State of Corporate Reputation 2020: Together with KRC Research, global communications and marketing agency Weber Shandwick conducted the online survey Everything Matters Now among 2,227 executives of high-performing companies in 22 markets worldwide. In addition to reputation, the survey also looked at culture, CEO activism, employee activism, crises and risks.

Reputation is subject to multiple drivers 

A company's reputation is influenced equally by a variety of factors, with no one driver having a greater impact than the others. When asked to rate nearly two dozen different factors influencing corporate reputation in terms of how much each contributes to their own company's reputation, global executives each assign similar scores. All 23 factors are ranked highly by nearly half of global executives. Everything from people and product quality to financial performance and corporate culture is relevant in guiding corporate reputation today.

Similarly, the report found that most reputational damage is self-inflicted. Among global executives who report that their companies have experienced a crisis that affected their reputation in the last two to three years, an astonishing 76 percent say the crisis could have been avoided.

Reputation is on the agenda of the Board of Management

Corporate reputation is on the radar of management. According to nine out of 10 executives (91 percent), corporate reputation is important to the board, and about half (52 percent) even say it is very important to the board.

Reputation is measured and communicated 

The majority of global executives (71 percent) report that their management measures or monitors their organization's reputation. When asked how reputation is measured, executives frequently cite factors such as employee satisfaction or engagement, revenue and financial performance, and surveys of various stakeholders.

In addition, reputation is a notable key point of communication from management. About seven in 10 (69 percent) say management has mentioned the company's reputation to the workforce in the past 12 months, and more than half of public companies (57 percent) report that corporate reputation has been the subject of sales discussions.

Value communication is the key

Communicating corporate values is critical today. Eight in 10 global leaders (79 percent) say it is important for the CEO(s) to communicate the organization's values in order to be highly regarded. In addition, a company's ability to communicate and convey its mission, vision and values is closely linked to how a company survives a crisis, as it is the strongest marketing and communications-related factor in terms of reputation.

Insights on building reputation for higher market value

State of Corporate Reputation 2020: Everything Matters Now provides guidelines for strengthening a company's reputation to maximize its impact on market value. To do this, we surveyed a segment of global executives who achieve exceptionally positive financial results because of a strong reputation, with a statement that at least 76 percent of their market value is attributable to their company's reputation. The "76-percenters" are companies that work on their reputation for the highest returns and differ significantly from average executives in their behavior. The following insights are based on the key differences and form the basis for best practices to turn reputation into market value.

1. Recognize their importance
2. Monitor and measure them
3. Be an internal advocate
4. The management is very visible

Cookies continue to play a central role in the marketing ecosystem, and advertisers need to take two things to heart. On the one hand, user consent must be actively obtained and, on the other, cookie-free targeting alternatives must be implemented today.

Making consent palatable to users

The top priority for advertisers is, of course, to obtain the consent of users before setting advertising cookies. And there is a very good argument for this: cookies help to draw users' attention to suitable, relevant products and offers. "We have to make this added value visible to users so that they agree to our tracking methods," says Claas Voigt, Managing Director of Emetriq. "Nobody wants to see irrelevant advertising. We can see from the example of platform business models in the USA: Users there have long understood that their data is being used to guarantee them access to those services, among other things. And they accept this as a fair deal."

One thing is certain: consent is becoming mandatory, including for cross-site traffic, and is therefore a top priority. Advertisers should act immediately and actively obtain user consent. This is the only way they can continue to use cookies in compliance with the GDPR and prepare for a "post-cookie era". They can also continue to offer their users relevant advertising in the future and retain their loyalty. Another positive side effect: those who take the protection of user data seriously will gain trust as a result.

Cookieless targeting: How advertising remains relevant

The aim should not be to completely replace cookies. Rather, the aim is to create an integrated solution. For example, models that work on the basis of users with a cookie history are a good solution. These determine regularities and make predictions for the characteristics of users without opt-in. For each page view, these models can make a real-time prediction and assign characteristics to cookie-less surfers that enable precise targeting.

"Where cookies still provide good information, advertisers should continue to use them. This is because cookie technology will not necessarily die, but access to it and how it is used will change significantly," concludes Claas Voigt.

