The brand strategist
As the new strategist at Euro RSCG Switzerland, Sonja Hürlimann wants to offer clear added value.
As the new strategist at Euro RSCG Switzerland, Sonja Hürlimann wants to offer clear added value. "We have the star in our logo," says Sonja Hürlimann, smiling proudly. The symbol next to the front door of the agency is a binding motivation for the 30-year-old executive: as the new Head of Strategic Planning at Euro RSCG Switzerland, she wants to "turn brands into stars". In order to achieve these goals, a move from Advico Young & Rubicam to Euro RSCG was the logical path for Hürlimann "after some thought". In a turnaround situation, you can shape and help shape a lot. What's more, at Gutstrasse in Zurich, she will meet a "charismatic management team".
At her previous position in Gockhausen, Sonja Hürlimann worked in strategy from day one, for eight years. "Learning by doing" and "stroke of luck" are the keywords for her at the time when she was Peter Felser's assistant.
Later, she realized the international Y&R brand study "Brand Asset Valuator" as project manager - in the meantime decorated with a federal diploma as Head of Marketing at the University of Bern. Following the departure of Felser's management team, the time had come for Sonja Hürlimann to take on a new challenge.
The new job is only the second in Sonja Hürlimann's young advertising career. After a commercial apprenticeship, she started out as a buyer in the fashion industry. But after three changes from winter to summer fashion, this business was already too routine for her. What fascinated her most about advertising was the great versatility of the work.
With consumer thinking within the agency and brand thinking towards the outside world, the strategist wants to offer clear added value. Strategic planning should help to steer the process from briefing to creative solution in a more targeted manner: "A more efficient way to achieve better solutions".
Hürlimann also teaches what this means as a lecturer at Polycom and regularly at various specialist conferences.
Hürlimann is convinced that her discipline requires a natural talent, a lot of common sense and a healthy curiosity. "You have to understand consumer behavior. You also need to be able to deal with creative people internally and customers externally."
She regrets that there is still a lot of bad advertising in Switzerland. In other words, advertising that has a counterproductive effect because it is not implemented attractively enough. "My motivation is to change that."
At Euro RSCG, the strategy is called "Creative Business Idea", CBI. This guiding principle is celebrated throughout the entire network. The aim is to find a creative business idea for the customer, detached from pure advertising and communication thinking. The aim is to develop marketing ideas that generate additional business - and not just promote an existing business.
The Euro RSCG network has many valuable tools and a very well-developed intranet, which enables access to a wide range of resources at the headquarters in New York and Paris. "This benefits both larger and smaller customers," Hürlimann is convinced.
With her new commitment, Sonja Hürlimann wants to "make a substantial contribution to ensuring that the new Euro RSCG is based on
is perceived differently on the market". Her goal: "The Euro should be experienced as great as it actually is." The agency is completely underfunded in the industry.
For the new strategist, however, it is "a nice starting position and challenge to be the unseeded outsider, just like in a horse race". What's more, the agency has only recently acquired such important clients as the Swiss Federal Railways SBB, M Electronic and the international budget Switzerland Cheese for 7.5 million dollars. "We also do work that is seen abroad," says Hürlimann happily.
Sonja Hürlimann wants to achieve better solutions for Euro RSCG with more efficient processes.
At her previous position in Gockhausen, Sonja Hürlimann worked in strategy from day one, for eight years. "Learning by doing" and "stroke of luck" are the keywords for her at the time when she was Peter Felser's assistant.
Later, she realized the international Y&R brand study "Brand Asset Valuator" as project manager - in the meantime decorated with a federal diploma as Head of Marketing at the University of Bern. Following the departure of Felser's management team, the time had come for Sonja Hürlimann to take on a new challenge.
The new job is only the second in Sonja Hürlimann's young advertising career. After a commercial apprenticeship, she started out as a buyer in the fashion industry. But after three changes from winter to summer fashion, this business was already too routine for her. What fascinated her most about advertising was the great versatility of the work.
With consumer thinking within the agency and brand thinking towards the outside world, the strategist wants to offer clear added value. Strategic planning should help to steer the process from briefing to creative solution in a more targeted manner: "A more efficient way to achieve better solutions".
Hürlimann also teaches what this means as a lecturer at Polycom and regularly at various specialist conferences.
Hürlimann is convinced that her discipline requires a natural talent, a lot of common sense and a healthy curiosity. "You have to understand consumer behavior. You also need to be able to deal with creative people internally and customers externally."
She regrets that there is still a lot of bad advertising in Switzerland. In other words, advertising that has a counterproductive effect because it is not implemented attractively enough. "My motivation is to change that."
At Euro RSCG, the strategy is called "Creative Business Idea", CBI. This guiding principle is celebrated throughout the entire network. The aim is to find a creative business idea for the customer, detached from pure advertising and communication thinking. The aim is to develop marketing ideas that generate additional business - and not just promote an existing business.
The Euro RSCG network has many valuable tools and a very well-developed intranet, which enables access to a wide range of resources at the headquarters in New York and Paris. "This benefits both larger and smaller customers," Hürlimann is convinced.
With her new commitment, Sonja Hürlimann wants to "make a substantial contribution to ensuring that the new Euro RSCG is based on
is perceived differently on the market". Her goal: "The Euro should be experienced as great as it actually is." The agency is completely underfunded in the industry.
For the new strategist, however, it is "a nice starting position and challenge to be the unseeded outsider, just like in a horse race". What's more, the agency has only recently acquired such important clients as the Swiss Federal Railways SBB, M Electronic and the international budget Switzerland Cheese for 7.5 million dollars. "We also do work that is seen abroad," says Hürlimann happily.
Sonja Hürlimann wants to achieve better solutions for Euro RSCG with more efficient processes.
Andreas Panzeri
