Just in time for its 20th anniversary, the non-profit association Crescenda from Basel has a new corporate identity. It was not intended to be a radical change, but rather a further development. And above all, the target groups should be able to recognize it quickly and clearly. This was the brief given to Feinheit, who developed the new look.

Reaching the goal with human-centered design

To meet the objectives, the agency combined its expertise in visual design with its experience in human-centered design and decided to work with people from the target groups. It quickly became clear that one target group was by far the most important: women with migration experience who attend business start-up courses or vocational training at Crescenda. In workshops with representatives of this target group, Feinheit was able to capture and convey the impact of Crescenda.

This showed that Crescenda focuses on a sense of belonging and cheerful togetherness. This is reflected in the new appearance, which is characterized by loud colors, playful fonts and authentic imagery.

Corporate design manual as a basis

The end product is a corporate design manual. Visually, it brings the identity to life with completely refreshed elements - such as the logo, typography, colors, imagery and layout principles. The text also gets to the heart of who Crescenda is. In particular, the logo byline "This is where women arrive. This is where women get ahead."

Among other things, the corporate design manual was the basis for the new website of Crescendawhich has recently gone online.

Responsible at Crescenda: Nicole Lützelschwab, Isabelle Groeli, Katharina Stöckli, Corinna Zuckermann, Nathalie Storer, Adelina Arendarska, Linh Lam, Beatrice Speiser. Responsible for fineness: Moritz Friess (project management & consulting), Catriona Paffhausen (visual design), Stephanie Auderset (text).

Stadtwerke Gossau offers a wide range of services and products that appeal to very different target groups. In order to create a progressive and customer-centric profile, Stadtwerke launched a new brand identity in summer 2024. Stadtwerke has thus made itself communicatively fit for the future in a changing market environment with increasing liberalization.

Really well supplied

The new brand identity of Stadtwerke Gossau, developed by Die Botschafter, is based on the three central service promises "securely supplied", "comprehensively supplied" and "simply supplied", which are united in the claim "Really well supplied".

The further development of the brand focuses on the customers and the services of Stadtwerke Gossau that suit them, which go far beyond the triumvirate of electricity, water and gas. The logo is the "common thread" of the visual identity and is designed to be highly recognizable in its variants and color scheme. The shape symbolizes dynamism, innovation and human emotion. The catchy claim "Really well supplied" is intended to summarize this value proposition succinctly.

Equipped for the energy future

The ambassadors sharpened the positioning for Stadtwerke Gossau and derived core messages and the claim from this. The agency also created the new website, refreshed the social media channels and the newsletter, designed a launch campaign and revised the existing brochures and flyers. In fall 2024, a new trade fair presence and communication tools to support consulting will follow.

Responsible at Stadtwerke Gossau: Rafael Mittelholzer (Head of Market and Energy), Daniela Schwitter-Meister (Head of Marketing). Responsible at Die Botschafter Kommunikationsagentur: Axel Thoma (strategy and concept), Carmen Fraefel (project management), Tammy Kissling (design), Jessica Obrist (digital).

Restricted freedom

Aspects of libertarian authoritarianism.

• Authors:inside: Oliver Nachtwey and Carolin Amlinger
• Publisher: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2022
• Pages: 480
• ISBN: 9783518430712

Rainbow flags waving next to Reichstag flags; anti-authoritarian-minded educated citizens demonstrating with a Jewish star on their chest against a supposed dictatorship of opinion or defaming the wearing of a mask as the "new Hitler salute": You can dismiss this as absurd theater. Or you can analyze why people from the progressive center drift into authoritarian, conspiracy-theoretical thought patterns. Carolin Amlinger and Oliver Nachtwey expose the concept of freedom in current protest movements without presenting their protagonists as freaks. Definitely worth reading.

Does it also come in green?

See through industry tricks, buy sustainably.

• Authors: Kerstin Scheidecker and Katja Tölle
• Publisher: Campus Verlag, 2024
• Pages: 256
• ISBN: 9783593518374

"Climate-neutral", "regional", "natural cosmetics" - what is supposed to make us feel good when shopping is often not much more than hot air. The authors know this better than most. At Öko-Test, they have been scrutinizing the industry for years and have compiled their concentrated knowledge in this book. With meticulous research, they explain clearly and thoroughly what the problem is with the tomatoes on our ready-made pizza and the pictures of happy cows on the milk carton. Terrifying, but extremely worth reading.

