VIENNA INSIGHT from a PRESS DAY
by publisher Karin Sawetz May 2010
Karin Sawetz is journalist, media researcher
and fashion scientist (Mag. Dr. phil.). sawetz.com

Lot of work - poor information

Some press events make a lot of work for only poor information that can be taken home. Time to start own surveys under colleagues.

Yesterday (18 May 2010) was such a day. The weather was so unsteadily that it was hard to decide between the motorbike and the car. The first is faster and more comfortable in the city, the second protects from rain and cold weather. I took the car which stressed me as soon as I reached the city and searched for a parking place. After around 10 minutes I have met some new people on occasion of asking them 'Are you parking out?' or 'Do you leave this parking place?'. One man really annoyed me, because as often as I drove along him, he got in or out of his car. I stopped and investigated him: "Why are you constantly getting in or out of your car?" He told me it is because he has to bring something to his child or from his child - or was he bringing his child and forgot something?

The first press event: the cooking machine

My first press event was about a new cooking machine which is already available on the European markets France and Italy - but not in Austria, has received this year a prize and climbs up the popularity scale steadily. I was overwhelmed by this new product and started to take pictures of a male journalist standing at the cooking machine preparing risotto with ginger, lemon, and tomatoes. The afternoon was great! Until the time I had to accept that Austrian journalist have a holdback period from several months. (By the way: almost 96% of the Fashionoffice users are from other countries than Austria.*) I was annoyed that I have to wait until next fall to report from the machine which turns everybody into a 'cooking chef'.

Lot of work, but no further information for you except my personal impressions from this afternoon. Have I mentioned that the risotto was great!

*The Fashionoffice Geography (by Quantcast today) shows on all seven domains of the magazine Fashionoffice maximal 44.000 global visits/per month. According to the statistics, not more than 58 Austrian visits are tracked on the seven domains per day. Not to forget for this calculation that most of the readers visit other articles which are promoted on the covers of the special channels. This Vienna Insight will not reach more than 5 Austrian persons per month! (And Quantcast is counting me too - makes max. 4 Austrian persons in real per month; Google Analytics tracks for many promoted articles 0 visits from Austrians per month.) From a legal point of view, it is a triviality if I break the holdback period rules as a journalist in Austria.
Quantcast/30 April 2010/Countries/Uniques in %: France 18.89; United States 17.63; Germany 9.95; United Kingdom 6.42; Austria 4.45; Canada 2.96; Netherlands 2.43; Korea, Republic of 1.95; Italy 1.87; Poland 1.51; India 1.45; Australia 1.38; Spain 1.30; Belgium 1.15; Brazil 1.09; Romania 1.03; etc.
Quantcast/30 March 2010/Countries/Uniques in %: United States 40.81; Germany 8.95; United Kingdom 5.51; Austria 3.64; Canada 3.23; France 2.11; Netherlands 1.95; Korea, Republic of 1.87; Italy 1.72; China 1.53; Australia 1.49; Poland 1.24; Thailand 1.21; India 1.20; Spain 1.10; Brazil 1.05; etc.

The second press event: the women's shaver

I returned to my car and drove to the next press date which was held in the 'Beauty Lounge'. The Beauty Lounge is offering so many different hair and skin treatments that I don't know what happens at 30 percent of the services. But this was not the theme of this event; the theme was a new, uncomplicated shaver for women. And this is even the whole message: shaving easily. Not much more to report except the name of the shaver which is 'BIC Soleil Easy', that it is already available on the Austrian market (what a luck!), and not to forget to announce the styling competition for women which will be promoted on an Austrian radio and TV channel.

The survey under colleagues

The product presentation was so short that I had enough time to talk with my colleagues such as Irmie Schüch-Schamburek (right on the photo), who told me from her newest project: Irmie's Shopping Guide for Vienna will go online in the next weeks - scheduled is June 2010. The Shopping Guide will be accompanied by an additional editorial surrounding. The man beside her is Alamande Belfor (left on the photo), who entered the group of journalists with the words: "I don't know how to start the conversation when so many women stand together." Clever guy!

Immediately, five female journalists helped him into the conversation by asking him about his profession, if he was former model and then dancer, or dancer then model. One journalist mentioned supermodel, the other one topmodel, Ismael Ivo... the music in the room with the voice-disorder of free associations was so loud that I stopped my attention and left the group conversation. I decided to ask him directly a few questions and learned that Alamande is from Holland, has an image and entertainment productions company, a family dance & fitness club, and is one of the jurors of the 'Fresh Faces 2010'-contest by the platform modelmanagement.com which runs since 15 March 2010 and ends in summer 2010. I was interested why Alamande lives in Vienna. He has worked as a model in hot spots like Paris and Milan and was right on the way to New York when he decided that Vienna is his new home town. "Because I have met my wife here; she is a model too." - "Does she come from Vienna?" - "No, she is a Brazilian - but we like Vienna."


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