Soon warm rain for the advertisers
The ZKG Advertising Monitoring Report predicts continued favorable conditions for the advertising industry
The ZKG Advertising Monitoring provides a continuing fair weather forecast for the advertising industryBy Bruno Amstutz For the third time, the advertising agency Zogg Kettiger Gasser has launched a survey of leading Swiss companies on the situation in advertising. After two stormy years of budget reallocations, the signs are pointing to an upswing.
The study, entitled ZKG Werbemonitoring, was conducted by the Demoscope market research institute. A total of 300 advertising managers from the companies with the highest sales and the most advertising in German- and French-speaking Switzerland were surveyed. The topics ranged from the assessment of successful brand launches to the duration of collaboration with advertising agencies and the number of competitors invited to pitch.
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"It's about to start raining money," is one of the survey's interim findings. The reason for this optimism is the statement that 28 percent of the financially strongest companies are planning to increase their advertising budgets, by an average of 15.9 percent. Only four percent, on the other hand, foresee a cut in advertising spending.
In addition, 68 percent of the companies surveyed confirm that they have launched new products or services within the last twelve months. This speaks for a great dynamism of various economic sectors.
The situation for traditional advertising agencies appears generally favorable. However, cooperation with specialist agencies is on the decline. For example, 29 percent of the companies surveyed still commission a market research institute - 25.3 percent less than in the previous year's study. Cooperation with event and PR agencies is also on the decline. This could indicate a shift of resources to traditional advertising. Nevertheless, the stars are once again aligned favorably for PR agencies: 14 percent of the companies surveyed want to use PR agencies in their services in the future, only
4 percent, on the other hand, discontinue orders.
Annual survey as a tool for capturing trends
Oskar Gasser, co-owner of the Zurich advertising agency Zogg Kettiger Gasser, first commissioned the survey in 1998. "Until then, questions about dealing with advertising agencies were only asked by publishers," says Gasser, "and then it was mostly just about dividing up media budgets."
He sees the ZKG advertising monitoring as a longer-term project to help identify trends. The surveys remain comparable in essence, but are supplemented annually with topical questions.
Gasser sees 1998 and 1999 as stormy years in which many budgets were reallocated. The economic crisis reshuffled the cards in the advertising industry. Now the cards have been dealt, Gasser does not expect any major turbulence in 2001.
What the advertising monitoring also brings to light are huge areas lying fallow for advertising agencies: 29 percent of the largest Swiss companies handle their advertising exclusively internally, and the trend has been rising since last year. Oskar Gasser therefore also wants "missionaries to lead these stray sheep into the fold of BSW," as he writes in his evaluation. Gasser senses a multi-million budget potential in Swiss companies.
The study, entitled ZKG Werbemonitoring, was conducted by the Demoscope market research institute. A total of 300 advertising managers from the companies with the highest sales and the most advertising in German- and French-speaking Switzerland were surveyed. The topics ranged from the assessment of successful brand launches to the duration of collaboration with advertising agencies and the number of competitors invited to pitch.
Return to classic advertising
"It's about to start raining money," is one of the survey's interim findings. The reason for this optimism is the statement that 28 percent of the financially strongest companies are planning to increase their advertising budgets, by an average of 15.9 percent. Only four percent, on the other hand, foresee a cut in advertising spending.
In addition, 68 percent of the companies surveyed confirm that they have launched new products or services within the last twelve months. This speaks for a great dynamism of various economic sectors.
The situation for traditional advertising agencies appears generally favorable. However, cooperation with specialist agencies is on the decline. For example, 29 percent of the companies surveyed still commission a market research institute - 25.3 percent less than in the previous year's study. Cooperation with event and PR agencies is also on the decline. This could indicate a shift of resources to traditional advertising. Nevertheless, the stars are once again aligned favorably for PR agencies: 14 percent of the companies surveyed want to use PR agencies in their services in the future, only
4 percent, on the other hand, discontinue orders.
Annual survey as a tool for capturing trends
Oskar Gasser, co-owner of the Zurich advertising agency Zogg Kettiger Gasser, first commissioned the survey in 1998. "Until then, questions about dealing with advertising agencies were only asked by publishers," says Gasser, "and then it was mostly just about dividing up media budgets."
He sees the ZKG advertising monitoring as a longer-term project to help identify trends. The surveys remain comparable in essence, but are supplemented annually with topical questions.
Gasser sees 1998 and 1999 as stormy years in which many budgets were reallocated. The economic crisis reshuffled the cards in the advertising industry. Now the cards have been dealt, Gasser does not expect any major turbulence in 2001.
What the advertising monitoring also brings to light are huge areas lying fallow for advertising agencies: 29 percent of the largest Swiss companies handle their advertising exclusively internally, and the trend has been rising since last year. Oskar Gasser therefore also wants "missionaries to lead these stray sheep into the fold of BSW," as he writes in his evaluation. Gasser senses a multi-million budget potential in Swiss companies.