Let the fear go

Break the cycle of worry and live free of fear.

• Author: Pia Callesen
• Publisher: Beltz Publishing Group, 2021
• Pages: 286
• ISBN: 9783407866202

Anxiety disorders are usually treated with cognitive behavioral therapy. This involves those affected analyzing their worries and fears with psychotherapeutic support and thinking about their causes. This is the wrong approach, says Pia Callesen. In her opinion, excessive thinking and analysis creates or reinforces the anxiety disorder. She recommends passively observing your own fears and simply letting them pass by. In her book, which is rich in exercises and examples from her own practice, she offers an alternative view of anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorders.

Speak Up and Shine

Vocal empowerment for more presence and assertiveness.

• Author: Monika Hein
• Publisher: Campus Verlag, 2024
• Pages: 256
• ISBN: 9783593518497

At work, women tend to play down, speak quietly or keep their mouths shut more than men. This is partly due to traditional role models, says Monika Hein. Speech training is therefore not enough: if you want to speak louder, you first have to learn to set boundaries, endure conflicts and stand up for yourself. In addition to psychological advice, the coach also has more specific tips for intonation, expression and pronunciation. Anyone who wants to improve their own presentations or speeches in meetings will be well served by this guide.

165 years ago, courageous women joined forces to professionalize care and improve the healthcare system. Today, the healthcare organization comprises over 1,600 employees in eight companies - including Zollikerberg Hospital.

Together with Wirz, the foundation launched a comprehensive project for the future. The aim was to make its identity more tangible both internally and externally and to position itself even more clearly. "Our human values combined with high-quality healthcare services set us apart in the market. We want to focus on these strengths and make them more visible to people," explains Regine Strittmatter, Director of the Foundation.

Value-oriented transformation

The agency developed the new image step by step together with the foundation and the companies. In the first phase, a group-wide communication strategy was developed based on the foundation's objectives. This was followed by the translation into a brand identity that focuses on values and attitude and enables a differentiating market positioning for all companies. This was followed by implementation and translation into specific tools and measures. The focus here was on the conception and development of the Group-wide website.

"The shared values are firmly anchored and drive this organization forward. We have used this strength to sharpen the profile and make it tangible. The new appearance inspires, creates closeness and opens up new perspectives for the future," says Pascal Künzli, Director Brand Consulting at Wirz.

Setting off into the future of healthcare

In order to communicate the wide range of services more clearly to people, the "Zollikerberg World of Health" was created in addition to the new website. It summarizes under one name what the foundation and its eight facilities do on a daily basis. The umbrella brand gets to the heart of the holistic approach to health and creates clarity and a sense of belonging. The umbrella brand also positions the world of health among potential employees and highlights the wide range of career opportunities.

With the Launch of the new website A decisive milestone was reached at the end of March 2024. Wirz supported the foundation in all project phases and provided strategic advice, creation and implementation in branding and communication. The result is a fundamentally enhanced image that creates more visibility and relevance and focuses on what is important at Gesundheitswelt Zollikerberg: being there for people - in every situation.

Responsible at Gesundheitswelt Zollikerberg: Lic. oec. HSG Katharina Kull-Benz (President of the Foundation Board), Dr. Regine Strittmatter (Foundation Director), Annika Perrozzi (Head of Communications & Marketing, Diakoniewerk Neumünster Foundation), Daniela Thier (Head of Marketing & Communications, Zollikerberg Hospital). Responsible at Wirz Group: Pascal Künzli, Timo Lorch, Ann-Iris Weinblum, Bastian Heer, Louise Chanton.

Saicon has been selling and marketing real estate in Zurich since 2011, specializing professionally in apartment buildings. The team, led by Moreno Pinelli, has so far taken care of marketing independently. Now Saicon has decided to take the next step and reach a new level of awareness with the advertising expertise of Rosarot.

The Zurich agency was commissioned with the comprehensive redesign of the Saicon brand, starting with an in-depth target group analysis and strategic development through to branding and final implementation. The result of the new look is a tidy appearance that reflects Saicon's structure and care. The choice of a solid, timeless font with a strong character underlines Saicon's professionalism, while large headlines and the cheerful, fresh yellow emphasize the company's openness and accessibility.

