Advertising yourself

Dear Dennis,

Jean-Remy von Matt once said to me that the main reason he hired me back then was my application. Because the most difficult thing in our profession is to advertise yourself. Only those who can do that can also be creative for their customers.

The last few weeks have impressively demonstrated what it means to promote yourself. But before I come to you, dear Dennis, I would first like to give all future candidates for the office of "Advertiser of the Year" a few tips. Because after the election is before the election. So if you really want to make it next year, I recommend that you get into position early, preferably as early as next week.

First of all, you should put together a campaign team. The agency where you work would be ideal for this. They can delete all the junk campaigns you've run in the past from your website. Old mistakes can otherwise blow up in your face very quickly in digital times.

From now on, only press photos of you should be used in which you don't look too well-behaved, but also not too arrogant, but always somewhat selfless and slightly humble. Good statements that always work: "I feel honored", "All nominees deserve to win" and "The title would be an award for the whole agency".

For the really big vote catcher, because what are 5000 Facebook friends, the future "Advertiser of the Year" is best off going to a busy pedestrian zone for an hour or two. He places himself under a colorful parasol and engages passers-by in brief conversations with the help of coffee and homemade cookies. Don't forget balloons in the colors of the respective agency and with your likeness on them. This is a particularly good way to convince younger voters. After all, no one is too young to sign up for a newsletter subscription to Werbewoche.

As the title "Advertiser of the Year" is to a certain extent equivalent to a public office, Swiss television would have to make a few campaign seconds available free of charge. Ideally, each nominee should have the opportunity to point out behind their own commercials that what they have just seen was their work, and to comment on it accordingly: "If you liked my commercial, please vote for me as 'Advertiser of the Year', I will guarantee that commercial television will be more fun again in the future."

Dear Dennis,

I have some very, very good news for you: The whole election campaign would not have been necessary at all. It was absolutely clear to me, and I know I'm not alone in this, from the very beginning who had to be this year's "Advertiser of the Year", namely you.

You're not better than Johannes, you're not better than David, and you're not better than Livio. But you simply did it a little better than the others last year. You showed with innovative campaigns that the best advertising for yourself is still the advertising itself.

Dear Dennis, I am delighted that you have won with your work. You didn't deserve it any other way.

Thomas Wildberger is CEO of Publicis and "Advertiser of the Year" 2016. At the award ceremony, the previous year's winner traditionally gives a laudatory speech for his or her successor.