Since June 1, 2021 Blick.ch/fr online and, according to its own information, records around 90,000 visits a day. In order to become even more popular with the French-speaking Swiss, the medium is now being restructured and expanded by several positions.

The editorial team will continue to be led jointly by Editor-in-Chief Michel Jeanneret and Thomas Deléchat, who has been newly appointed Editorial Director. Digital expert Céline Pétremand will take charge of the Web Desk, which is responsible for all publications on the website as well as for the dissemination strategy. Vaudois journalist Antoine Hürlimann will head the News division, which is responsible for news from Western Switzerland and exclusive research. Camille Bertholet will head the New Audiences team, which focuses on producing content for new audiences.

The team will also be complemented by journalist Tim Guillemin, who will join the editorial team at the beginning of September and take over responsibility for the sports team. Guillemin was previously editor-in-chief of the newspaper La Région Nord Vaudoiswhich he headed for three years.

"Thanks to an extremely professional and dedicated team, the launch has exceeded our expectations," says Ladina Heimgartner, CEO of the Blick Group. "We are convinced of Blick's great potential in French-speaking Switzerland and have decided to invest in its further development - in order to gain further strength in the market and thus take an even more important position in French-speaking Switzerland."

This restructuring will be accompanied by the creation of additional positions. By the end of 2023, the editorial team intends to greatly expand its editorial offering and increase its innovative capacity by collaborating with new digital and AI specialists. Corresponding vacancies are to be advertised in the next few weeks.

Business news is high on the agenda - but has difficulty reaching the younger generations. Yet financial and economic information plays an important role in trend-setting decisions about the financial future. This is precisely where Blick Romandie comes in with its newly launched "Money" channel. It starts today with storytelling and a multimedia presentation of the topics economy, finance and cryptocurrency.

Users will not only find innovative formats and advice at "Money", but also experience reports and current financial news. Experimental formats on the topic of cryptocurrencies will be added shortly. The editorial team can also count on strong partners - such as the specialist journalist Myret Zaki and the agency Large Network.

"We are finding that young adults are increasingly interested in investment strategies that can help them grow their money. However, they often lack the relevant knowledge. We are therefore all the more pleased that we can now teach these basics with our channel," says Michel Jeanneret (49), Editor-in-Chief of Blick Romandie.

The new channel is supported by the free financial app Yuh, which was developed by PostFinance and Swissquote in 2021 and whose functions are aimed specifically at the younger generation. Markus Schwab (45), CEO of Yuh: "Our goal is to create the best financial experience in Switzerland for our users. That's why, in addition to a comprehensive product and more and more services, we want to equip our Yuhser* with knowledge so they can take control of their finances and savings. For this reason, we are very pleased to partner with Blick."

Just under a year ago View Romandie launched (Werbewoche.ch reported). According to its own information, the news portal now has over 60,000 visits per day. Now the journalistic offering is being strengthened with a prominent new addition. From May 1, 56-year-old Richard Werly will join the editorial team as a correspondent and report from Paris and Brussels on current events in France and Europe.

Werly was awarded the Jean Dumur Prize in 2020 and is considered a well-known political commentator in France. His assessments are often quoted in French media, and Werly is also a valued guest on talk shows. His latest book, "La France contre elle-même," was published in the middle of the presidential election campaign.

"Richard Werly is a brilliant journalist and one of the most respected voices in French-speaking Switzerland when it comes to reporting on France and Europe. His exceptional experience will be of great benefit to our editorial team," said Michel Jeanneret, editor-in-chief of View Romandie.

Fabien Goubet, a food expert, joins the editorial team. The science journalist has been passionate about gastronomic topics for years and until recently worked in the science section of "Le Temps". Between 2018 and 2020, he conceived several video series for the restaurant guide "Gault&Millau." With the Food Channel, Goubet wants to appeal not only to gourmets: "Cooking, drinking and eating are basically quite banal everyday activities, but at the same time also very exciting journalistic fields. I feel honored that I can now report on this culture for Blick."

In addition to daily articles, the Blick Food channel will also regularly publish videos about innovative companies and initiatives from the world of gastronomy. With an eye on younger generations and new consumer trends, special content will also be created for social media. And to round it all off, there will also be the weekly newsletter "Le Cornichon" starting in April.