Arouse curiosity with name associations

The campaign developed at the same time plays self-deprecatingly with the unfamiliarity of the name Saicon among the general public. The name Saicon is to be anchored in the minds of the target group through associations from outside the industry and their correct resolution, inviting potential customers to turn to Saicon for real estate matters.

The implementation of Saicon's new brand identity is based on various channels such as print posters, video ads, direct mailings, the revised website and increased online marketing measures such as SEO and SEA.

Responsible at Saicon: Moreno Pinelli (owner), Aline Pinelli (owner), Mara Schiavone (back office project manager). Responsible at Rosarot: René Karrer, Michael Schmidt (Creative Direction), Corinna Kost, Laura Weinhofer (Art Direction), Carmen Stähelin (Text, Concept), Noel Mühlberg, Claire Hulla (DTP), Bettina Walder (Consulting), Moreno Carroccia, Mauro Zoffoli (Performance, SEA, SEO).

Gold. Gold. Gold. The Swiss track and field athletes sprinted from one gold medal to the next at the European Championships in Rome. It used to be different. There were hardly any medals won in athletics - and if there were, then certainly not in sprinting. And back then, the word was not used as much as it is today. Anyone who can estimate how much strength, energy and time someone like Mujinga Kambundji or Timothé Mumenthaler invests in order to produce a best performance for 20 seconds should be a little more economical with the use of this word. After all, it has evolved from its origins in fast running and jumping into a versatile metaphor for intensive, focused efforts in various areas. And that's annoying.

Scrum is to blame for the fact that we now have to call everything a sprint. When our industry had to say goodbye to the idyllic waterfall models at the end of the 1990s and Scrum was introduced, the pace accelerated and by the mid-noughties, strolling or strolling was a thing of the past.

The ideal world of the project managers suddenly became rough, fast and forward-moving. Like a bunch of dirty rugby players, they have been gaining meter by meter ever since and call it sprinting. Or an agile approach. Today, people are sprinting all the time, interacting in dailies and weeklies and placing user- or client-defined alignments and adjustments in any order, so that the projects end up looking like trampled rugby pitches and are not completed on time despite all the running around.

Not all that glitters is gold

In the context of agile project management and Scrum, sprints are used to describe a short, focused period of work aimed at making progress quickly and delivering frequently. That's the theory. In practice, however, it's more like the coaches of Mujinga Kambundji or Timothé Mumenthaler would have them run up and down the 200 meters the whole time in training and then think that they still had the necessary strength to win gold at the European Championship final.

Sprint is therefore not the golden egg of project management and developers. But it is many other things. Sprint, for example, is also the name of a low-cost airline in the USA that some people are afraid to book with because it is always late or flights are canceled without good reason. But it is cheap, just like the DIY websites that are never finished. Sprint was also the name of the telecommunications company in the same country, which was founded in 1987 and sold to T-Mobile, this extremely successful subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, in 2020. The local company Swisscom also dreams of such success. Its efforts to assert itself on the domestic market are already being hamstrung by confusing and annoying its customers with cryptic subscription renewals. But this year, like the track and field athletes, it has also scored a coup in Italy. A binding agreement was reached with Vodafone Group Plc to take over 100% from Vodafone Italia for a purchase price of 8 billion euros. Whether this is also a gold medal remains to be seen.

* Benno Maggi is co-founder and CEO of Partner & Partner. He has been eavesdropping on the industry for over 30 years, discovering words and terms for us that can either be used for small talk, pomposity, excitement, playing Scrabble, or just because.

Resonance is generated by communicating in a target group-specific and, in particular, needs-based and personalized way: at the optimal time, in the right place, with the right medium, a relevant message and therefore highly individualized. Knowledge about potential customers and therefore the quality of the available data in customer relationship management (CRM) plays a decisive role here. This leads to new challenges, as this data is often not up-to-date, incomplete and therefore only appears to be of limited use for marketing purposes.

Current data

Put simply, we know: The more up-to-date and complete the customer data in the CRM, the higher the company's sales potential. The trick is therefore to use limited resources to quickly and efficiently create a data basis for various measures such as cross-selling or lead scoring. Marketing automation delivers reliable results in this context. It stands for the gradual, data-based and therefore targeted development of communication channels and campaigns across all communication channels, digital and print. The focus remains on brand and market-oriented communication with its specific operational marketing objectives. This is almost automatically accompanied by the continuous enrichment of existing CRM data: This is because scheduled or triggered communication optimizes the database in every loop - both for future marketing measures and for sales.

