Fritzsch and Mackat Advertising Agency in Berlin by Michaela and Emma

Fritzsch and Mackat is a local Berlin advertising agency founded in 1993 that specializes in East and West advertising in Germany. Our speaker was Mr. Mackat, the CEO of the agency. Fritzsch and Mackat currently employs eighteen people and they see each other as a close family instead of a large corporation but are interested in future growth. Our speaker showed us a slide show called “The Secret of Eastern and Western Germany.” The object was for brands to be equally successful in each region of Germany. To determine how to proceed with this challenge the agency used quantitative surveys and research studies on East and West Germany to see how to steer their advertising campaigns toward the correct audiences in these two areas.

Mr. Mackat described the Eastern Germans as not liking advertising, being more critical, and responding more to messages based on trust and community. The Western Germans were more liberal, enjoyed adventure, and prided themselves on being unique individuals. Even though the wall fell twenty years ago, that does not erase the fact that it still stood solid for forty years. Because of this, the Eastern and Western Germans still see themselves as being very different. In fact, only 1.4% of all marriages in Germany are comprised of an East and West union.

Through their research, the agency found that most Germans responded better to advertisements geared towards the East German qualities of family, values, and compassion instead of the Western values of individuality, the high life, and abstractness. The agency said they would never tell West Germans this because they would take offense and deny it. Therefore, the mix of values in West Germans allowed the East German advertisements to be successful all over the country. That thesis led to a “balance of me and we” in advertising for Germans.

When asked, “what would you recommend to aspiring advertising students?” Mr. Mackat said to, “use your brain. Don’t forget your brain. Never give up fighting for the right thing and never believe too quickly.” The visit to Fritzsch and Mackat Advertising Agency gave our class a view into the smaller scale side of advertising but also inspired us to reach out and find new niches to specialize in and explore.