Departure to new SMEs
Trade journals such as KMU-Manager, KMU-Magazin and Leader vie for the same target group.
Trade journals such as KMU-Manager, KMU-Magazin and Leader vie for the same target group.
They all come from Eastern Switzerland and are relatively young: KMU-Manager, published a few days ago by KMU-Medien in Teufen (AR), has been around for ten years, KMU-Magazin from Engeli & Partner in Horn, Thurgau, has been around for seven years and Leader, published by MetroComm AG in St.Gallen, is now in its second year. What they also have in common is that they address the same target group: Managers of SMEs with at least ten employees, whereby the SME magazine explicitly only wants to address the decision-makers in the companies. In addition, all three are currently in a state of transition or change.
Black in the first year
The business magazine Leader, previously limited to Eastern Switzerland and Liechtenstein, plans to expand into the greater Zurich area (17,000 copies) and Basel (6,000 copies) in May, Bern/Solothurn (13,000 copies) in June and Central Switzerland in the fall (circulation still open). Publisher Natal Schnetzer will one day combine the five regional editions editorially with a jacket section and in the advertising area with discounts on combos.
In any case, the Leader, which according to Schnetzer "pursues a neoliberal course", will continue to concentrate on the respective region: The content will focus on portraits of regional personalities and companies as well as economic policy issues. This regional anchoring, combined with an unmistakable proximity to the SVP, has apparently brought commercial success in Eastern Switzerland: at least four-fifths of all advertisements come from regional advertisers. According to Schnetzer, the magazine, which achieved a turnover of half a million francs last year, was already in the black in its first year. For 2004, Schnetzer expects an increase of 15 percent for the Eastern Switzerland title alone, also thanks to the publication of two specials on the topics of real estate and business location. He intends to refinance the launch costs by the end of 2005.
KMU-Manager, which increased its turnover by eleven percent in 2003, is taking a completely different path. However, the previous publisher Swiss Businesspress SA has now transferred the title to KMU-Medien, a new joint subsidiary with the media company Media Swiss AG, which has been focusing its print and online offerings on SMEs for years. Media Swiss has a "majority stake" in KMU-Medien, as Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors Alfred Jung says. Editorial management will remain with Swiss Businesspress. The alliance is being made with a view to expansion: KMU-Manager will soon be published fortnightly. In the longer term, it will also be expanded into a Switzerland-wide platform, with expansion into French-speaking Switzerland being considered for the time being. The website is also being optimized and the editorial team expanded.
More than the market can bear
KMU-Magazin, which has just undergone a relaunch, sees the current situation of SME titles as "difficult and generally declining". KMU-Magazin, which focuses on knowledge transfer, advice and further training, closed "2003 at about the same level as 2002", according to the new sales manager Fabian Meier. "There are more titles than the market can absorb," he says. In order to strengthen his magazine, Meier is in the process of launching various new projects with which he hopes to attract more subscribers and advertisers. He doesn't want to say anything more specific yet, except that he holds regular roundtable discussions with advertisers. "New approaches are needed in B2B communication," he says.
Focus on managers: KMU-Magazin, KMU-Manager, Leader.
Facts and figures on three SME titlesThe Leader (60 to 80 pages) is published eight times a year, initially only in Eastern Switzerland (WG 26, 28, 44, 61). The circulation is 8000 copies, of which 1162 are paid subscriptions. It is registered for Wemf certification. Distribution: Basically free of charge by means of personalized individual mailing. A four-color advertising page costs CHF 2900 in Eastern Switzerland, CHF 2700 in Basel (WG 31), CHF 4400 in Zurich (WG 41, 42, 43, 24) and CHF 4000 in Bern/Solothurn (WG 32, 33, 34, 22).
The KMU-Manager is published as a newspaper in tabloid format (48 pages or more). It is delivered free of charge to all SME mailboxes in German-speaking Switzerland every month. The Wemf-certified circulation is 116,750 copies and is currently being increased to 140,000 copies with additional addresses in peripheral areas. In the MA Leader 2003, the paper reached 10.8 percent of the leaders and 11 percent of the top leaders. It is registered for Mach Basic. A four-color advertising page costs 9500 francs.
