This was caused, on the one hand, by a 2.7 percent decline in domestic sales and, on the other hand, by the withdrawal from foreign markets. Overseas sales alone fell by more than a quarter to 15.2 million francs, as APG announced on Thursday. After several years of losses, the company completed its withdrawal from the Romanian and Montenegrin markets in 2013. As a result, the share of international business has fallen to 5 percent. Before taxes and interest, the Swiss industry leader generated a profit of 61.9 million Swiss francs. Compared to the previous year, this represents an increase of 78 percent. In Switzerland, APG generated 289.1 million francs in revenue. The decline in revenue is primarily attributable to the advertising slump in the third quarter, which the recovery in the final quarter was unable to fully offset. Outdoor advertising continued to be shaped by digitalization. According to the company, APG already operates over 100 large HD screens in high-traffic pedestrian areas, as well as more than 200 screens on public transportation.

The company also announced that it had acquired full ownership of Impacta and Ecofer retroactive to January 1. Previously, APG had held a 50 percent stake in both companies. The purchase price paid to Polymedia was settled in APG shares; the exact price is performance-based. The two companies operate advertising on public transportation and are concessionaires of SBB, BLS, and other railways.

The Board of Directors will propose to the Annual General Meeting a dividend of ten francs and a special dividend of two francs per share—the highest payout in the company's history. Last year, shareholders received seven francs
receive a regular dividend and a special dividend of three francs. APG is not issuing a specific forecast for 2014, as the advertising markets remain unpredictable. However, the company is confident following the comprehensive restructuring of its failed international ventures. (SDA)

In order to be able to finance the digital advertising spaces, locations with large pedestrian flows are necessary, as APG CEO Daniel Hofer said on Thursday at the annual media conference. With this in mind, APG is buying the remaining 50 percent of Impacta and Ecofer from the Scheidegger advertising family in Berne. The two companies have been concessionaires of SBB for more than 40 years, as well as BLS, other private and mountain railroads and other partners. The undisclosed purchase price will be paid in APG shares. With the share swap, Markus and Andreas Scheidegger increase their APG stake to over 3 percent. APG already held a 50 percent stake in Impacta and Ecofer since 1970. Competition law problems are not expected as a result of the full takeover, Hofer said. While Ecofer specializes in special advertising formats such as neon signs, MegaPosters and 3D displays, Impacta offers all classic poster formats as well as state-of-the-art digital products such as ePanels, eBoards and Rail Beamers. The new underground station of the Durchmesserlinie in Zurich will soon be added as a platform.

Pilot test at Zurich Bellevue

APG also wants to conquer city centers with digital advertising. The city of Zurich is currently evaluating a pilot test conducted last fall with ePanels at Bellevue. In a survey, 78 percent said they rather or even very much liked the digital advertising pillars, Hofer said. The entertainment value and a greater sense of safety, especially during the dark hours of the day, due to the illuminated advertising panels were appreciated, he said. APG plans to ask all Swiss cities for permits to convert existing sites and create new ones. Regarding criticism of further commercialization of public space, Hofer said cities must weigh the use of their real estate property against additional revenue that relieves the burden on taxpayers. The digitization of advertising stelae will come, Hofer expressed confidence.

At the push of a button

In other countries, they are already part of everyday life. Advertisers see great potential: just three minutes after the birth of Prince George, heir to the British throne, the first related advertising campaigns were launched in London. "In the past, the poster was the slowest advertising medium, today it is the fastest," Hofer said. (SDA)

"We are delighted by Dailyme TV's trust in Goldbach Audience, and I am sure that with the initial marketing in Switzerland we will exploit the interesting advertising potential to the satisfaction of our partner," comments Alexander Horrolt, Managing Director of Goldbach Audience Switzerland, on the new offer. Jonathan Dähne, Managing Director of Dailyme TV, is also looking forward to a successful collaboration: "We are convinced that we have found the best partner in Goldbach Audience in Switzerland to jointly develop further attractive offers for Swiss advertising customers."

