Moderated by SRF presenter Julian Thorner, the GLP politician Chantal Galladé, Zattoo founder Bea Knecht, former ski world champion Daniel Albrecht and former "Nachtwach" presenter Barbara Bürer took to the podium that evening to discuss the topic "Klar zum Wenden - Weil das Leben keine Gerade ist" ("Clear to turn - because life is not a straight line").

The panelists' contributions ranged from light-hearted anecdotes to very personal accounts of how differently people deal with making decisions.

Of self-chosen changes of direction and unexpected strokes of fate

Chantal Galladé, who has made a change of direction par excellence by switching from the SP to the Green Liberals, knew how to entertain the audience, as did IT entrepreneur Bea Knecht, who described herself as a walking Google A/B test due to her past as a man and earned many laughs for this.

The same goes for Daniel Albrecht, who impressed the audience with his account of the time after his serious fall on the legendary Streif and his fight back to life. Last but not least, former "Nachtwach" host Barbara Bürer proved that she is not only a good listener, but also has a lot to tell. For example, she talked about the homesickness for Switzerland that plagued her as an editor of the weekly newspaper "Zeit" in Hamburg at the time, or about how she thought she was already in Wimbledon as a talented young tennis player.

The guests bid farewell to the panelists with much applause. At the subsequent aperitif in the "Aura", there was still a stimulating exchange between the panelists and the audience.

More exclusive pictures of the editorial team for the Wirz Cocktail 2019 can be found in the Who's Who of the Advertising Week 11-12/2019.

Today, several companies offer apps for voice assistants. According to an overview compiled by HWZ and Voice Meetup Switzerland, Swiss flights can be booked by voice input, for example, or the "Bring!" shopping list can be used.

However, the corresponding devices are still sparse in Switzerland: according to a study by the University of Lucerne and the Farner agency, just 1 percent of Swiss people were using so-called smart speakers in the fall of 2018, and 13 percent planned to do so in the next twelve months.

Nevertheless, the media companies in particular are already leading the way with their own offerings: AZ Medien, Radio Energy, Tamedia, Swiss radio and television SRF, and RTS in French-speaking Switzerland, for example, are making selected news broadcasts accessible via voice command.

"We want to be at the forefront of these new interfaces, even if the use of voice assistants is not yet widespread in Switzerland," says Xavier Zeppetella, Innovation Project Manager at RTS, in an interview with news agency AWP.

Smaller markets in Europe

Unsurprisingly, the U.S. is already much further ahead in this area, says Frédéric Feytons, head of technology at Tapptic, the company that helped develop the voice-controlled RTS applications. American households contain 42 percent of the roughly 200 million smart speakers in circulation worldwide, he said. The advantage of the market for English-speaking consumers is obvious: it is huge.

Europe, on the other hand, is struggling with the challenge of making speech recognition as good for the many languages spoken here as it is for English. American vendors would determine which language to support next based on market size.

The technology is not yet fully developed, says RTS project manager Zeppetella. For example, the Swiss German dialects are not taken into account. "The market is developing at two different speeds." For example, the pace in France and the U.K. is rapid, while in this country the market is not advancing, the RTS project manager says. Radio France, for example, has doubled the number of its listeners via voice assistants within a year.

Given the proximity to Google and its speech recognition research center, however, the Swiss market is unlikely to be left out for long, Zeppetella believes. "I am sure that a solution in Swiss German will also come out." When asked by AWP, however, Google kept mum on the matter. A spokesperson simply said that there was nothing to announce at the moment.

Access hurdles still high

With Google and Amazon, the voice assistant market is dominated by two US giants that can dictate the rules. For example, they determine how easily users can use content. Right now, RTS users would have to utter a specific phrase such as "Parler à RTS Info" to gain access, Zeppetella said. Without that phrase, Google Home and Alexa would spit out their own search results - explaining the weak use of RTS via those devices.

In contrast, the British BBC and Radio France, for example, have negotiated with Amazon and Google to deliver their own news by default for certain keywords, Zeppetella said. He expressed confidence, however, that RTS could also soon make a move here. The tech companies are open to such talks and want to offer users the best content in each case, he said.

