A well-prepared new start
Over the course of more than a year and a half of conceptual work, Axel Springer Switzerland has gradually reorganized and revamped its lineup of TV guide magazines. With the launch of the new TV Star on May 27, this realignment is now complete.
In mid-2007, Axel Springer Switzerland took over the TV magazines Tele, TV2 and TVvier from Ringier in addition to its own TV Star. A lot has happened since then: the editorial offices and advertising sales were each given a joint management. Tele and TV Star have been repositioned so that they get in each other's way less: Tele is now a family magazine with a broad range of topics, while TV Star focuses on TV and film celebrities.
What they all have in common is a clearer program overview. In addition, TVDigital became a tele-supplement with new Switzerland-related content, the subscription price for TV2 was increased, while the advertising rates for all titles were massively reduced as of October 1, 2008.
All these steps, which were repeatedly reported on by Werbewoche, were always understood at AS Schweiz as preparations for the relaunch of the two main titles Tele and TV Star.
Tele, the premium title in the AS Schweiz portfolio of TV magazines, was already given a facelift in November, accompanied by a broad-based print and TV campaign. Now TV Star will also be given a makeover on May 27. "Our aim is to differentiate TV Star even more clearly from its sister title in future," says Gion Stecher, Editor-in-Chief of TV Magazines AS Switzerland. The aim is to make TV Star "younger, more feminine and more urban", i.e. to appeal even more consistently to the audience that it already reaches better than Tele. For this reason, graphic designer Caroline Grimm was deliberately commissioned with the redesign, says Stecher.
As with Tele, the changes to TV Star are already apparent on the cover. The logo, which previously took up the entire width of the front page, is now about half the size and leaves more space for the cover picture. Whereas previously the letters "TV" were white with a red border, it is now the other way around, while the word "Star" is completely white, with no border. This looks more stringent than before.
In terms of the cover concept, TV Star remains largely true to itself, but the star depicted is no longer shown in "his" surroundings. The spotlight is on the person themselves, with a classic portrait that essentially lives from "eye contact" and in which the colors of the skin, eyes, dress and background are precisely coordinated.
The entire magazine design is based on the motto "linger instead of getting lost in it", says graphic designer Caroline Grimm. However, each section now has its own pastel shade for graphic elements such as info boxes. This improves reader guidance. Inside the magazine, the first thing that catches the eye is the new, clear font. The titles are also uniformly black and there are no more sensational red highlights. Overall, the layout is more airy. This brings more calm to the magazine.
At the same time, TV Star is given a teasing touch with small elements such as colored "sticky dots" on a photo corner or yellow highlights reminiscent of Post-it notes. "We have found that this appeals to women much more than men," says Gion Stecher. The page structure remains in three parts: cover, program and puzzle. There are no major changes to the content either. The magazine remains focused on TV celebrities and film stars. However, the proportion of short messages will be increased.
An advertising campaign by Zurich advertising agency Spillmann Felser Leo Burnett is also planned for the relaunch. In addition, the TV Star website will soon have a new look and, above all, "the fastest program guide in Switzerland". However, the magazine's distribution concept remains the same as before: around 40 percent of its circulation (2008: 169,761 copies) is distributed via combined subscriptions with NZZ, Basler Zeitung and various regional newspapers, the rest via direct subscriptions and individual sales. This gives the program guide a fairly stable reach (285,000 readers). However, it is already clear that TV Star will certify a lower circulation this year. "We have made adjustments in the area of 'other sales', i.e. subscriptions that are discounted by more than 50 percent, in order to strengthen our paid circulation," says Marie-Anne Cobigo, Deputy Publishing Director TV guides. In contrast, she sees "potential for expansion" in sales partnerships with newspapers. She says that contact with other publishers will be intensified in future. She sees the relaunch as a door opener, also in the advertising sector. "The prospects in the advertising market are good," says Cobigo. It is true that TV Star, like many other titles, lost a lot of advertising volume in the first quarter of 2009. "But in April, the title is back up on the previous year."
Markus Knöpfli
What they all have in common is a clearer program overview. In addition, TVDigital became a tele-supplement with new Switzerland-related content, the subscription price for TV2 was increased, while the advertising rates for all titles were massively reduced as of October 1, 2008.
All these steps, which were repeatedly reported on by Werbewoche, were always understood at AS Schweiz as preparations for the relaunch of the two main titles Tele and TV Star.
Tele, the premium title in the AS Schweiz portfolio of TV magazines, was already given a facelift in November, accompanied by a broad-based print and TV campaign. Now TV Star will also be given a makeover on May 27. "Our aim is to differentiate TV Star even more clearly from its sister title in future," says Gion Stecher, Editor-in-Chief of TV Magazines AS Switzerland. The aim is to make TV Star "younger, more feminine and more urban", i.e. to appeal even more consistently to the audience that it already reaches better than Tele. For this reason, graphic designer Caroline Grimm was deliberately commissioned with the redesign, says Stecher.
As with Tele, the changes to TV Star are already apparent on the cover. The logo, which previously took up the entire width of the front page, is now about half the size and leaves more space for the cover picture. Whereas previously the letters "TV" were white with a red border, it is now the other way around, while the word "Star" is completely white, with no border. This looks more stringent than before.
In terms of the cover concept, TV Star remains largely true to itself, but the star depicted is no longer shown in "his" surroundings. The spotlight is on the person themselves, with a classic portrait that essentially lives from "eye contact" and in which the colors of the skin, eyes, dress and background are precisely coordinated.
The entire magazine design is based on the motto "linger instead of getting lost in it", says graphic designer Caroline Grimm. However, each section now has its own pastel shade for graphic elements such as info boxes. This improves reader guidance. Inside the magazine, the first thing that catches the eye is the new, clear font. The titles are also uniformly black and there are no more sensational red highlights. Overall, the layout is more airy. This brings more calm to the magazine.
At the same time, TV Star is given a teasing touch with small elements such as colored "sticky dots" on a photo corner or yellow highlights reminiscent of Post-it notes. "We have found that this appeals to women much more than men," says Gion Stecher. The page structure remains in three parts: cover, program and puzzle. There are no major changes to the content either. The magazine remains focused on TV celebrities and film stars. However, the proportion of short messages will be increased.
An advertising campaign by Zurich advertising agency Spillmann Felser Leo Burnett is also planned for the relaunch. In addition, the TV Star website will soon have a new look and, above all, "the fastest program guide in Switzerland". However, the magazine's distribution concept remains the same as before: around 40 percent of its circulation (2008: 169,761 copies) is distributed via combined subscriptions with NZZ, Basler Zeitung and various regional newspapers, the rest via direct subscriptions and individual sales. This gives the program guide a fairly stable reach (285,000 readers). However, it is already clear that TV Star will certify a lower circulation this year. "We have made adjustments in the area of 'other sales', i.e. subscriptions that are discounted by more than 50 percent, in order to strengthen our paid circulation," says Marie-Anne Cobigo, Deputy Publishing Director TV guides. In contrast, she sees "potential for expansion" in sales partnerships with newspapers. She says that contact with other publishers will be intensified in future. She sees the relaunch as a door opener, also in the advertising sector. "The prospects in the advertising market are good," says Cobigo. It is true that TV Star, like many other titles, lost a lot of advertising volume in the first quarter of 2009. "But in April, the title is back up on the previous year."
Markus Knöpfli