Dailyme TV increased its mobile reach from 20,000 to over half a million unique users/month within two years and is now the market leader in mobile TV in Germany according to the AGOF mobile facts (2013). On average, a Dailyme TV viewer watches over two hours of mobile TV per week. For 2014, the app's creators are planning to expand the existing content even further and to extend existing cooperations. The declared goal is to exceed the 1 million user mark.

Thanks to the Download2Go process, annoying loading times, sound dropouts or lack of reception are no problems when on the move. In a press release, Jonathan Dähne explains the secret of the app's success by separating "consumption" from "transmission" of mobile content: "Despite network expansion, mobile video streaming is still impossible in many areas of Switzerland. With Dailyme TV, on the other hand, even dead spots don't matter because of automatic offline availability. We offer users unrivaled convenience." Videos update automatically in the app via a WLAN connection. Once switched on, Dailyme TV automatically saves the personal desired program for later use. This enables mobile TV wherever and whenever the viewer wants - on the train, in the car or even on the plane.
 

He succeeds Diego Yanez, who is becoming the director of Maz (Werbewoche.ch reported). «Tristan Brenn is familiar with the TV editorial department from various positions,» said SRF Director Ruedi Matter. «I am convinced that, thanks to his in-depth knowledge, he will continue to develop our news programs. The TV editorial department faces major challenges in the coming years. Tristan Brenn is the right person to tackle them.»

«Provide context, highlight connections»

«More than ever, television journalism means putting things into perspective, providing context, and highlighting connections,» Brenn said of his new role. «As editor-in-chief, I want to champion that. But we also need to be critical and challenging; we need to spark debates that the country is talking about. That’s what makes us strong and indispensable, even in the multimedia age.»

Tristan Brenn began his television career in 1993 as an intern at «Tagesschau.» The 48-year-old subsequently held various positions as an editor and producer at what was then Swiss Television, including at «Tagesschau,» «Arena,» and «Rundschau.» Between 2007 and 2010, Brenn served as editorial director of the political magazine program. At the end of 2010, the Germanist and historian took on the role of news director and deputy editor-in-chief of TV at Swiss Radio and Television (SRF). On March 1, 2014, Tristan Brenn will become the new editor-in-chief of TV and a member of the SRF executive board.

Restructuring within the Company

According to a press release, SRF is implementing organizational changes within the company in conjunction with the personnel changes. The TV Editorial Department, which is set to take a major step toward becoming a modern newsroom with the News and Sports Center project, will focus in the future on daily news programs as well as magazine, talk, and in-depth formats with a strong focus on current events. SRF is consolidating its documentaries and programming related to knowledge and education into the Culture Department. As a result, the editorial teams for Documentaries, Netz Natur, Einstein, and SRF Myschool will move from the TV Editorial Department to the Culture Department effective early April. No job cuts are planned.

Editor-in-Chief Matthias Mast confirmed a report to that effect in the newspaper *Berner Oberländer*. He expressed surprise at the decision by the funders; after all, the project had only just begun to gain momentum. «I feel especially sorry for the staff,» said Mast. He himself had merely worked on a contract basis; the contract was set to expire this Friday anyway. Two part-time positions in the editorial department and four jobs in sales would be affected by the project’s collapse. The paper also employed freelance staff.

The Beo Zeitung was first published on October 31 and was distributed to over 120,000 households throughout the region (Werbewoche.ch reported). The paper sought to appeal to a «pan-Oberland identity» and thus distinguish itself from existing newspapers, which were limited to a small area—such as a valley district. A family of publishers from the Baden region served as the financial backers. The newspaper was also printed there. (SDA)
 

"Le Menu - so kocht die Schweiz" has been on the market since 1998 and is well established as a treasure trove of tips for everyday and family cooking: The circulation of 73'000 copies (D/F) testifies to the market's need for a cooking magazine for practical use that is consistently local and seasonal.