RTS is not short of ideas for offering such attractive content. "In a first phase, we mainly wanted to offer access to our content. This will be followed by a phase in which we want to tailor the content specifically for such platforms." In a third phase, the focus will be on interactivity.

Strong growth expected

Tapptic expects strong growth in demand for voice-activated applications within one to two years, driven by various media such as radio, television, but also other sectors such as call centers looking to optimize their operations.

Voice assistants are particularly interesting for very short interactions. "In these microinteractions of just a few seconds, speech unleashes its full power: accessing the service is then faster than with other interfaces," says Feytons. If smart speakers catch on in the U.S., Europe could then follow suit: "Publishers are waiting for success on the other side of the Atlantic before they really invest here." (SDA)

On its new platform "FinanceScout24", Scout24 has been offering customers deals on mortgages, small loans and motor vehicle insurance since the beginning of the week. The goals here are ambitious. "We want to become one of the major players in the market," CEO Gilles Despas told the media in Zurich on Wednesday.

Scout24 intends to benefit not least from the integration of the new offers into its existing platforms. A potential buyer of a property on "Immoscout24" is now also immediately forwarded to the offers for mortgage financing if he is interested, a car buyer on "Autoscout24" can also compare and apply for offers for financing his purchase and for vehicle insurance.

Still room

Despas was convinced that the starting position for the launch of the new service in Switzerland was good. Unlike in Germany or the UK, for example, the online share of the financial and insurance market is still low. This also means that competition is still low: "There is still room.

The Swiss mortgage market, for example, has an annual volume of mortgage redemptions and new mortgages worth around 170 billion francs, said Jan Hinrichs, who is responsible for "FinanceScout24". Only about 4 billion francs, or 2.5 percent of this sum, is currently brokered by online providers such as Moneypark, the Comparis company Hypoplus or others, he said: "There is still huge potential here".

The market for consumer loans also still offers great potential, according to Hinrichs. Across Switzerland, small loans worth around 4 billion Swiss francs are concluded annually, of which only around 10 percent are brokered online.

100 new employees

The new portal represents the largest investment in Scout24 Switzerland's history, Despas said. A total of around 100 additional jobs would be created within the new business unit by the end of next year.

In the spring of this year, Scout24 had already acquired the mortgage broker Hypoguide. This will continue to operate under its previous name, but its offerings will be integrated into the new platform, Despas said.

Expand portfolio

The partner companies in the "FinanceScout24" offering currently include eight providers of motor vehicle insurance, four consumer credit companies and over 40 mortgage providers. The "partner portfolio" is to be continuously expanded, promised those responsible.

There are plans to expand the range to include other products: In the future, it could also offer household and liability insurance, vehicle leasing, as well as life insurance and pillar 3a products.

Scout24 Switzerland is owned half by the media company Ringier and half by the insurer Mobiliar. There is no connection with the German provider Scout24 - apart from a license to use the name. (SDA)

The SJSO brings together the country's best classical musicians, who perform at the highest level. For many members, the SJSO marks the beginning of a career that continues in world-famous orchestras around the globe.

Unfortunately, far too few Swiss people are aware of this. This is because classical musicians are naturally more inclined towards subtle tones. The loud advertising drum is not part of their basic equipment.

The SJSO has therefore sought support from people who have made self-marketing their profession: Influencers, Instagrammers, YouTubers - in short: content creators.

This is the idea behind an entertaining web series that Bank Cler has now launched as an SJSO sponsor to help the "SJSOs" attract more attention. 

Under the title "Viral and Virtuoso", SJSO representatives meet very different Swiss influencers in three episodes: the pop musician Nickless, the model Lynn Grütter and the freerunner Marsh.

Both sides put each other to the test in several challenges.

The commitment "My Autograph" is intended to express that cars represent a primal human need: the freedom to do things spontaneously and go one's own way.

MyAutograph.ch was launched with a content hub. The first blog articles are dedicated to electromobility, the mobility of the future and new technologies. Portraits about a wide variety of people from Switzerland convey how the car is used and in a variety of ways.

Building on this, the main part of the engagement begins in January - with a film series in which people in Switzerland, accompanied by well-known personalities, tell their personal relationship with the car. The series consists of eight episodes, will be shown on MeinAutogramm.ch and communicated on TV and online media. A print and online campaign will run in parallel.