Scalability

Another advantage of CRM-based marketing automation is its scalability: based on so-called trigger elements, the communication route is set up once for each event and can then be automated and played out continuously. Through specifically integrated dialogue elements, reactions and thus data from the target group are recorded promptly so that the performance of the campaign can be measured and optimized. This transparency makes it possible to align marketing and sales strategies as a whole directly with market feedback.

Which triggers can be used to pursue which operational marketing goals? How and where does the print channel improve results?

Programmatic media campaigns

In the next step, for example, programmatic media campaigns with the aim of generating leads (newsletter registrations, etc.) would be conceivable. Existing customer/CRM data can be digitally anonymized, matched with online parameters and translated into target group segments. Advertisers whose data depth is not (yet) sufficient can use curated data segments from well-known data providers or even have individual custom audiences created. These are then stored as targeting in the campaign platforms for the targeted playout of digital advertising content.

Overall, marketing automation represents a pragmatic solution to the challenges of modern multichannel marketing. By enabling data-driven and therefore targeted communication, it paves the way for efficient use of existing, even incomplete data and for updating, supplementing and continuously generating relevant additional information. The scalability of this method and the prompt responses offer additional flexibility and enable efficient adaptation to internal resources as well as the needs of a fast-moving market.

*Alex Schmid is Topic Lead Dialog at Farner.

Kitzbühel is known worldwide as one of the most exclusive winter sports resorts in the Alps. Brandpulse has created a differentiating brand strategy for the iconic brand in a comprehensive rebranding with a new design and new brand experience, which should also appeal to younger target groups.

As a legendary sports town, the Tyrolean Alpine city combines tradition and lifestyle. The aim of the rebranding developed by Brandpulse was therefore a clear increase in attractiveness. Millennials, now the largest and most important group of tourists in the world, travel with a new value system: the focus is no longer on possessions, but on the desire for experiences ("Collect Moments, not Things").

"Your time is now"

Kitzbühel's parameter for success in order to be attractive to young target groups in line with the new brand strategy is therefore: the iconic brand must shed its prudence and become a modern sporty lifestyle luxury brand - but without losing its traditionally important elements such as the legendary Kitzbühel chamois and the color red. Brandpulse derived Kitzbühel's new message from these analysis findings, in line with the motto "Your time is now" - don't wait for tomorrow, live today.

The analysis of the competitive environment revealed that Alpine tourist resorts focus on their destination goods and mainly present themselves with beautiful landscapes and mountain panoramas. The new Brandig concept for Kitzbühel breaks with this tradition and presents Kitzbühel as a lifestyle brand, comparable to a fashion brand. Away from the "interchangeable" nature, towards a lifestyle experience - young, cheeky, non-conformist, glamorous and with international appeal.

The previous lettering, designed by renowned Kitzbühel artist Alfons Walde over 90 years ago and slightly adapted in the mid-1970s, has been replaced by a high-impact, geometric grotesque font. With the implied "Ü" and the integration of the stylized chamois head, Kitzbühel presents itself with a new word-image brand.

Around 27,329 new companies were entered in the commercial register across Switzerland in the first half of 2024, an increase of 3% compared to the same period last year. This was determined by the online platform startups.ch in a new analysis.

Significant growth in French-speaking Switzerland

Growth was then seen across almost all regions. The French-speaking part of Switzerland (number of new registrations compared to the same period of the previous year: +5.9%) developed particularly strongly. The front-runner in the region is the canton of Vaud (+13.9%). For years, it has established itself as an extremely attractive location for start-ups. The economically strong and broadly based canton of Zurich recorded an increase of 2.9%.

More young founders

"Young entrepreneurs found companies from a position of strength. If the economic engine is humming, this has a correspondingly positive effect on the start-up sector. This is currently the case," comments Michele Blasucci, founder and CEO of Startups.ch. The boom in artificial intelligence in particular is providing a boost. Companies have recognized the need to invest in AI and are seeking external advice. "This is where young entrepreneurs come in. They support established companies to automate their accounting, for example, or to implement AI-based applications such as the programming of bots that provide initial advice to customers, for example. Or they show how a young audience can be reached efficiently in terms of marketing with AI via Tiktok and other platformers," says Blasucci.

