"The results of the study clearly show the uninterrupted triumph of content marketing," study author Adis Merdzanovic of the Institute of Marketing Management at the ZHAW School of Management and Law was quoted as saying in a statement.

Two years ago, just over half of all companies stated that they were using content marketing as part of their marketing activities; in the current study, this figure has risen to 66 percent of all companies surveyed. Even those companies that do not currently use content marketing want to introduce it in the near future.

A look at the budget shows how important content marketing is for companies. Already today, an average of 42 percent of the total marketing budget goes to content marketing.

Use of content marketing in Switzerland 

63 percent of the companies surveyed rate content marketing as effective. It is interesting to note that companies that have been using content marketing for more than three years consider it to be particularly effective. Other companies, on the other hand, which have only recently entered content marketing, rate its effectiveness more cautiously. "This shows that content marketing is a strategic rather than a purely operational approach," says Merdzanovic. "The successes only materialize in the medium term."

In general, the study shows a clear increase in the professionalism of companies in content marketing. According to the study authors, this is not surprising, especially since the increased distribution increases the competitive pressure and the content produced must be distributed not only qualitatively better, but also more efficiently. Most companies today have clear content marketing strategies with defined target groups and clearly identified key topics. Responsibilities are defined in writing, processes are sensibly defined, and content management tools are used for planning and distributing content.

Often there is a lack of competencies

Challenges arise in particular in the area of content creation, because the relevant competencies have not yet been built up in the companies. Almost all of the companies surveyed have a clear need to catch up in this respect, which some of them are remedying by buying in external services.

"Certain companies struggle to reach the target audience with relevant and high-quality content," says Adis Merdzanovic. In this regard, data can help, as it allows conclusions to be drawn about the actions, interests and preferences of the clientele. In fact, most companies use their data with the aim of achieving a better understanding of their clientele. In addition, data is used to critically review created content and thus find out which content formats or topics resonate with the target audience and how. "Here, however, companies are only at the beginning, because the potential that lies in the various data has not yet been fully exploited," concludes Adis Merdzanovic.

Content marketing formats

In terms of content formats, it is clear that companies are using the full range of options: From simple articles on the company's own website to social media posts to printed or digitally delivered magazines. It is interesting to note that while many companies use generic or easy-to-produce formats, those formats that require more effort or have a clearly definable target group are rated as much more efficient.

The Content Marketing Study 2023 by the Institute of Marketing Management at the ZHAW School of Management and Law examines the spread and use of content marketing in Switzerland for the third time. To obtain the data, around 680 Swiss companies of various sizes were surveyed in December 2022. The study was financed by Watson and AZ Konzept. 

The magazine had invested in expansion. Some of the new offerings were an enrichment. However, this did not result in the targeted growth. Above all, the expenses had grown, announced the Republic on Tuesday in a letter to its publishers as co-owners.

Therefore, the magazine will "vigorously reduce" its budget in the coming years. According to the information provided, the reduction of several staff positions and cuts in material costs will not be sufficient to achieve this. Republic had to part with eight employees.

Core business neglected

According to the report, the expansion plan failed because the magazine had not focused on its core business - journalism. The plan had been Republic in the spring of 2022, after the magazine had been in the black for two years. The target was 33,000 subscribers and members by summer 2023, about 5,000 more than at present.

CHF 8.6 million was budgeted for this. However, virtually no investment led to an increase in subscriptions. Instead, the number fell. Growth projects failed because they did not meet a reader need. An advertising campaign also fizzled out.

The Board of Directors and the Executive Board accept responsibility for the failed strategy and resign as a whole. On March 10, publicist and manager Roger de Weck already resigned with immediate effect.

The reason given by the magazine at the time was disputes over strategy, the importance of journalism and how to deal with the publication's crisis and the role of the board of directors. The 69-year-old had only taken over the job in November.

Chairman of the Board of Directors on board until a new appointment is made

Then followed Chairman of the Board Sylvie Reinhard and digital entrepreneur Alfonso von Wunschheim (Werbewoche.ch reported). Both will leave the Board of Directors when their successors have been determined. Reinhard sees it as the Republic according to their duty to take responsibility.

"Not many departing bosses - see Credit Suisse - do that," the letter says. Reinhard had been with the magazine since the beginning, serving as chairman of the board of directors and a member of the cooperative's executive board from 2018.