"We wanted to make the magazine look more seductive and also appeal to a new generation of 'foodies' for whom seasonal, fresh cuisine is part of everyday life," says Nina Thoenen of the thinking behind the relaunch. In close cooperation with the editorial team, the agency not only revised the typography and design, but also the image concept and magazine dramaturgy. New are atmospheric, sensual food and reportage photographs, supplemented by food illustrations with a lot of attention to detail. Ulrike Beling: "The visual concept places equal emphasis on information and enjoyment, and inspires fun cooking with local products."

For the new concept, Ulrike Beling and Nina Thoenen brought their extensive knowledge in the field of lifestyle and culinary to bear, gained in redesigns of the Schweizer Illustrierte with their spin-off "Al Dente", as well as with the creation on Andreas Caminada's bi-annual magazine.

About Beling Thoenen Design

The core business of the agency, founded in 2003, is the conception of magazines, apps and books. For the Zurich publishing house Ringier, Nina Thoenen and Ulrike Beling created the visual concept for the magazines SI Style, Schweizer Illustrierte, Gruen and Landliebe. In addition, Nina Thoenen and Ulrike Beling are lecturers at the ZHDK in the Cast/Audiovisual Media course and were awarded the "Best of Swiss Apps" award in the "News" category in 2013.
 

According to the press release, the app not only means that the doctor is always and everywhere with you, but also many other tools that make it easier for users to take optimum care of their health.

Patients want high-quality healthcare that is also simple and convenient. The Medgate app takes these needs into account. Patients can use the app to quickly connect with the telemedicine center for a consultation. In the case of skin and eye changes, images of the affected areas can be easily transmitted via the app as part of the consultation. The app also makes it possible to quickly make an appointment at a health center and easily find a partner doctor in one of the largest Swiss healthcare networks with over 1,200 specialists.

Emergency button and medication order

The 360° Healthmanager also has an emergency button to ensure that Medgate patients receive the best possible care in a medical emergency. This connects patients in an emergency situation directly to the medical team. They can also call the ambulance if necessary. Patients can use the "Medication" function to order the medication they need directly as part of a teleconsultation. Following the consultation, the prescribed medication is conveniently sent to their home by mail-order pharmacy or can be collected from a pharmacy.

Mobile health in integrated care

Medgate is strongly committed to high-quality integrated care and offers comprehensive healthcare for all generations. After a consultation, Medgate doctors agree the best treatment plan for the patient and send it to the patient anonymously by text message or e-mail. This means that patients have a written summary of the consultation at their fingertips at all times. For insured persons in a telemedicine insurance model, the agreed treatment plan is binding. This means that they must report any changes to the treatment plan (e.g. referrals or extensions to the duration of treatment) to Medgate. From now on, this can also be done conveniently via 360° Healthmanager. The new mHealth solution is therefore also adapted to the needs of patients with regard to integrated care and simplifies health management.

Integrated Evita patient dossier from the end of the year

To enable patients to carry all their health data with them at all times, Swisscom's Evita patient dossier will be integrated into 360°Healthmanager at the end of 2014. This will enable all users of the app to open a personal patient dossier and access their health data securely via the app. The first version of 360°Healthmanager has been developed for iPhone iOS 7. The app for other operating systems will be launched later.

Additional information and instructions for the app are available at Medgate.ch/app available.

Jung von Matt/PR is new agency for Explain.it educational films

Jung von Matt/Public Relations is now supporting Explain.it in its market entry into Switzerland. In addition to marketing and communications consulting, the mandate includes the development and implementation of a PR strategy for earned and owned channels. "We chose Jung von Matt/Public Relations because the agency showed us creative and alternative ways to traditional media relations," says Thomas von Festenberg, Head of Sales & Marketing Switzerland at the Munich-based company.

Explainer films from explain.it reduce content to the essentials and get to the heart of complex topics. The young team with headquarters in Munich consists of fifteen conception professionals, online specialists and post-production cracks. The services of explain.it are offered in this youtube movie explained.

 

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USM celebrates with Scholz & Friends.

Scholz & Friends Switzerland wins the mandate from USM Schärer Söhne for the campaign celebrating the 50th anniversary of the USM Haller modular furniture system, which has been conquering the office world since 1965 and increasingly also the four walls at home. It is not without reason that the modular design icon is one of the ongoing exhibits at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) New York.

