Gastro Kanton Zürich: How Zutt & Partner reinvented the brand with neuro-marketing
Gastro Canton Zurich demonstrates that brand management today is about more than just design and visibility. Nearly two years after its rebranding by Zutt & Partner, the association proves that those who understand emotions can move markets. The result: a 50 percent increase in active users and an engagement rate of 59.5 percent.
Instead of relying on classic branding, Gastro Kanton Zürich decided together with Zutt & Partner for neuro-marketing - an empirical approach that relies on customer emotions instead of customer statements and thus avoids many typical biases (survey distortions). The EmoCompass survey tool used identified three key emotional factors that are crucial for Zurich's hospitality industry: Proximity, inspiration and trust.
"We didn't want a stronger brand - we wanted one that resonated," says Walter Schweizer, Head of Marketing at Gastro Kanton Zürich. "Neuro-marketing helped us to reach the subconscious of our members - and thus create a real connection again."
From logo to attitude to life
The new branding is not a facelift, but an emotional architecture: the logo, imagery and typography visually convey closeness, inspiration and trust. The new website www.gastro.zuerich with nine subdomains is not a "digital catalog", but invites dialogue, connects people and offers valuable e-commerce functions. And every other element of the new brand also consistently serves the emotional appeal: the course brochure in particular becomes a multi-sensory experience with its round punching and interactive parts.
The effect: emotions that make success measurable
Almost two years after the launch, the figures speak for themselves: plus 50 percent active users on the website, the session duration has increased from 53 seconds to over four minutes. The engagement rate is 59.5% and the Google rating is 4.6 stars (previously 3.9). The association also recorded a 20% increase in course participants, new target groups and a stronger regional identity.
The difference: traditional marketing communicates - neuro-marketing builds loyalty
While traditional brand work directs the eye, neuro-marketing directs the emotion. Zutt & Partner's EmoCompass translates neuropsychological needs into concrete design and communication - from website structure to tonality.
"Zutt & Partner's neuromarketing approach, which has been tried and tested over more than 20 years, creates brands that do more than just look good - they meet the actual desires of the target group. The consistent incorporation of neuropsychological principles ensures greater involvement and conversion. Gastro Kanton Zürich is a prime example of effective brand work on an emotional level," says Philipp Zutt, Managing Partner at Zutt & Partner.
What used to be GastroZürich is now Gastro Kanton Zürich - an association that brings the catering industry together. The rebranding shows how strategic branding works through emotions: Precise instead of bold - with the aim of not only being visible, but making real belonging tangible. A textbook example of how neuromarketing combines brand, people and motivation with measurable success.
Zutt & Partner, based in Bubikon-Zurich, specializes in neuromarketing, customer experience and the emotionalization of marketing touchpoints. With innovative tools such as the EmoCompass and EmoCheck, as well as expertise in over 50 neuro-principles for more impact in the customer brain, Zutt & Partner helps companies to differentiate themselves emotionally and create unique customer experiences. Gastro Kanton Zürich is the cantonal industry and employers' association for the hospitality industry in the canton of Zurich and represents over 2500 member businesses.