There were also operational Republic Change. Oliver Fuchs relinquished the editorship at the beginning of 2023. (Werbewoche.ch reported). He held the office on an interim basis. Managing Director Miriam Walther left in the fall of 2022.

The previous interim Co-Editor-in-Chief Bettina Hamilton-Irvine will now take over the function permanently. Feuilleton founder Daniel Binswanger will continue to assist her on an interim basis as Co-Editor-in-Chief. (Werbewoche.ch reported).

Moving history

The Republic was launched on January 14, 2018, as an ad-free digital magazine for politics, business, society, and culture. At the launch, there were many advance praises and around seven million Swiss francs from patrons as well as potential readers.

The online medium was struggling to survive financially in 2020 and launched appeals for additional subscribers. It says it has over 28,000 members and subscribers and employs over 50 editors, technical staff and other employees.

Organized is the Republic on the one hand as a stock corporation, and on the other as a cooperative. The former is responsible for publishing the magazine, the latter for non-profit objectives such as training and a research budget. (SDA/swi)

Advertisingweek.chRoger Oberholzer, you took over as CEO of the Metaverse Academy in Zurich at the beginning of March. How did this - still relatively young - Academy come about?

Roger Oberholzer: The Metaverse Academy was founded a year ago out of the Kuble agency and provides practical skills, strategic know-how and fresh inspiration in the topics of Metaverse, Web3 and NFTs. On May 16, 2023, together with the Swiss Association of MBAs SAMBA, we will be holding the first Metaverse Leaders Summit with the main topic "How leading brands enter the metaverse".

What does the Academy offer? What can participants expect?

In our public and customized Academy programs, such as the "Metaverse Strategist" and the "Web3 Leader", leaders and professionals can get ready for the future. We are convinced that you can't just learn the Metaverse, you have to experience it. You can read a lot about it, but only experiencing it shows you the potentials and hurdles. Wherever it makes sense, our sessions take place in the Metaverse.

What does the "second leg" consist of?

The second pillar is Metaverse "VR Experiences", where marketing and innovation teams immerse themselves in the Metaverse world with our Experience Guides and gain hands-on experience. With the Experiences we are also present at industry and corporate events, where we want to inspire guests with current and fascinating applications. Although the Academy is still very young, over 4,500 people have already dived in and and over 500 innovation-hungry people have taken advantage of the learning opportunities. In addition, we are currently building the "Road to Knowledge" learning community. There is a lot to learn and we want to take Switzerland on the journey of the next digital evolution.

With the exception of a certain consulting workload, you are leaving your position at Notch and Publicis, respectively, where you spent years developing digital marketing strategies for your customers. Why do you think metaverse applications are "the next big thing"? 

We already store, work, learn, play, consume content, and meet like-minded people digitally today. In the next iteration of the Internet, we are now adding digital identity, digital ownership, and immersive experiences in 3D. This is increasingly blurring the lines between the real and virtual worlds.

The real world is thus supplemented by an additional layer.

From my point of view, the value proposition of the Metaverse is as follows: "You can be who you want to be - immerse yourself into infinite experiences at any time - and do everything together with likeminded from everywhere." This sounds fundamentally like something humans have always intrinsically aspired to. To break out of our own small world and become independent of our own body. Today, we are still a long way from this promise. At Publicis, however, the topic is gaining enormous momentum globally. And there are already some relevant and creative cases like the Samsung presence on Decentraland or the Non-Fungible Animals, an NFT project by colleagues in Germany for WWF.

Aren't you worried that "the metaverse" will turn out to be a mere buzzword in the end? 

Discussions about Metaverse, Web3 and NFTs, as well as the underlying technologies such as Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence and VR/AR, feel like they did about the Internet before the turn of the millennium. At times totally overrated, often undervalued, and repeatedly pronounced dead, it has transformed our society in many areas of life. Large, far-reaching technological innovations always take time. Just as the hype surrounding the renaming of Facebook to Meta created expectations that were far too high, it is also wrong to think that the Metaverse will simply disappear again.

What else does the Metaverse need to be suitable for the masses?

