Advertising for adults

 
Radio Roger Schawinski also relies consistently on news in its advertising.  
As usual, Roger Schawinski is stirring the pot with a big ladle. Be it for setting up the radio studios, be it for publicizing his new station. Radio is currently showing its new face not only on the airwaves, but also on billboards, on television and in the newspapers. Just what a young brand like Radio 1 needs in order to be noticed by the public. The advertising agency TBWA is responsible for the visual appearance of the station. Information instead of imageThe agency has been working at full speed for three months on the appearance of the new radio brand. After the logo was presented at the end of November, the agency set about designing a total of 20 communication materials: From corporate design to communication in all media to the order pad or the invoice or fax form automatically generated by the computer. "An agency only gets a chance like this to develop a brand from scratch once every two years at most," says Andy Hostettler. The TBWA boss is proud of his team's achievement: "This was also an important lesson for the newly formed TBWA."
Looking back, developing a launch campaign for the start of broadcasting was no easy task, says Hostettler. The big sticking point was the question of what Radio 1 really needed in terms of communication. Hostettler: "We learned that unconventionality, as we demand from our strategists and creatives, is not only to be found at the advertising level. If a brand like Radio 1 already has an inherently disruptive approach, it doesn't need unconventional advertising on top of that." This is why the visual language of the current campaign is neither outlandish nor overloaded. The campaign subjects are limited to the logo, the claim "Only for adults" and the communication of the frequency "93.0". The agency deliberately did not dig too deep into the creative bag of tricks. "The campaign has to fulfill an informational task. We have to position the radio formally, because the program itself is Radio 1's image tool," says Hostettler. In Hostettler's opinion, placing Roger Schawinski at the center of an advertising campaign would have been the wrong approach, although the agency had toyed with the idea. Ultimately, it was clear to everyone that Roger Schawinski could obtain the necessary presence for free. In fact, there is hardly a Swiss medium that does not report on the polarizing radio pioneer.
In order to reach as many potential listeners as possible, the media plan focuses on outdoor advertising. Schawinski's station is trying to get the population in the greater Zurich area excited about its new radio project. The poster sites were booked by hand. The team used a route where Radio 1 can be received on the 93.0 frequency as a template. The sites were selected along this route and increasingly in the city area. In terms of advertising impact, Hostettler calculates that 60 percent are reached via the posters, including the streetcar advertising. 30 percent via TV and 10 percent via the Sunday and daily press. The choice of media was not a question of socio-demographic characteristics. "The topic of adulthood is a question of action. Every listener is welcome," says Hostettler.
Christian Lüscher
This is what Swiss media write about the launch of Radio 1 "Roger Schawinski has promised us a radio for adults time and again. But what the new station Radio 1 brought us on its first morning is hardly distinguishable from the other local radio stations in Zurich. The music is the usual mainstream drone, made up only of older hits. The news is short. A little more news from abroad, a little less petty crime and accidents than on Radio 24 and Radio Energy. As expected, Radio 1 can't keep up with the overpowering DRS newsrooms."
Tages-Anzeiger-Online, short review
"Professional, well-groomed, unagitated, but also a little boring."
Tages-Anzeiger
"There is no doubt that Roger Schawinski and his renowned team, which consists mainly of experienced radio professionals, are still masters of their craft. But yesterday it was not yet completely clear to what extent Radio 1 really differs from the other local radio stations."
Aargauer newspaper
"Fortunately, no gray areas were discernible on Radio 1 during the listening test, as can be seen elsewhere. In other words, Radio 1 did not broadcast any obscure contributions that left it unclear whether the messages were of an advertising or journalistic nature."
New Zurich Newspaper