Frei, partner to give Schaffhausen a new image

 
The canton of Schaffhausen wants to move away from its tourism-heavy image and will therefore present itself as a place to live and do business with a large-scale campaign. "The canton also wants to tackle the problem of ageing and the low basic income," says Mäni Frei, owner of the responsible agency Frei, Partner, to Werbewoche. When you hear Schaffhausen, you should no longer only have images of the Rhine Falls in front of you. A little paradise" will be launched in September 2008. "We are looking for a dialog with the people of Schaffhausen, as it is about the image of the entire canton, and the people should support it. Our question will be what is needed for this little paradise," says Frei. The first presentation will take place at the Zug trade fair in October. In April 2009, the new image will be promoted with advertisements, posters, radio spots and on the Internet.
The campaign aims to emphasize the low property prices, the beautiful recreational area and the proximity to Zurich. Although the canton is small, this also means short distances and a personal atmosphere in which individuality rather than mass counts, says Frei. Because an image change takes time, the campaign will run intensively for at least four years. An annual budget of CHF 800,000 is available for this, which will be financed via the regular budget and the existing advertising budget of CHF 200,000 from the Schaffhausen Economic Development Agency.
Frei, Partner was awarded the contract via the Schaffhausen government's economic development agency, for which it had already been carrying out residential marketing. For this reason, the contract was awarded without a competitive presentation, says Frei, who founded the agency 20 years ago in Schaffhausen and moved with it to Zurich three years later. Despite being based in Zurich, the agency continued to work for clients in Schaffhausen. In June, the agency is moving back to its home base.