The younger generation is close to these new technologies. This is probably one of the reasons why they account for a large number of newly founded companies. As the data analyzed by Startups.ch shows, the proportion of 18- to 27-year-old founders has risen by 1 percentage point to 20.8%, while that of 28- to 37-year-olds - who account for the largest proportion of founders - has fallen significantly from 39.4% to 32.8%.

Vehicle and bodywork industry likely to benefit from camper boom

Another driver for the increase in newly founded companies is the moderate interest rates. "Demand is high in the real estate, construction and trades sectors, which many tradespeople have taken advantage of to become self-employed, a professional category that can hardly be displaced by AI," says Michele Blasucci.

This is also evident in the vehicle and bodywork sector. An increasing number of start-ups have also been founded here, which is probably due not least to the camping boom of recent years. Craftsmen are also in demand here. Michele Blasucci is confident about the second half of the year. He expects the momentum to continue and anticipates a record number of newly founded companies in 2024.

Which are the most valuable brands in Switzerland? Brand Finance reveals this again this year in the new Switzerland 50 2024 Country Report. There have been shifts in the positions of the top ten brands from Switzerland: Zurich, for example, made up one place with 26 percent growth and replaced the pharmaceutical brand Roche in 4th place. Rolex (watches) and UBS were also able to close the gap to the top with double-digit percentage growth.

Nestlé is at the top with a brand value of CHF 18.5 billion, despite a 13 percent loss in value. ABB made it into the top 10 with 12 percent growth (CHF 5 billion), while the iconic traditional Swiss brand Nescafé slipped from 7th to 10th place with a 30 percent loss in value.

In the value environment of sustainability perception, Rolex was even able to take the top position ahead of Nestlé. The top 50 climber BKW is exciting. The brand was able to assert itself in 47th position with a 20 percent increase in value. Overall, the top 50 from Switzerland increased only marginally compared to the previous year (0.66%).

Brands from the three sectors of food, clothing/accessories and insurance account for half of the total brand value volume and continued to grow in dominance.

The so-called hyperdigitalization confronts us with various challenges and opportunities. The younger generations, the so-called hyperconnected customers, were born into this era and are facing up to the ongoing changes. But what makes today's consumers tick and what basic behavioral patterns or needs must a brand pay attention to?

A new study by Jim & Jim and 20 Minuten provides answers. According to the study, the young generation seems to be going through life with a confident attitude, although this youthful optimism appears to be very superficial. Issues such as the current inflationary economic situation, expensive housing or the difficulty of securing financial security cause young people everyday stomach aches and fears about the future. More than half of the study participants stated that, in addition to personal development, work should primarily serve to secure their livelihood. Despite some factors that worry young Swiss people, the mood barometer appears to be more positive than that of their German and Austrian neighbors. The young people were also asked about sustainability:

Instagram remains the most popular social media platform

The younger generation is increasingly consuming news via social media. Instagram is the absolute favorite with a share of 37% of all respondents, followed by the classic news apps with 22% and Snapchat with 15%. The uncomplicated consumption of content is a prerequisite. It can therefore be concluded that an omnipresence on social media platforms or other digital channels is expected nowadays. Although traditional formats such as newspapers or radio are consumed less frequently than social media, the young target group considers them to be more informative or more serious channels.

Retail sales in terms of value rose slightly again at a high level and amounted to CHF 103 billion. In total, Swiss retail sales rose by around half a billion Swiss francs to 103 billion Swiss francs in 2023. This corresponds to an increase of 0.5% compared to the previous year. Population growth and the positive trend in the food sector in particular contributed to this development.

In 2023, Swiss consumers purchased 14.4 billion Swiss francs worth of goods and merchandise online. This corresponds to an increase of 0.4 billion Swiss francs or 3% compared to the previous year. Online consumption will increase by 0.2 billion in 2023 compared to the previous year. Online purchases abroad have reached a new high of CHF 2.2 billion and are up 10% on 2022. This is driven by small parcels from Asia. These are delivered directly to Zurich and Geneva by the major platforms, primarily by air freight. Moderate overall sales growth of up to 1% is expected by the end of the year. This means that the 104 billion Swiss franc mark will be exceeded for the first time.