These are the winners of the Marketing Trophy 2017

The winners were selected from over 40 submissions by an interdisciplinary jury led by President Peter Felser. The jury members from the fields of marketing, advertising, management consulting, communications, science and research decided to award the Marketing Trophy to the following marketing and communications projects.

Category large enterprises:

Feldschlösschen with the project "Braufrisch - A new beer for Switzerland".

Agency: Wirz, Zurich

Beer consumption is stagnating, and regional breweries and niche beers are in vogue. To counteract this, Feldschlösschen developed "Braufrisch" - a new original for a new generation of beer drinkers. The "Braufrisch" is thus not aimed at habitual brand buyers or price-conscious mass beer drinkers, but at pleasure-seekers who appreciate variety. The new beer is unobtrusive and distinct in taste, honest, naturally cloudy and refreshingly different. To convey this message, a new generation of beer drinkers was juxtaposed with a new generation of brewers. Three heroes were thus created, who brew a fresh lager for Switzerland from tried-and-tested ingredients, brewing craftsmanship and new ideas, and personify the overall concept of the campaign.

Using an integrated campaign with a focus on digital, the aim was to communicate all the characteristics of "Braufrisch" and thus ultimately achieve a successful product launch. This was successful: In the year following the launch, two-thirds of beer drinkers were already familiar with the new product, and the annual sales target was reached after just one quarter.

The launch of "Braufrisch" was not only a success - it was by far the most successful new beer launch of the last ten years. The campaign worked on all levels and quickly transported the beer into the minds, hearts, and bellies of the Swiss.

SME category:

Switzerland tourism with the project "Grand Tour of Switzerland".

Agency: Havas, Zurich

The "touring" form of travel has increased internationally by 32 percent since 2010. This trend must be exploited, and the new guest segment of "Attractions Tourer" must be attracted to Switzerland as a vacation destination. Switzerland's answer to Route 66 is to score points with innovation and quality. Switzerland Tourism has found an impressive solution for this in experience marketing.

"Grand Tour of Switzerland" is the name of both the association and the product, which is intended to establish Switzerland as a touring country in the long term. It contains the concentrated load of Switzerland with its scenic and cultural pearls. On a road trip of more than 1,600 kilometers, it goes through four language regions, over five Alpine passes, to twelve UNESCO World Heritage sites and along two biosphere reserves and 22 lakes. The route was not defined according to democratic or tourism policy principles, but from the perspective of the guests and their needs.

The entire route was consistently signaled in record time and achieved an awareness level of 43 percent just 17 months after its launch. In the 2016 summer season, around 45 - 55,000 overnight guests deliberately traveled in Switzerland because of the Grand Tour of Switzerland. This resulted in up to 360,000 overnight stays. The guests surveyed gave the Grand Tour of Switzerland a high satisfaction rating of 9.24 (out of 10).

Hardly any other product has been able to involve and inspire so many partners. All 13 regions of the Conference of Tourism Directors form the sponsoring body of the Grand Tour of Switzerland association and are committed financially and in terms of personnel to the success of the route. By bringing together all the regions, the Grand Tour has become Switzerland's biggest tourist attraction.

Jürg Schmid, Director of Switzerland Tourism, is particularly proud of the industry: "It makes me very happy that we have won with a project that shows the good cooperation of the entire industry like no other. My thanks therefore go first and foremost to all tourism service providers. Thanks to them, we were able to signalize the touring route throughout within a very short time, install 22 photo spots at the most beautiful vantage points, and introduce the snack box at more than 40 points of sale to showcase Switzerland's culinary diversity."

NPO category:

ZSC Lions / ZLE Betriebs AG with the project "Key player".

Agency: Serviceplan Public Relations Suisse, Zurich

The ZSC/GCK Lions organization is not only one of the largest ice hockey organizations in Europe but also one of the most successful. Nevertheless, the Lions do not have their own home. The construction of the new arena in Zurich-Altstetten is intended to change this. In order to raise awareness among the electorate and political decision-makers and to achieve a YES vote at the ballot box, the "Key Player" was launched.