"Individual mobility is a need for freedom that is highly relevant to the Swiss," explains François Launaz, President of Auto-Schweiz. "The Farner team presented us convincingly that the agency understands our brief at all levels of communication and will demonstrate in an inspiring, informative and surprising way how the car will continue to contribute to solutions in the individual mobility mix in the future - and in an increasingly environmentally friendly way."

The magazine is aimed at all lifestyle enthusiasts who want to find out more about their blogger and Instagram stars. Stories about their lives away from Instagram and co., including fashion, beauty, travel and food, form the main focus of the magazine's content. 

Reach is backed by an experienced team of bloggers, marketing specialists, stylists and photographers, working exclusively with Swiss micro-influencers and bloggers. Steffi Hidber, the beauty blogger from "Hey Pretty", is Editor-in-Chief and forms the creative duo at Reach together with Managing Editor Cristina Paoletti: "We are looking forward to the diverse, colorful world of the Swiss influencer and blogger scene. Reach is set to become an exciting piece of culture!" 

At Galledia, publishing manager Guido Käppeli is responsible for marketing the magazine. The first issue with a circulation of 15,000 copies will be published on Friday. The publication will appear four times a year. Reach is distributed exclusively via the social media channels of influencers and bloggers, as well as through retail sales and as a Subscription.

Zürcher Kantonalbank wants to position itself as the ideal pension partner and as a counterpart that responds to customers' individual needs. As part of an always-on strategy, the Zurich agency Freundliche Grüsse developed a content bracket that is brought to life using several peaks. In the first peak, "Retirement planning," target persons are encouraged to arrange retirement issues and make an appointment for a consultation.

This is implemented by means of a campaign that focuses on unpredictable surprises in the future. The key visuals show situations in which the protagonist is in a moment of concentration. The headlines focus on drastic changes that the people depicted are facing in the future - without being aware of them at the moment. 

The activating slogan "Let's talk about the future" invites the viewer to prepare for the future with Zürcher Kantonalbank and builds a bridge to service. The campaign launched Monday on posters, print and digital ads, a landing page and in branches. In addition, online spots and a longer cinema version are being played out. 

Ricardo presented a brand refresh for its 20th anniversary on November 18, 2019, and with it a new, rejuvenated and reduced appearance. The new design embodies Ricardo's positioning as a simple,trustworthy and modern online marketplace and the various moments ofjoy that trigger the special buying and selling experience on Ricardo.

The powerful orange in the logo was retained to express the continuity of the established Swiss industry leader in the second-hand market. Ricardo's new "R" can be used on its own as a figurative mark.

It is then accompanied by the i-dot, which becomes a Circle. The Circles are intended to symbolize the rapidly growing trend of the Circular Economy as well as the dusted-off and increasingly modern image of the Second-Hand trade.

This represents an increase of 10.8 percent compared with September and a rise of 5.5 percent compared with the same month of the previous year. At 5,996.8 million gross Swiss francs, cumulative annual advertising print is close to the 6 billion mark. This also represents a year-on-year increase (+2.6%).

Advertising print in the overall market: Development of advertising print as of October 2019

Food sector ahead of automotive sector in annual ranking for the first time

As in the previous month, the financial sector again generated the highest advertising pressure of all sectors in October. However, since the services sector also generated advertising pressure, the gap between it and the financial sector shrank only slightly. All three top sectors improved year-on-year, so there will be little change on the podium between now and the end of the year.

The food sector confirmed its positive trend and overtook the automotive sector in October for the first time this year. This comes as no surprise, as two representatives are ranked first (Kinder Riegel) and sixth (Kinder Schoko-Bons) in the top 10 products of the month. Ferrero thus consolidates its fourth place in the ranking of the top advertisers, directly behind the three advertising giants Coop, Migros and Procter & Gamble. There are no changes in the industry rankings at the back of the pack.

Political campaigns remain strong

Political campaigns provide virtually the same advertising pressure as in September, which is still due to the parliamentary elections on October 20. In addition, the FDP National Council is once again among the most advertised products of the month, this time in eighth place.