Scholz & Friends convinced the jury with a progressive, content-centric campaign concept that does not simply celebrate the past, but develops the brand further in order to tap into new markets and target groups. The cross-media orchestrated campaign consisting of print, PR, event, point of sale, social media and digital media will be implemented in the anniversary year 2015 from Europe via the USA to Japan.

 

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New PR accounts for 360 Brand Connection in the footwear sector

The footwear brands Cat, Cubanas, Hub, Satorisan, Sebago and Softinos have now placed their trust in the PR agency on Lake Zurich. The public relations work for these brands, which are all distributed by D'nG Brands in Switzerland and Austria, focuses on increasing awareness of and demand for the brands in the Swiss market. The PR agency is pleased to add six very different brands to its portfolio. Owner and managing director of 360 Brand Connection Pirmin Oklé in addition: The co-operation fits ideally to our strategy. We want to develop even more in the direction of lifestyle."

While attributes like "hard and honest work" form the brand core of Cat Footwear, the founders of Sebago were passionate sailors with the courage and ambition to create something new. The central idea at Hub Footwear was to see the big city as a collection of networked hubs through which like-minded people meet and exchange ideas. For example, in public parks, crowded subway stations, or a sushi restaurant. With the slogan "happy feet" softinos convey feelings of happiness for the feet, cubanas celebrate Cuban lifestyle. Satorisan is inspired by figures of the Japanese folk belief "Yokai" and stands for universal values such as enlightenment, contentment and happiness.

 

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WW: VBZ's recruiting campaigns have won awards at the German Society for Human Resource Management or in Berlin at the HR Excellence Awards. What makes them obviously better than the campaigns of the competition?
Jörg Buckmann: That's relatively easy to say: We do more cheeky personnel advertising. Specifically: We try to make advertising for personnel just as passionate, emotional and professional as advertising for the company and our services. This is a basic attitude, but it calls for partly different competencies than before, especially for us in HR. We also invest quite consciously in good HR advertising and call on the support of our "house agency" Ruf Lanz for larger campaigns. This is another reason why our advertising campaigns - whether for VBZ or for staff - come from a single mold.
 

Based on what experience do you find the right language for your target groups?

Part of the job in HR is to know the market. That's not so hard, either - after all, we conduct job interviews every day. That's how you sharpen your eye for where interesting target groups are, almost automatically. And then, of course, there's experience. Take tramp pilots, for example. Every year, we look for 60 new colleagues for this career change. We have noticed - and here the so-called early turnover is a painful and expensive pointer for us - that people from service professions and, above all, with experience in shift work, which takes a lot of getting used to, catch on more quickly than average. From this realization, the step to defining the right target groups is not far away. For this job, it is people from the catering, sales and other service professions.
 

Isn't it a bit insulting or perhaps even cynical to speak of "tramp pilots"?

Oh well, let's leave the church in the village - and the pilots in their Airbuses and Boeings. Although, we are very serious about this job title, because it also applies very well to the streetcar cockpits. If only visually and in terms of positioning - ask a female streetcar pilot how it feels to glide through the pulsating traffic of Zurich behind the huge window. You are right in the middle of it, at the front, in the center. And the job description has also changed in recent years: What has not changed is the high level of responsibility and the ability to concentrate - just like pilots of the skies. Customer service and information in the event of a malfunction have become increasingly important. And a good, professional appearance. This development can be traced very nicely on the basis of professional dress. By the way: For many tramp pilots, this profession is also a dream job, almost a bit like an engine driver for the city.
 

How important is it for you to pick up the campaign in the other media as well as social media?

Very important. We try to follow the changing communication needs of the target groups. That's why we mix classic media, which still make sense in a broad-based campaign, with new ones. So we rely on radio advertising just as much as on blogs or Facebook.
 

What is the feedback on the campaign in numbers?

