and publisher at the same time?
Steffen: Yes, and I'm looking forward to implementing the many ideas I have for the magazine and its future.
What are your priorities?
Steffen: The magazine should become trendier. We also want to appeal to younger people with the new layout and the expansion of topics. Another important step: from next year, six issues will be published instead of the previous four.
But your husband had already planned this in 1997.
Steffen: At that time, it was obviously still too early. However, the new formula should make it possible to increase the periodicity from next year.
What would you describe as the most important strength of Eveil Culturel?
Steffen: First of all, the variety of topics, then the national distribution and the bilingualism. The latter is very well received in a cultural magazine, as a survey of readers has shown. In terms of layout, however, bilingualism remains a major challenge.
The relaunch would have been an opportunity to give the magazine a new name. Doesn't Eveil Culturel seem a bit outdated?
Steffen: The name Eveil Culturel dates back to the early days, when the magazine was only distributed in French-speaking Switzerland. We have actually already thought out loud about a new name. But it's not so easy to find, and Eveil Culturel has also become a household name in German-speaking Switzerland. Interview: Anita Vaucher
L'eveil culturel

Franck Steffen founded the magazine Eveil Culturel nine years ago with a chance inheritance of 30,000 francs. The initial circulation at the time was a modest 6,000 copies. In 1996, the cultural magazine, which had previously only been produced for the French-speaking Swiss market, ventured across the language border. Today, the bilingual magazine (F/D) has an (uncertified) circulation of 28800 copies.

After unsuccessful sales attempts, the bike magazine Move is being discontinuedBy Daniel SchifferleFischer Media AG, which was redimensioned in April, has now had to announce the discontinuation of one of its publishing products: No buyer could be found for the bike magazine Move. The June issue was therefore also the last. Conclusion: the Swiss market is too small for this
Special interest title.
When Fischer Media announced in April that it wanted to concentrate on the printing business in future and was therefore shedding all its publishing products, everything still looked good (WW 16/01). Solutions had been found or were close at hand for the nature, leisure and service publications. Also for the bike magazine Move. But only two months later, Move was discontinued. With the June issue, readers already had the last issue in their hands.
"We had hoped that someone else would be able to make the magazine work better. In the end, however, all interested parties withdrew," says Hans-Rudolf Wiederkehr, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Fischer Media AG, summing up the efforts of the past few weeks. His conclusion: "The Swiss market is too small for our own bike magazine." All conceivable options were considered before the final decision was made to discontinue the magazine. In the end, the editors-in-chief even considered continuing the magazine themselves. "But the calculation was simply too uncertain. It was neither enough to live on nor enough to die on," Wiederkehr states.
Despite "doping", hardly any new readers and advertisements were added
Move first saw the light of day eight years ago. According to Wiederkehr, the problems had worsened in the last two years in particular. Although Move has never been a goldmine, the magazine was in the black in its good years. In the last two years, however, demand from both readers and advertisers has fallen sharply.
Last year, an attempt was made to turn the tide. A broader positioning should bring the magazine more readers and advertisers. For this reason, the pure bike magazine was quickly transformed into an outdoor magazine with a focus on biking. This step did not turn things around either. According to Wiederkehr, no new audience groups could be tapped into. The magazine's final print run (not Wemf-approved) was 25,600 copies.
Nevertheless, Wiederkehr emphasizes that it was not Move that was Fischer Media AG's biggest problem child, but Astrea, the magazine of the pharmacists' association. "If Move had been our only publishing object, we could have redimensioned it and just about got away with it," Wiederkehr is convinced. There is no longer any need to prove this.