For Thomas Deléchat (30), Head of Creative Lab, the topic of food is to become another journalistic mainstay of Blick Romandie alongside news and sports. "As a topic, gastronomy fits perfectly into our ecosystem and also enjoys a high status among the young target group. Moreover, it is an industry that deals with social trends and is constantly evolving. With its own channel, Blick Romandie is set to become the home for all food topics in French-speaking Switzerland."

Developed internally

The new app was developed by an internal IT team. The content and features of "Blick I fr" are based on the Blick Group's brand values: clear, bold, pioneering and close. It aims to offer faster access to all relevant content and exclusive news through push notifications. The range of videos and podcasts from its own Creative Lab will also be even easier to find.

One week after its launch, "Blick I fr" is already at the top of the news download charts in the app store and has already received positive ratings from users.

Launch campaign in the starting blocks

A major advertising campaign is being rolled out in French-speaking Switzerland to mark the launch. From Monday, various images on the themes of crime, ice hockey and football will be used to promote the app.

In addition to posters, advertising on screens, advertisements and mobile and social ads, the campaign can be seen on over 700 posters on public transport. In February, a seven-meter-wide mega poster will be on display at the Lausanne Flon metro stop.

Just four months after its launch on June 1, 2021, Blick Romandie with its 20-strong editorial team will be able to assert itself as a strong voice in the media landscape of French-speaking Switzerland. The content traffic data published for the first time by mediapulse for the Swiss online market shows an average of 40,000 visits per day. The new portal has around 1.2 million visits per month. The length of stay is a pleasing two and a half minutes, and the traffic share from Switzerland is 85 percent.

According to Ringier, the first political newsletter in French-speaking Switzerland and the editorial podcast with soccer star Johan Djourou have been very well received. According to Ringier, the new portal is also in high demand among advertisers, such as Blick Top Deal, which is now being advertised nationally together with Brack.

Michel Jeanneret, Editor-in-Chief Blick Romandie, says: "We are still at the beginning of a long adventure, but our strong readership figures after only four months show Blick's successful start in French-speaking Switzerland. The persistence and independence of our research and the different perspective have made it possible for Blick to become a weighty voice in the media landscape of French-speaking Switzerland. Also thanks to the close cooperation with our colleagues from German-speaking Switzerland."

Christian Dorer, Editor-in-Chief of the Blick Group, is also pleased with the good figures: "The successful launch clearly shows that there is also a high demand for exclusive, informative and entertaining news in French-speaking Switzerland. The voice of Blick is now heard and read throughout the country. Proof that there is no Röstigraben for well-done journalism."

Tuesday was a busy day for the French-language Blick editorial team, which moved into the Ringier offices near the Bessières Bridge in Lausanne. "This is the start of a great adventure that was launched nine months ago," said Michel Jeanneret, editor-in-chief of Blick.ch/fr, told the Keystone-SDA news agency. The Zurich media group Ringier had announced the edition for French-speaking Switzerland last fall (Werbewoche.ch reported).

News, current affairs, sports, politics and pop culture: The French-language medium aims to be a generalist and hopes to appeal to the younger generation "who are not just into entertainment," as Jeanneret says. "The average age of the team is 30, and if it weren't for me, at 48, it would be even lower," he said, amused.

The French-language portal employs 20 people, including 15 journalists. The team is divided into three areas: the Investigative Lab for French-language research, the Editing Lab for translations and adaptations, and the Creative Lab for the development of creative formats - videos, podcasts, newsletters and social networks.

Cooperation across the Röstigraben

By the end of 2022, the new medium aims to reach 700,000 unique visitors per month. It will cooperate with the German-language portal, whose content is clicked on by more than a million users every day. One of the goals is to identify attractive articles and adapt them to the cultural environment of French-speaking Switzerland.

"In the French-speaking part of Switzerland, everyone knows the View. It's an opportunity to be able to launch with such an image," said Jeanneret, who will lead the editorial team together with Thomas Deléchat, who has been appointed product owner.

Blick is already the second online portal launched by a German-speaking Swiss media group in French-speaking Switzerland this year. The French version of AZ Medien's online portal Watson has been online since the beginning of March. (SDA)