Swiss Brand Congress 2026

A Forum About Impact – Not More Communication

At the Swiss Brand Congress, we had the opportunity to bring our forum, The Logic of Emotional Brand Impact, to the stage together with Prof. Dr Marcus Schögel, Avenir Suisse, Pax and El Tony Mate. The full auditorium, the strong level of engagement, and the conversations that followed made one thing clear: emotional brand impact is no longer a niche topic. It belongs on the leadership agenda. Prof. Dr Marcus Schögel set the strategic direction with his keynote, Brand Experience as a Driver of Growth. His central message:

What truly matters is what people experience, remember and associate with a brand. Functional benefits support a brand. Experiences lead it. This is precisely where emovation® comes in: understanding the implicit motivations that shape the relationship between brands and their audiences – and turning those insights into better decisions for brand management, communication and brand experience.

Three brands. Three very different starting points. One shared question.

Pax, Avenir Suisse and El Tony Mate could hardly be more different: a pension and insurance provider, a think tank, and a beverage brand. That is precisely what made these three case studies so insightful. From different perspectives, they demonstrated where brand impact is created – and where it can easily be lost.

Best Practice #1

Pax: Trust Must Be Experienced

Planning for the future is rationally important, yet emotionally difficult to engage with. Pax demonstrated how an anniversary can become more than a milestone: a strategic platform for making trust, security and a sense of belonging tangible. The key insight:

People do not just need to understand financial security. They need to feel emotionally reassured.

With «Daheim» (Home), an abstract financial topic was transformed into something deeply human. The green sofa became a visible symbol of that idea – simple, recognisable and emotionally meaningful. Facts create understanding. Experiences create trust.

Best Practice #2

Avenir Suisse: Expertise Needs Relevance

Avenir Suisse did not face a knowledge challenge. The challenge was translating rigorous analysis into meaningful orientation, dialogue and public engagement. The analysis revealed a key tension: internal and external perceptions were not fully aligned. Avenir Suisse sees itself as visionary, independent and highly competent. Yet parts of its audience perceived the organisation as elitist, distant and difficult to access. The strategic shift:

From analysis as an end product to analysis as a catalyst.

From authority through distance to trust through guidance. From broadcaster to facilitator of dialogue. Substance only creates impact when people experience it as relevant.

Best Practice #3

El Tony Mate: Instinct Needs Structure

El Tony Mate was not created in a boardroom. The brand grew out of attitude, community and cultural intuition – and that remains its greatest strength. The challenge begins when subcultural momentum turns into broader growth. As brands grow, their meaning becomes less self-evident. The question is therefore not: How do we reinvent El Tony Mate? The key question:

Which codes drive the brand’s success – how can they be scaled without losing what makes the brand distinctive?

emovation® helps make the implicit motivations behind that success visible: individuality, independence and adventure. This creates clarity around what can evolve – and what must be protected. Hype creates attention. Brand strength emerges when it becomes a code that people recognise, share and carry forward.