The figures for the campaigns, the third of which is already running at the moment, are sensational. But with applications from women doubling from 16 to 31 percent, I think it's fair to use that term. By 2012, the percentage of women sitting at the front of the streetcar was 21 percent. In 2013, thanks to the target group-focused approach, over 40 percent were women. And that's without any quota requirements, but just through targeted, good recruitment advertising. One that is also fun, a bit cheeky and courageous - or cheeky, as we call it.
 

You have written a book on the subject of "Recruitment. What "drove" you to do it?

First and foremost, it was simply the sheer joy and passion for the topic of HR marketing that made me pick up the keys. Because this, and that was a second motivator, is still a wallflower. And yet, as you can read up and down the country, we are in a "war for talents", as is well known or alleged. God knows that very little of this is reflected in personnel advertising. That is why I have written a book, or rather published it together with experts from Switzerland, Austria and Germany, which on the one hand contains 13 good practical examples and on the other hand addresses the attitude that is needed in HR in order to finally make more clever personnel advertising. I often experience that HR colleagues report back to me that they find the personnel advertising of VBZ striking and unusual, and that they would also like to go in this direction. My book is intended to give a few tips in an entertaining way and perhaps also a portion of courage to do just that. Entertaining means that the book is not an academic treatise, but rather a story book. Because I portray five exciting personalities who embody the five essences of cheekiness. Our advertiser Markus Ruf is one of them, but also Künzli owner Barbara Artmann and three other people who have something to say in HR. My hope, which is of course entirely immodest, is that the almost 300 pages of paper will plant at least a tiny seed of inspiration for fresh HR advertising in the minds of HR professionals.

Interview: Andreas Panzeri

Ruf Lanz has designed a job advertisement for female streetcar pilots in the form of a fashion report for the Zurich public transport company (Werbewoche.ch reported).

Coming soon to bookstores and already available as an e-book from Springer Gabler Verlag.

On February 9, 1964, 74 million television viewers watched the Beatles perform on the «Ed Sullivan Show» on CBS. The first live broadcast of the band—previously unknown in the U.S.—is considered the catalyst for the unparalleled «Beatlemania,» which led to the Liverpool “mop-tops” occupying the top five spots on the U.S. singles charts as early as March 1964. The short concert, consisting of five songs, marked its 50th anniversary in 2014. Reason enough for Jimmy Fallon to celebrate the memorable performance and show a previously unreleased clip from the show for the first time. True pioneers of the modern era—and not just because of their timeless, brilliant music. (hae)

via Thelaughingsquid.com

Markus Werner has many years of experience in the communications industry, according to the statement. Among other things, he worked as a journalist at the Neue Luzerner Zeitung and for ten years in corporate communications at Feldschlösschen. Markus Werner is 45 years old and holds a master's degree from the University of Zurich. The Sunrise media team is thus complete again as of March 1 and consists of Géraldine Mathys, Roger Schaller and Markus Werner.

Robert Vego joins the Mediasec team as the new publishing director from March 1. He will replace Markus Good and, after initial familiarization, will take over further magazines from Galledia in his area of responsibility. The 40-year-old was most recently Managing Director of FMM Fachmedien Mobil, Berne, and previously held various key account and sales manager positions at APG, Alcan Airex and Publicitas, among others.

Marco Hendriks has been recruited as Product Manager. The 45-year-old Hendriks has held various positions in the past as product manager at Publicitas, Publiconnect and TV3, among others. He has found his way to Mediasec from Goldbach Audience and, according to the company's statement, is ideally placed to provide active support to Mediasec in the management of existing business areas and the expansion of new ones, including e-learning.

Marcel Schmid, who has been with Mediasec since 2007 and Editor-in-Chief of Security Forum since 2011, will take the lead in designing the Mediasec conferences. The editorial team will be strengthened in the coming weeks. Uschi Imhof will continue to pull all the strings in the conference organization. Tanja Ruckstuhl will take over as head of media consulting at Mediasec. The 41-year-old has been working successfully for Mediasec in sales since 2010 and is expected to use her experience to drive the expansion plans significantly forward.

Marco Hendriks, Uschi Imhof and Tanja Ruckstuhl (l.t.r.)