A U.S. chicken brand advertises its products with a parody of infomercialsBy Thérèse BalduzziAdvertising for industrially packaged meat products is rarely original as a rule. The new campaign by U.S. chicken brand Perdue Farms is an exception. It takes a rather crude jab at the ubiquitous infomercials on television.
Anyone who has suffered from insomnia knows all too well what an infomercial is. Especially in America, where they occupy the channels in large numbers at night (and at other cheap broadcasting times). Whether they're touting kitchen appliances, fitness machines or beauty lines: They are usually long-winded and terribly cheaply made. Sometimes they are so bad that they are almost good again and acquire a hypnotic quality that keeps you from switching off or changing the channel.
Instead, one admires the tastelessness of the sets that serve as the backdrop for the screening, or one is amused by the assiduously studious assistants and amazed by the audience, which always claps enthusiastically.
The company's chairman acts as a purchase motivator in the commercial
The latest American campaign for chicken brand Perdue Farms by Lowe Lintas & Partners, New York, is based on this love-hate relationship. In the three spots "Chicken Tank," "Nuggetizer" and "Chicken Chain Carver," infomercials are staged for machines for preparing chicken meat that are as freely invented as they are absurd. In "Chicken Tank" a kind of incubator is demonstrated in which the demonstrator cuts the fat off the chicken parts. Even the "Paid Advertisement" usually inserted in infomercials is not missing. The audience jeers and claps until Jim Perdue, chairman of the company, stands up in the middle of the audience and says, "But why not buy Perdue Chicken Breasts?" As he explains that these have already been stripped of all fat, security personnel head toward him and usher him out.
The pattern is repeated in "Nuggetizer," in which the demonstrator demonstrates a kind of meat grinder that can be used to turn any chicken part - even giblets and skeleton - into nuggets: "Kids won't have a clue what they are eating," he says, while the audience enthusiastically shouts "Nuggetize it!" Again, Jim Perdue calls attention to Perdue's chicken nuggets, which contain only white chicken.
In "Chicken Chain Carver", chickens are cut up with a chain saw. In the end, the table on which they were lying also falls victim to the saw. The spots do without taglines and only display a phone number and a website address. The Perdue spots were created by Simon Bowden and David Lowe. Joe Public was the director.

The latest W3B study by Fittkau & Maass reveals declining enthusiasm for online shoppingBy Clemens HöerlerThe desire for e-commerce among German-speaking Internet users is declining. This is due to
20 percent are willing to pay for online content. Print advertising in particular plays an important role in finding websites. These are the findings of the 12th WWW user analysis W3B by Fittkau & Maass, Hamburg.
Since spring 1996, the willingness of German-speaking Internet users to shop online has declined for the first time. According to the W3B Internet study conducted by the Hamburg-based market research company Fittkau & Maass GmbH, only 52.9 percent of those surveyed in April and May 2001 stated that they intended to shop online in the next six months. In the fall of 2000, the figure was 64.1 percent and in the spring of 2000 it was 55.3 percent. In contrast, the proportion of people who do not want to shop online has risen.
The biggest obstacle to online shopping is the lack of consumer confidence. For newcomers to the Internet in particular, security plays a major role in the transmission of data and in payment transactions. Although these concerns are diminishing among experienced Internet users, concerns that store operators could pass on personal data to third parties are not.
E-commerce operators are therefore faced with the challenge of consolidating the trust of their customers, although providers that are already familiar from the offline world have it somewhat easier.
The W3B study also looks at the importance of advertising for the Internet. This is of great importance for finding websites. Only search engines and web directories are more important, as well as
word-of-mouth advertising (see chart). Within advertising, print advertisements are obviously the most important guide. Significantly fewer people stated that online advertising had motivated them to visit a website.
Around 20 percent would pay for content
A comparison of the individual media is particularly interesting: advertising is obviously more important for finding websites than editorial articles in the same medium.
However, these results do not hide the fact that it has become more difficult for many website operators to finance themselves solely through advertising. In some cases, the introduction of paid services and content is therefore already being discussed. Some observers are skeptical as to whether content can be sold to spoiled Internet users on a large scale at all. However, the W3B study gives cause for hope. As many as a third of all respondents state that they would be prepared to pay for certain online services or content. 51 percent strictly reject this.
Web publishers should be pleased that 19 percent of Internet users are obviously willing to pay for high-quality, up-to-date information, data or news.
data collected via online form

For the 12th WWW user analysis W3B, 87528 German-speaking Internet users from Germany (91.5 percent), Austria
(4.7 percent), Switzerland (1.4 percent) and other countries were surveyed using an online form. Sampling was carried out using the active sampling/pop-up method (random drawing of the umpteenth visitor), supported by hyperlinks and banner advertising. Over 70 companies with 220 websites were involved in the study.

WoZ Plans to Expand into Business Coverage This Fall The WochenZeitung (WoZ) is planning a quarterly business supplement staffed by WoZ journalists and union representatives. Trade unions are currently discussing how to finance the project. However, it is possible that the WoZ will receive an additional supplement with a weekly rotating selection of topics.
In addition, the WoZ will be included in the Mach Consumer 2001 survey for the first time. «Advertisers still see us as having this »shared apartment, wool socks, and anti-consumerism’ image; we want to move away from that,” says advertising director Denise Nick. She now plans to present WoZ directly to advertisers. To this end, she has increased her acquisition workload from 110 to 200 percent of a full-time position and is also looking for an external account executive.
WoZ Luzern, the Central Swiss edition of *Split*, currently has 1,300 subscribers; however, at least 1,600 would be needed. WoZ was able to retain 80 percent of its former *Luzern heute* subscribers. Membership dues for the support association are now being increased. (mk)

Objective: Image campaign and increase in brand awareness.Aspectra advertising media: Skyscraper, full banner, button, print. Use:
June 4 to July 1.
Client: Aspectra. Agency: OMD, Zollikerberg.