Various ingredients are needed: 5G and fast WiFi, simple and affordable interfaces - i.e. devices -, user-friendly tools for consumers and creators, attractive content and, above all, desirable experiences for consumers. There is still a lot to do in the interface, tools and experiences. However, progress is accelerating and there is a global community of passionate innovators, entrepreneurs and developers driving it. In addition, AI is fueling the evolution of the metaverse. When virtual experiences can no longer be laboriously created, but can be instantly built in an automated way through prompts, exciting "spaces" will emerge much more quickly. And when tech companies with large global customer reach, such as Salesforce, Shopify or Amazon, integrate new NFT and Web3 applications into their solutions, suddenly there is broad market coverage. Then there is the question of when Apple and Samsung will present new solutions. That could happen very quickly or still take time.

Where can we already see successful metaverse applications today - and where do you think they will become even more important in the future? 

The global luxury and fashion industry is an absolute pioneer. Everything to do with digital identity or its presence as an avatar has already become a new business field for innovative brands. Gucci and Nike are generating sales in the two- and three-digit million range, respectively. In addition, consumer brands from various industries such as retail, FMCG and automotive are building new brand experiences or loyalty programs. Advisory processes in finance, legal and insurance are being virtualized with the help of AI. And digital twins support sales in the real estate industry. Each industry has its own individual applications.

Where do you see the greatest potential?

I see a lot of potential in the industrial metaverse. VR and AR applications with digital twins can support product development, process planning, and also training and the execution of services. Since this often involves larger investments, there are clear business cases.

What is the most common misconception that companies currently make regarding Metaverse applications? 

That just watching and waiting is enough. Metaverse, NFTs and Web3 are not just another channel that can then be added to the mix. There is a different cultural understanding that requires a different mindset and necessitates new forms of communication.

Can you elaborate on that?

Today, 94 percent of access to immersive virtual worlds happens via mobile and desktop. But even there, the experience is completely different than on a 2D website or social media feed: more social, more interactive, more self-determined, more personalized, and more alive. The brand experience can thus be rethought. This does not yet work smoothly today, but in the medium term it has similarly great disruption potential as we have experienced with eCommerce and with social media. Here, too, digital-first companies have shaken up the market and turned it upside down.

So it's high time for companies to actively engage with the metaverse.

Exactly, in my opinion, brands and companies should first and foremost get to grips with the topic and gain initial experience. Breitling, Richemont, Axa, Sygnum, Siemens, Roche and PwC, for example, will be demonstrating how companies and brands deal with this in practice at the Leaders Summit in mid-May. I am very much looking forward to discussing strategies and applications that add value and keep brands dynamic and fit for the future.

In the five specialist centers of Bauhaus Switzerland, professional craftsmen and ambitious do-it-yourselfers can find 120,000 products and expert advice from professionals - including at the Mels site. Following extensive renovation work during ongoing operations, this was completed in 2022.

In order to increase the frequency with existing and new customers, Bauhaus Switzerland commissioned the agency at the airport with the development and implementation of a down-to-earth promotional campaign. For all those who like to plane thick boards, build high walls and lay large pipes, there were snack and shopping vouchers. In addition to B2B snack mailings, a public report, an OOH poster campaign, banners, social media ads and a landing page were implemented.

Responsible at Bauhaus Switzerland: Dr. Christoph Theler (CEO), Melanie Pinter (Head of Marketing), Céline Meichtry (Marketing Manager), Responsible at agency at the airport: René Eugster (overall responsibility), Michael Lindenmann (PR/text), Dominique Rutishauser (art direction), Ketil Eggum (art direction), Max Eugster (consulting/project management).

As Head of Partnerships & Sales, 48-year-old Reto Wenger will be responsible for expanding the current marketing business at SFV. For 25 years, he has made a name for himself as a successful pioneer and developer of beach soccer and as the owner of Starc Marketing & Sports with event formats and marketing mandates in a wide range of industries.

"Wenger is a proven expert with broad management and market experience and detailed knowledge of the marketing and sports industry," said Peter Gelton, director of marketing at SFV.

The Sechseläuten is the centuries-old tradition at the beginning of spring in Zurich and one of the most popular folk festivals in German-speaking Switzerland. The highlight: After the procession of the guilds, the Böögg is burned on Monday punctually at 6 pm.

The Zurich agency has used the momentum of the Volksfest for two of its clients in different ways. Firstly, as part of the VBZ campaign, which regularly picks up on the traditional Zurich event with a wink. The current motif visualizes that once a year, even the environmentally friendly VBZ are happy to see men on horsepower doing their rounds and fogging up Zurich. The motif appears in full-page print on Sechseläuten Monday in 20 minutes and will be distributed on the social channels of VBZ.