Through the collaboration, the 25-year-old will represent Teleboy's entire product range as an ambassador and give the company a face. However, both sides should benefit as much as possible from the digital partnership, explains Michael Wendt, CCO of Teleboy: "Luca has a large fan base in various age groups. This allows us to present our fair and individually combinable services to an even larger audience". The company would like to make its reach, as well as its expertise in digital communication, available to the musician.

Hänni will be seen on Teleboy's various digital communication channels in the coming months. Among other things, he will be present as an ambassador on the Teleboy website with its own TV channel, on social media channels, in online competitions and in videos.

Volunteers and social media-savvy employees from partners specializing in Samsung products were sought for the campaign. As part of a workshop, they learned how to present the products and their features in a subtle and appealing way, how to write and convey textual content and thus achieve the highest possible performance on the posts. In total, the 14 employees posted around 89 content pieces - from image posts and stories to carousels and videos.

In the first phase, the focus was on publicizing the product and its functions and features. Building on this, the new micro-influencers communicated various promotions in the second phase and activated their communities to visit the stores in order to achieve as many conversions as possible. "In principle, almost any employee is suitable for such campaigns," says Fabian Plüss, CCO and co-founder of Kingfluencers. "However, the advantage of sales employees is their natural extroversion, as they bring products to customers with great passion and energy on a daily basis anyway. This alone makes it easier for them to interact intuitively and authentically with their counterparts".

With an engagement rate of plus 400 percent, all targets were exceeded. In addition to desirable KPIs, Samsung also had overarching goals: The campaign was also intended to promote employee involvement and thus strengthen the brand from within. "If a brand is supported and sustained from within, this automatically has an impact on external stakeholders such as customers, which inevitably has a positive effect on business performance," says Plüss.

However, the new format is by no means replacing traditional influencer campaigns, as the two formats pursue different objectives. Nevertheless, almost all industries would be suitable for such influencer campaigns with employees.

The influencer agency would like to use and expand the expertise gained from the campaign in the future. According to the company, there are already plans to roll out such campaigns on a large scale, i.e. with hundreds of employees, in order to achieve impression or reach targets. For example, such a campaign could be combined with classic influencers.

In addition to its musical sponsorship commitment, Bank Cler is also continuously expanding its own brand sound.

The basis for this is the sound identity, which was designed by Department of Noise in collaboration with Scholtysik & Partner in 2017 as part of Bank Cler's brand launch. Based on this, two sound assets have now been produced. On the one hand, a curated playlist with 30 music tracks from online databases, which are located in a matrix according to the brand's areas of impact, according to intensity and according to the topics Bank Cler is working on. Furthermore, a "Video Score Set" was produced, which includes three exclusively created, universally applicable music tracks that are aligned with the brand's values and accordingly suitable for brand-related content. These tracks are also located in said matrix and bear the titles of their intended effect: "Digital Challenger", "Digital Native" as well as "Empathic Compagnion". Bank Cler thus has a music pool at its disposal that should allow it a high degree of creative freedom without the brand feeling falling by the wayside.

"With this content music solution, Department of Noise has provided us with a comprehensive tool that helps us to use 'sound' in a coherent and emotionally sharp way in the content area as well. And the exclusively produced tracks are not only 'right' for the brand, but are also really fun to listen to," says Greg Eicher, Head of Marketing at Bank Cler.

The Branded Content Music solution is now in use at Bank Cler.

• Address: Dorngasse 12, 3007 Bern
• Foundation: February 2010
• Founders: Valérie Pecalvel, Luciano Gerber
• Current agency heads: see above
• Number of employees: 12
• Current clients: Federal Office of Energy, Groupe Mutuel, Federal Office for the Environment, Geneva Tourism, Decathlon, Swiss National Library, Valais/Wallis Promotion, Benu Pharmacy, Lung League, Cancer League, Manotel, TPF, Securitas-Direct, HES-SO

Which campaign from the past twelve months are you particularly proud of?