The SME magazine is published ten times a year with a circulation of 12,600 copies (80 to 100 pages). It is registered for Wemf certification. Distribution via subscriptions, sample copies via personalized individual mailing. A four-color advertising page costs 6100 francs. (mk)
Markus Knöpfli
They all come from Eastern Switzerland and are relatively young: KMU-Manager, published a few days ago by KMU-Medien in Teufen (AR), has been around for ten years, KMU-Magazin from Engeli & Partner in Horn, Thurgau, has been around for seven years and Leader, published by MetroComm AG in St.Gallen, is now in its second year. What they also have in common is that they address the same target group: Managers of SMEs with at least ten employees, whereby the SME magazine explicitly only wants to address the decision-makers in the companies. In addition, all three are currently in a state of transition or change.
Black in the first year
The business magazine Leader, previously limited to Eastern Switzerland and Liechtenstein, plans to expand into the greater Zurich area (17,000 copies) and Basel (6,000 copies) in May, Bern/Solothurn (13,000 copies) in June and Central Switzerland in the fall (circulation still open). Publisher Natal Schnetzer will one day combine the five regional editions editorially with a jacket section and in the advertising area with discounts on combos.
In any case, the Leader, which according to Schnetzer "pursues a neoliberal course", will continue to concentrate on the respective region: The content will focus on portraits of regional personalities and companies as well as economic policy issues. This regional anchoring, combined with an unmistakable proximity to the SVP, has apparently brought commercial success in Eastern Switzerland: at least four-fifths of all advertisements come from regional advertisers. According to Schnetzer, the magazine, which achieved a turnover of half a million francs last year, was already in the black in its first year. For 2004, Schnetzer expects an increase of 15 percent for the Eastern Switzerland title alone, also thanks to the publication of two specials on the topics of real estate and business location. He intends to refinance the launch costs by the end of 2005.
KMU-Manager, which increased its turnover by eleven percent in 2003, is taking a completely different path. However, the previous publisher Swiss Businesspress SA has now transferred the title to KMU-Medien, a new joint subsidiary with the media company Media Swiss AG, which has been focusing its print and online offerings on SMEs for years. Media Swiss has a "majority stake" in KMU-Medien, as Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors Alfred Jung says. Editorial management will remain with Swiss Businesspress. The alliance is being made with a view to expansion: KMU-Manager will soon be published fortnightly. In the longer term, it will also be expanded into a Switzerland-wide platform, with expansion into French-speaking Switzerland being considered for the time being. The website is also being optimized and the editorial team expanded.
More than the market can bear
KMU-Magazin, which has just undergone a relaunch, sees the current situation of SME titles as "difficult and generally declining". KMU-Magazin, which focuses on knowledge transfer, advice and further training, closed "2003 at about the same level as 2002", according to the new sales manager Fabian Meier. "There are more titles than the market can absorb," he says. In order to strengthen his magazine, Meier is in the process of launching various new projects with which he hopes to attract more subscribers and advertisers. He doesn't want to say anything more specific yet, except that he holds regular roundtable discussions with advertisers. "New approaches are needed in B2B communication," he says.
Focus on managers: KMU-Magazin, KMU-Manager, Leader.
Facts and figures on three SME titlesThe Leader (60 to 80 pages) is published eight times a year, initially only in Eastern Switzerland (WG 26, 28, 44, 61). The circulation is 8000 copies, of which 1162 are paid subscriptions. It is registered for Wemf certification. Distribution: Basically free of charge by means of personalized individual mailing. A four-color advertising page costs CHF 2900 in Eastern Switzerland, CHF 2700 in Basel (WG 31), CHF 4400 in Zurich (WG 41, 42, 43, 24) and CHF 4000 in Bern/Solothurn (WG 32, 33, 34, 22).
The KMU-Manager is published as a newspaper in tabloid format (48 pages or more). It is delivered free of charge to all SME mailboxes in German-speaking Switzerland every month. The Wemf-certified circulation is 116,750 copies and is currently being increased to 140,000 copies with additional addresses in peripheral areas. In the MA Leader 2003, the paper reached 10.8 percent of the leaders and 11 percent of the top leaders. It is registered for Mach Basic. A four-color advertising page costs 9500 francs.
The SME magazine is published ten times a year with a circulation of 12,600 copies (80 to 100 pages). It is registered for Wemf certification. Distribution via subscriptions, sample copies via personalized individual mailing. A four-color advertising page costs 6100 francs. (mk)
Markus Knöpfli