In another way, Ruf Lanz uses the Sechseläuten for the Helly Hansen Workwear Center. There you can find workwear that offers protection even under the most adverse conditions. To demonstrate this, Ruf Lanz put brand new fireproof workwear on the Böögg. That way, the firecracker wouldn't explode at all, and there would be sales-promoting Helly Hansen huddle weather all summer long. The fireproof Böögg can be seen on posters in and around the sales location in Wallisellen and on social media.

Responsible at VBZ: Silvia Behofsits (Head of Corporate Communications), Sherin Madassery (Junior Project Manager Corporate Communications). Responsible at Helly Hansen Workwear Center: Peter Wider (CEO). Responsible at Ruf Lanz: Markus Ruf, Danielle Knecht Lanz (Creative Direction), Isabelle Hauser (Art Direction), Armin Arnold (DTP), Markus Ruf (Text), Kevin Meier (Consulting), Gian-Marco Juon (Consulting Management). External partners: Michèle Aschmann (image editing).

At the beginning of June, Finn Stein will become the new head of Wemf's research department. He will thus assume overall responsibility for the Research & Development division and lead a team of eight employees. Stein graduated in journalism from the University of Zurich and holds a Master's degree in Data Science. With his extensive professional experience in the areas of research and media planning as well as in personnel management, he fulfills all the required qualifications for this key position at Wemf.

Finn Stein succeeds Jella Hoffmann, who took up her new position as managing director of Wemf at the beginning of 2023 (Werbewoche.ch reported). Hoffmann is convinced that he has found an ideal successor in Finn Stein: "With his many years of agency and research experience as well as his high affinity for data, Finn Stein is an absolutely perfect fit for us. We have a lot planned for the next few years, both in terms of our large-scale studies and with regard to new, innovative projects. So I'm already really looking forward to working with Finn."

"Over decades, Wemf has built up several of the most comprehensive and highest-quality data sets in the Swiss media and advertising industry. The opportunity to conduct practice-relevant research at such a high level excites me immensely," says Finn Stein about his new professional challenge.

According to the agency, the chatbot can provide significantly more precise and accurate answers - also with reference to current information - through the use of prompt engineering incorporating current web data and a specially developed knowledge base. In the chatbot's administration area, the specific knowledge of the chatbot can be checked and various settings - such as the language style - can be adjusted. This allows companies to offer their customers and prospects an effective and interactive way to answer their questions.

"We are excited to launch our new chatbot service Max, offering local, regional and of course national businesses in Switzerland an innovative solution for their customer communications," said Simon Muster, CEO of Maxomedia. "Our goal is to help our customers increase their efficiency and improve their customer satisfaction."

The Max chatbot service is now available in Switzerland and is already being used by the first Maxomedia customers.

Climate change is here and now, and society is already strongly affected by its impacts today, the statement said. "We scientists are concerned about these developments and are committed to ensuring that climate policy decisions are made based on the best available information."

The signatory scientists are all professors and senior scientists from the fields of climate, energy, environment, sustainability and environment-related policy, social sciences and humanities, economics and law, the accompanying letter said.

The Climate Protection Act is the indirect counter-proposal to the Glacier Initiative, which was withdrawn with reservations. The Climate Protection Act contains different reduction targets for greenhouse gas emissions with the aim of achieving "net zero" in 2050. At the same time, the councils adopted support programs for technical innovations and the replacement of fossil fuel heating systems.

The SVP had filed a referendum against the climate protection law. The vote will take place on June 18. (SDA)

In the current spot, Silverspot stages a family cooking and enjoying together at the lake. Remo Civatti, Managing Director, and Nicolas Vonlanthen Creative Director of Silverspot are satisfied: "The TV spot not only shows the beauty of nature, but also the importance of sustainability and healthy nutrition. The goal is that the TV spot will inspire viewers to integrate Herbamare in their kitchen and enjoy healthy meals with their loved ones."

The TV spot also conveys that Herbamare is additive-free, organic and vegan, making it well-suited to a healthy diet. It will be broadcast in German, French and Italian from the beginning of May. In addition, the TV spot can also be viewed on Silverspot's website.

Due to the rapidly growing clientele in the Zurich region and the increasing space requirements of the 30-plus-strong team, Tincan is expanding its capacities and opening a second branch. The new premises are located at Bederstrasse 51, in the immediate vicinity of Enge train station and in the middle of Zurich's agency hotspot.