STOPGETHER. Quitting smoking in a group via Facebook community is a new concept in tobacco prevention. Our campaign is 100 percent collaborative - from name to implementation. Always with a positive spirit. Packaging the serious topic of smoking in a positive way was the biggest challenge. The campaign is so popular with us that we ourselves were convinced to put down the cigarette in November. For now.

The most important campaign in agency history to date - and why?

We can't name them all, so we'd rather name one customer: EnergieSchweiz. It occupies a special place because it was one of the first to put its trust in our agency. And that has been the case for ten years. We are proud to be able to contribute to raising awareness in Switzerland with our work.

The most offbeat place your creatives retreat to be creative?

A place without wifi or 4G, although that is quite difficult to find.

What do you do when you have thought blocks?

We tell ourselves that everything will be all right. If we never had thinking blocks, it would mean we chose too easy a path.

What is your agency philosophy?

The creative acumen.

Why should talented people definitely come to work for you?

To immerse ourselves in a sea of three cultures and languages and because our daily work consists of many exciting projects that follow each other but are never the same.

How long do employees stay with you on average?

Above average.

How old is your youngest employee, and how old is your oldest?

(24+25+30+31+31+33+36+38+39+39+43+48) : 12

How high are the wages you pay compared to the industry average?

Average.

What is the ratio between the best and the worst paid employee?

1:2

Pay transparency: Do employees know among themselves who earns how much?

It is not openly communicated.

How much overtime do you work on average per week?

Almost none - in pitch-free weeks.

What benefits do you provide to compensate your employees for said overtime?

With flexibility on both sides. Full days are compensated.

How long do you get maternity leave and how long paternity leave?

Because we are committed to gender equality, we also offer paternity leave, even though it does not yet exist by law.

Is home office allowed - and if so, how often?

Yes, partly, but lively exchanges and discussions are irreplaceable.

What is the current quota of women?

The founder and head of the agency gives answer: about one third.

Although not the right agency dog, but still also very quiet and clean.

Where do you drink your after-work beer?

Everywhere. But since we quit smoking, not on the terrace.

The agency check with Franz&René is available in the Advertising week 11-12/2019 to read.

Do you employ interns?

One in creation and one in consulting: only these. If we don't have any projects for them or their profiles don't suit us, we'd rather leave the spot vacant than fill it unnecessarily.

Do you organize team events?

Too few!

Do you have an agency dog or other mascot?

A very calm and very clean dog.

The study "The Economic Importance of the Advertising Industry in Switzerland," conducted by the independent Swiss economic research institute BAK Economics on behalf of KS/CS Kommunikation Schweiz in 2019, shows not only how high the value added by this industry is, but also what a deep footprint advertising leaves on the economy as a whole.

More than 3 billion Swiss francs in value added

Net customer revenue from advertising in Switzerland - including GAFA (Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon) - is estimated at CHF 6.6 billion for 2018. In comparison, this corresponds to around one percent of gross domestic product (GDP). The advertising industry in the narrower sense - just advertising agencies and marketers - employs more than 22,000 workers, pays out wages worth a total of around one billion Swiss francs and generates direct value added amounting to around 1.6 billion francs per year. Every advertising franc generates another franc of value added in other industries, so the total value added is around 3.3 billion francs.

Same economic importance as the city of Zug

Estimates show, however, that the importance of the entire commercial communications sector - from advertising, PR, marketing and sponsoring to the advertising departments of the clients - is far higher. With almost 38,000 full-time jobs, the entire communications industry has roughly the same economic significance as the economically strong city of Zug.

On the one hand, the poster motif is intended to convey the idea behind it in a creative way. In addition, the sketch pen was designed in the shape of a Lucerne landmark. The water tower shows that the courses will take place in Lucerne.

The idea for the Sketching course was created in summer 2019. As part of the course, the graphic artist teaches sketching with pencil and sketchbook and provides participants with expert advice.

Various courses are currently being advertised, including at the Lucerne Club School. Martschini also offers sketching courses for children & young people in the Spring vacation an.