Twelve people to be made redundant in EcublensHard times have begun for Swiss online marketers. As part of the restructuring of the American online marketer 24/7, the Swiss branch based in Ecublens in the canton of Vaud is also closing. The European division 24/7 Europe, which was spun off from the American parent company at the end of May, will be highly centralized and focus on the most profitable core markets. The online marketer recommends that Swiss customers who wish to continue working with 24/7 should contact the French branch.online marketers fight against slower development
A final account of the Swiss branch's current activities should be available by June 30, and 24/7 Media Switzerland intends to complete all outstanding orders by July 15. The online marketer had only opened a branch in Switzerland in June 1999 with the takeover of Kendro Communications with the declared aim of becoming the market leader in Switzerland as quickly as possible. In September 2000, Luigi G. Baretella began to set up a branch in Zurich, but left again in March 2001. With the closure of 24/7 Media Switzerland, around a dozen jobs are lost.
"The market has developed much more slowly than we expected," says Stéphane Schoch, Managing Director of 24/7 Media Switzerland, commenting on the situation. According to a survey by Netzwoche, the interest of German-speaking Swiss online marketers in filling the gap in French-speaking Switzerland is correspondingly low. With the exception of Real Media and Publimedia Webadvertising, most of them continue to serve French-speaking Switzerland from Zurich. Bruno Amstutz

The Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) has rejected the license application from Bernese private radio station Extrabern for an FM frequency for a planned youth radio station.News No youth radio for Extrabern
The frequency situation is so precarious that even the supply of existing local radio stations still poses considerable problems in some places.
Femmes en Suisse becomes L'EmilieThe French-speaking Swiss magazine Femmes en Suisse is now called L'Emilie. Founded in 1912, the monthly is the oldest feminist magazine in the whole of Europe. Editor-in-chief Andrée-Marie Dussault wants to remain true to the already classic feminist battle zones under the new name: The term limit solution, equal pay, domestic and spousal violence. The current relaunch aims to increase the magazine's circulation from its previous 2000 copies.

Jean-Blaise Defago has been a member of the Executive Board at Burson-Marsteller in Bern since June 1Head of the week: "Political communication should be more humorous" /
As Secretary General of the SVP, Jean-Blaise Defago increasingly struggled with the party's policies. And after the recent discussions about the advertising campaign for the vote on the military laws, he is probably also glad that he no longer has to represent this style of communication to the outside world. Moreover, after five years in politics, he felt like tackling something new.
The offer from Burson-Marsteller in Bern therefore came at just the right time. Lic. phil. Jean-Blaise Defago was fascinated by media studies, so it was no wonder that he joined the information service of the Federal Chancellery after completing his studies in Fribourg. Along the way, he obtained a diploma as a federally certified PR consultant at the Sawi.
Defago is delighted that he now finally has the opportunity to put his theoretical PR knowledge into practice. Agency life is new to him. At the communications agency Burson-Marsteller, the 39-year-old will be primarily responsible for Public Affairs/Corporate Communications for the Bern and French-speaking Switzerland region as a member of the management board. He sees a particular need for action in the region between Biel and Neuchâtel, but also in the canton of Vaud with its numerous newly established companies.
He knows that as a consultant, he now has to put the customer's concerns first, he says, when asked about the potential for conflict in his new job. This will probably not always be easy for the extraverted and communicative doer.
As a PR consultant at Burson-Marsteller, Defago can well imagine taking on political mandates. These will gain in importance in the future anyway, Defago knows. He also believes that advertising for political causes is becoming less and less different from commercial advertising. Those who want to make well-founded arguments are hardly reaching the public any more.
The SP and SVP have probably been so successful with their campaigns in recent years because they have been concise and striking. For Defago, however, the highest credo for political communication remains the demand for truth and respect for the opponent. "But political communication should be a little more humorous," says Defago.
He will put his own political career on hold for the next few years and devote himself entirely to his new role. Networking will be a priority for him, not only in Bern, but also in the canton of Fribourg, where he lives with his family. He has already spun a thread to weave a network:
He becomes a member of the board of the influential ice hockey club Fribourg Gottéron. Anita Vaucher