More brand presence with new storytelling format

Commercial Publishing is responsible for the conception and production of paid content on all Tamedia titles. This year, the new online product Longform was added to the proven cross-media formats such as native ads, paid posts and promotions.

The difference to the already established formats is the focus on storytelling and design. When implementing a longform, the individual needs and wishes of customers are taken into account and optimally implemented. A completely new world is created for each customer, which also offers the reader great added value.

Commercial Publishing was able to win the Italian car manufacturer Alfa Romeo Switzerland as its first customer. "With the launch of the Giulia model in 2016 and the first SUV of the Stelvio brand in 2017, a new era in the history of Alfa Romeo has begun. Both vehicles symbolize the dynamism and new drive of the brand. This power was optimally conveyed using the new storytelling format with themes such as the history, the technical achievements and the unmistakable attitude to life that the Alfa Romeo brand stands for," says Mattia Lovallo, Brand Communication Manager at Alfa Romeo.

Interlinked measures were planned to transport the reader into the emotional world of Alfa Romeo. The package included three national longforms on 20 minutes including social media integration to generate maximum reach. The first implementation focused on the brand's sporting DNA, from the creation of the Quadrifoglio symbol to its return to Formula 1, while a CTA in the form of a test drive contest led to direct contacts for Alfa Romeo. An exclusive video interview with chief designer Karl Busse at the Geneva Motor Show rounded off the presentation.

At the second Longform, industrial designer Björn Ischi answered questions about the design of the two new models in an interview. A video of the test drive from the competition call of the first longform was integrated. The call-to-action for this implementation was the button for registering test drives with Alfa Romeo.

The finale was the third implementation. Here the focus was on the Alfa Romeo event "Passione Alfa Romeo". A fun interactive sound button staged the new models in a way that could be experienced sensually and gave the fans goose bumps. Finally, Sébastien Perrais, CEO of FCA Switzerland SA, also spoke about the characteristics of a true Alfista. All three stories were prominently published on the 20 Minuten front and accompanied by retargeting measures to further bind interested users to the brand.

These combined measures led to an extraordinarily high performance, which in some cases even outshone top editorial stories. The average dwell time of over 2:30 minutes on the stories proves that the readership is definitely open to brand storytelling if it is produced in a high-quality manner and offers the reader effective added value. Furthermore, the various stories also generated a high number of responses to the interactive elements.