Hands on Design Thinking

• Author: Conrad Glitza, Rosa-Sophie Hamburger and Michael Metzger
• Publisher: Vahlen, 2019
• Pages: 137
• ISBN: 9783800660735

Innovations cannot be forced. But you can provide a breeding ground on which delicate seedlings of ideas can optimally mature into an innovation. This breeding ground is called design thinking. It is a user-centered creative process for finding ideas. The authors explain the method in a structured and entertaining way using a concrete case study. In addition, they provide many valuable impulses for implementation on 40 moderation cards. A guide worth reading for anyone who wants to know how design thinking works in practice.

Reality shock

Ten lessons from the present. 

• Author: Sascha Lobo
• Publisher: KiWi, 2019
• Pages: 392
• ISBN: 9783462053227

In Reality Shock, Sascha Lobo covers what he sees as the most important debate topics of the present: climate change, migration, the shift to the right, AI, social media. Particularly worth reading is his analysis of the Chinese striving for a cybernetic society, with the surprising punchline that the West is also lurching in this direction. Anyone who understands how to view the present as the past will already recognize in this book an important contemporary document.

Camera running!

Make video marketing and video campaigns successful. 

• Author: Thomas Bitzer-Prill and Wolfram Wagner
• Publisher: Haufe, 2018
• Pages: 260
• ISBN: 9783648118337

Two video producers set out to put as much as possible about filming videos into one book. The legal situation, the budget, the technology, shooting, editing, distribution - a lot for one topic. But the authors are experts, have studied in the field, have been working in it for years and consequently provide a lot of insider tips. For absolute laymen, this may be a bit too much and too technical. However, if you already have basic knowledge or are not put off by technical terms, you will get a comprehensive overview of how to produce good videos.

Positive Leadership

Successful leadership with PERMA-Lead: the five keys to high performance. 

• Author: Markus Ebner
• Publisher: Facultas Verlag, 2019
• Pages: 536
• ISBN: 9783708916866

Although the findings of positive psychology are obvious, they do not receive the attention they deserve in many companies. Many managers still see themselves as critics and controllers instead of letting their employees develop their strengths. This book guides managers to help their employees do just that - and thus increase the company's performance and innovation. It not only provides a good overview, but also makes you want to get started and start leading in a strengths-oriented way right away.

The main objective of the campaign is to make potential apprentices and employees aware of Bouygues Energies & Services and to motivate them to become part of the Bouygues family - from network electricians to ICT specialists and property managers.

The campaign can be seen in various print and online media as well as on posters. Lacher, Gruber & Ianeselli is responsible for the entire implementation of the campaign, from shooting to realization.

The new brand identity is embodied by a red logo box that is used in all external marketing materials. In terms of layout simplification, the previous splinter design was replaced with a modular and more flexible structure to meet the challenges of cross-channel and 360-degree marketing with a flexible format that works both online and offline.

Victorinox's new look is designed to show that functionality, quality, innovation and iconic design are at the heart of Victorinox's product and brand perception. Then as now, the Victorinox red, made famous by the Swiss Army Knife, is an integral part of the overall look.

The new brand design was created in collaboration with Brandpulse. At the beginning of the project, Brandpulse conducted a comprehensive brand analysis and developed the new design concept for the brand based on this analysis. "It was important for us to find the perfect balance between showing the origins of this traditional Swiss brand on the one hand, but at the same time enriching the appearance with an innovative design featuring the recognizable Victorinox red," explains Thomas Ramseier of Brandpulse.

The departure of Gishen, who joined Credit Suisse in the fall of 2015 at almost the same time as Thiam, was attributed to the Tages-Anzeiger became public on Tuesday. The newspaper refers to "CS sources". The head of marketing and communications is said to have been part of a "gang of four" within the bank, together with Thiam, ex-COO Olivier Bouée and ex-human resources chief Peter Goerke.

At CS, Gishen was responsible for marketing and branding as well as internal communications, in addition to communications and cultivating relationships with major shareholders. He is said to have been one of the few to have had a direct line to CEO Thiam.

According to Tages-Anzeiger Gishen's leadership as communications chief was "highly controversial. In practice, only he - based in London - is said to have had the relevant information at his disposal, while the other members of the communications department usually did not know much more than the journalists to whom they were supposed to provide information.