Swiss Trade - SwissCham

16 Swiss Trade November 2010
Connecting people
– Getting your message across
In a globalised world, the keys to success are
knowing what is going on in your target markets,
getting your message across and understanding
what your business contacts and clients are saying.
Information
Written by Martina Gyger
New technologies have revolutionized
communication and
information fl ows. swissinfo.ch,
an internet news and information
platform in nine languages, provides
timely reports about Switzerland
with text, photos, video
and audio slideshows.
“We are the only Swiss news
portal aimed at explaining the
context of Swiss news to an international
audience”, says Editor-inchief
Christophe Giovannini.
Relevant topics for global business
partners include Swiss-EU
relations, export promotion,
double taxation
agreements, taxes
and levies, government
spending, and Switzerland
as a business location.
This also makes
swissinfo.ch a valuable
source of information
Editor-in-chief Christo- for the chambers of
phe Giovannini commerce.
“We have very good relationships with the
chambers in our markets, and we are members
of many of them”, Giovannini points
out. swissinfo has a strong social media
presence on platforms
such as Facebook or
Youtube as well.
CEO Doris Albisser,
CLS Communication
Overcoming clichés
“Globalisation is a
fact, but most markets
remain local. Knowing
your customers,
shareholders and staff
members in a remote
location means communicating in their own
language”, says Doris Albisser, CEO of CLS
The swissinfo.ch website.
Communication, an international language
and technology service provider. As a fastgrowing,
internationally orientated company,
it cooperates with several chambers of
commerce, such as the Swiss-American, the
Swiss-Chinese, or the British-Swiss Chambers
of Commerce.
“Translation is still our core business, but
we are adding a wide range of services such
as content analysis, writing
and editorial services”, Doris
Albisser explains.
One of the new tools offered
by innovative technologies
are online dictionaries.
Companies can draw on databases
of specialist terms in
several languages, or have customized corporate
dictionaries. One of their newer services
offers online reputational analyses. By
investigating independent statements available
in the digital media they can provide
helpful information to companies with a global
presence by supplementing traditional
surveys. For example, a recent CLS analysis
of 23,000 statements about Switzerland by
Facebook users around the world revealed
that the country is widely referred to using
We provide
an accurate
picture of Switzerland
beyond the
usual clichés.
Journalist Ting Song from swissinfo.ch
making an interview.
clichés related to food, holidays or products
such as chocolate, cheese, and watches.
Overcoming this perception is one of
swissinfo.ch’s most important roles, according
to Christophe Giovanni.
“We provide an accurate
picture of Switzerland beyond
the usual clichés”, he
says. “Just one example: outsiders
might think the Swiss
economy is just made up of
banks, Nestlé, Novartis and
Swatch. But the fact is that
small and medium-sized enterprises account
for 99.7% of the 307,000 companies
in the Swiss private sector and provide jobs
for 66.8% of the workforce. And 87.9% of
SMEs have fewer than ten employees.”
“Internationalisation and globalisation
have created great opportunities for small-
and medium-sized enterprises, and Switzerland
has an excellent opportunity to play a
major role in a globalised world”, Doris Albisser
adds.