With its additional location, the full-service agency for marketing and communication wants to be closer to its Zurich clientele, be able to respond even more agilely to new inquiries in the future and, as an attractive employer, also attract additional talent from the Zurich area. "We are very excited to expand our passion for creative online and offline marketing, websites and visual content spatially and to position ourselves even more strongly in the Zurich area with the Creative Station," Nina Stadelmann, marketing consultant and brand coordinator at Tincan, was quoted as saying in a statement. "We have several new additions this summer, and with our additional office space, we're grabbing the opportunity to continue to grow and expand even more, offering individually tailored marketing solutions."

Read here the Agency check from Tincan.

Apart from the yellow banner typical of Greenpeace, the current campaign has a completely new look. The focus is on people who show attitude - and literally draw their dreams on their faces. Photographed in a tonality that matches the brand: raw, authentic, yet lovingly playful and radiating hope.

In its current campaign, the environmental protection organization not only expresses its dreams, but also provides suggestions for action on how to achieve the goals it has set. For example, with new laws for a consistent climate policy, with sustainable investments for a climate-friendly financial center or with a respectful treatment of nature for a planet without overconsumption. Interested parties can find out what this means in detail from Monday onwards at the Landing page.

Furthermore, Greenpeace has set itself the goal of promoting social change for a globally just life and bringing about systemic change. For this overarching theme, which encompasses Greenpeace's previous concerns and at the same time goes beyond them, a separate subject was created.

The symbols on the models' faces are intended to create a link to the individual themes as well as to the Greenpeace brand itself. At the heart of the campaign is an Instagram filter that functions as a random generator. The AR filter selects one of the four visions for a better world and makes the symbols appear on the face. In this way, Greenpeace wants to give people the opportunity to show their stance and become part of the campaign themselves.

The campaign can be seen online and offline throughout Switzerland from Monday. In addition to posters, ads as well as implementations for banners and social media channels were created. Tattoo sheets as giveaways are also to follow.

INTERVIEW WITH PASCAL DEVILLE

"The dream should not remain a dream"

Werbewoche.ch: Pascal Deville, Monday sees the launch of the current brand campaign for Greenpeace. How did you come up with the idea of "wishes written on the face"?

Pascal Deville: From the beginning, it was clear that the campaign should convey the dreaminess of the "Dreampeace" mission statement, but still have a strong attitude. Greenpeace was founded 50 years ago by a bunch of hippies with a big vision. From this came the campaign idea of militant dreamers, whose "war paint" reflects Greenpeace's many issue areas. The iconic yellow banners give the dream conciseness and urgency. After all, the dream should not remain a dream.

How did the collaboration work? Was Greenpeace involved in the creative process from the beginning?

The collaboration with Greenpeace and Freundliche Grüsse has now been in place for just over two years. Back then, we were catapulted directly from the pitch into the anniversary campaign [Werbewoche.ch reported] and only really got to know Greenpeace during the relatively short conception phase. What many people don't know: Greenpeace is already working behind the scenes on issues that won't be relevant in society for a few years. The brief was to make the existing brand campaign more emotional, with a stronger focus on people. The idea was then a brainstorm. The creative process with the relevant Greenpeace experts followed afterwards, in the formulation of the messages.

What's important when you're marketing topics that aren't meant to inspire consumption, but rather a change in thinking. That are not so sexy per se. Are there any no-go's?

As an agency, we see marketing and advertising not just as a means of promoting consumption, but also as a lever for social change. This is also what our motto "Create Positive Impact" stands for. And making something superficially unattractive interesting is something I always accept as a grateful challenge. There are no-gos in the NGO world just as there are in brand and brand communication. In both, the rule of thumb is "Know the rules. Break the rules."

Responsible at Greenpeace Switzerland: Caroline Strohm (Marketing Manager), Franziska Neugebauer (Visual Communication Manager), Claudia Forcellini (Fundraising Overview). Responsible at Friendly regards: Pascal Deville, Samuel Textor (overall responsibility), Norihito Iida, Christian Stüdi (creative direction), Laura Leuenberger (graphics) Roxana Hudson, Alessandra Di Giorgi (consulting), Sandro Matter (Instagram filter). Photography: Sabina Bösch. Make-Up Artist: Juliette Ruetz. Production: Out of Order Productions. Image processing: Lorenz Wahl.