This means that political campaigns show the second-largest increase in percentage terms, both compared to the same month last year and YTD. In terms of percentage increase, the tobacco industry is ahead in each case, but in absolute terms it continues to carry the red lantern.

News from the Top 10

With a strong increase of 208 percent compared to the same month last year, CSS Versicherung has climbed into the top 10 advertisers. Denner (+132.4%) is also making strong gains compared to October last year. In addition to FDP National Council, SBB has also managed to stay in the top 10 products of the month since September. Top seller Kinder Riegel even manages this for the third time in a row.

Advertising pressure in the sectors with year-on-year comparison.

The top 10 advertisers and most advertised products and services (excluding assortment and image advertising) in October.

Media Mix

The integration of Search data, Desktop (January 2017) and Mobile (July 2017) into the Media Focus advertising statistics has led to a significant increase in the share of Internet in the media mix. Since January 2018, Search data has also been collected for French-speaking Switzerland (Search share: 85% DE/15% FR).

As part of the "Cozy Christmas" campaign last December and "Draussenzimmer" in cooperation with Ikea Germany, as well as "Dream room" with Ikea Switzerlandwhich function according to the same principle, over 25,000 pinboards have been created by users to date. 

"We can reach people early on in the inspiration process and pick them up with our interior design ideas. In the current campaign, people can discover inspiration and products suitable for the cold and festive season and use them to create their own personal cozy winter home," says Ines Bolter, Project Leader Marketing Campaigns at Ikea Switzerland.

All details about the campaign can be found at Winterhus.ch. Inspiration for creating your own pinboard on the theme of "Winterhus" is provided by the pinboard of the same name on Pinterest, which is being filled with ideas with the support of bloggers Sabrina Stierli from Healthy & Happy and Patrizia Furrer from Lilaliv. The campaign is a close collaboration between Pinterest and Ikea Switzerland. Pinterest accompanies the campaign in the product, for example in the highlights and via its own channels. 

Werner Bärtschi is taking his well-deserved retirement after 38 years with Emil Frey. In addition, Marco Mascis will take over sales from Dominik Hurter, who is also retiring, at the end of April 2020. Marco Mascis is familiar with the automotive industry from his previous activities and most recently worked in the watch industry.

Werner Bärtschi joined what was then Streag as advertising manager on Monday, January 4, 1982. In this function, he had one of the most interesting jobs in the Swiss automotive industry at the time, as an "advertiser" for twelve brands from three continents. From Japan: Subaru, from the USA: Chrysler, Plymouth and Dodge, and from England: Jaguar, Daimler, Austin, Morris, Mini, MG, Triumph and Land Rover. When Subaru Switzerland emerged from the importer Streag in 1999, he focused exclusively on the appearance of the 4×4 pioneer for the last 20 years as Director of Marketing Communications.

With the newsletter "NZZ Asia", the NZZ the rapidly growing economic and political importance of the region. The 20 economically most important countries in Asia are home to four billion people. They generate a third of the world's economic output.

The growth markets in the Far East are rapidly gaining in importance for the Swiss economy. Switzerland's exports to Asia, for example, have risen by 15 percent within a decade and amount to 40 billion Swiss francs annually. "We see considerable market potential for 'NZZ Asia' because there are hardly any journalistically prepared, well-founded economic and political analyses on Asia in the German-speaking world. The existing offerings are interest-driven and academic or technical in nature," says Matthias Kamp, project manager for "NZZ Asia" in Zurich. "With the new newsletter, we are closing a gap in the information offered on the world's most important growth region."

Peter A. Fischer, Head of the Business Editorial Department of the NZZ: "'NZZ Asia' is the independent, analytical-constructive companion on the way to and in Asia for executives, entrepreneurs, public officials and investors who are or want to be active in Asia and for all who want to understand Asia in depth." 

The content for "NZZ Asia" is researched and written exclusively for the newsletter. The first part of the newsletter is the news section with short reports plus a classification of the most important events of the week. This is followed by an infographic and the weekly focus with in-depth analysis on an economic, financial, technological or political topic. A commentary or a guest article as well as a short interview or a short portrait, dates and book tips round off the offer. For the coming year, an expansion of the offering to include a weekly podcast and in-depth events on Asia is planned.

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