The "key player" formed the core idea of a campaign that was aimed at the political authorities in a first phase and at the city of Zurich's voting population in a second. A wide range of communication measures were used, from the creation of a website and posters to the founding of a patronage committee. Although the campaign used the language of ice hockey, it was also intended to appeal to non-sports enthusiasts. Under the motto "You too are a key player", a wide variety of people from the city of Zurich were placed at the center of the campaign.

The campaign had two goals: Firstly, to convince the city and municipal councils and gain their approval for the project. And secondly - building on this - to mobilize the city of Zurich's electorate in favor of the cause and thus succeed in the ballot on September 25, 2016.

All the goals were achieved. The city and municipal councils approved the arena project with a clear majority, and the referendum was won with 56.6 percent YES votes. This is despite the fact that stadium projects often do not meet with approval in the city of Zurich. The "Key Players" campaign not only succeeded in communicating the concerns of the ZSC/GCK Lions, but also in involving all sections of the population.

Special price:

Raiffeisen with the project "Establishment of Raiffeisen Entrepreneur Centers as a Marketing Tool for Corporate Banking"..

Agency: Tomcat, St. Gallen

Swiss SMEs account for over two-thirds of all jobs in our country and are therefore a very important target group for Swiss banks. Raiffeisen Switzerland has created a non-profit marketing tool for the regionally anchored Raiffeisen banks in order to be able to further develop the relationship with this target group. The innovative and bold approach: a physical platform and thus a place where Swiss SMEs are supported in their very personal challenges. The Raiffeisen Entrepreneur Center (RUZ) is not staffed by bankers, but exclusively by entrepreneurs who know the concerns and challenges of Switzerland as a country of SMEs from their own experience. The structure, orientation and product and pricing of the RUZ have been left almost entirely to the entrepreneurs by the Raiffeisen Group. After all, who knows better what entrepreneurs need for further development than the entrepreneurs themselves?

With the first three centers in Gossau, Baar and Aarau-West, meeting places have been created where challenges can be discussed and contacts made. While financial issues are in the best hands with the Raiffeisen banks, business development requires experts who have first-class knowledge in their respective fields. And this is where the RUZ, with its 200 or so entrepreneurial personalities throughout Switzerland, can lend a hand.

Thanks to targeted communication via online banners, radio spots, social media, and public reports before, during, and after the opening, awareness of the Raiffeisen Entrepreneur Centers is now very high. This is also reflected in figures. Today, the RUZ Club already has well over 1,000 members who are ambassadors not only for the club itself, but also for the Raiffeisen banks. This makes the Raiffeisen Entrepreneur Club the largest entrepreneur network in Switzerland just two and a half years after its founding. The corporate customer business is also prospering, thanks in part to the RUZ. Both the growth rate in gross revenue and the number of new customers are far higher than the industry average.

With this high level of commitment to entrepreneurs from SMEs and trade, Raiffeisen is sending an important message to Switzerland as a place to work and is taking a bold and unique marketing approach.

Audience Award:

Mazda Suisse with the project "Mazda Speed Dating - The Dating Revolution".

Agency: JWT/Fabrikant, Zurich

Mazda is a brand that breaks conventions to do things better. Against the backdrop of this philosophy, a highly competitive, declining market and a relatively small budget, Mazda found an innovative way to interact with potential customers: Mazda Speed Dating.

The campaign targeted 1.5 million Swiss singles, who were to be made more comfortable on their first date with a potential partner. A wide variety of advertising media was used not only to convey the advertising message, but also to encourage numerous singles to take part. In a total of 72 speed dating tours through seven Swiss cities, participants were able to get to know each other during a 15-minute car ride and in an informal atmosphere.

The overriding goal of the campaign was to strengthen brand awareness and increase sales. The Mazda Speed Dating was intended to convey the brand message of "breaking conventions to do things better" and, in particular, to address a target group that had previously been difficult to reach: young urban - and ideally female - buyers.

Mazda Speed Dating became an outstanding success for the Mazda brand throughout Switzerland. This is true both in terms of brand image among the target group and in terms of engagement on the occasion of the Speed Dating tours.

All winning projects stood out from the competition in terms of creativity and results. According to the press release, the jury was once again pleased with the high quality of the numerous entries and felt once again confirmed in the importance of this award for the industry.