local.ch blog

A few minutes before noon, the same question always strikes: what’s for lunch?

Myriam Blal joined local.ch in January 2012 as a web consultant and has been creating search engine optimised websites for SMEs in western Switzerland. One of her latest projects is fujiyama-geneve.ch. In her first blog post for local.ch, she talks about the culinary journey of discovery around her new workstation at the Förrlibuckstrasse 60/62 in Zurich.

Since our offices moved to Förrlibuckstrasse, I now find myself in Zurich West, an industrial area that has been booming in the last few years. As I am in unknown territory, I am relying on my local.ch mobile application.

I can choose from several options. If I select the result closest to my place of work, I am directed to Cantina Pomodoro on the 4th floor of our building. This simple, unpretentious restaurant does prove to be the most practical solution when I’m turbo-lunching, or when weather conditions are disastrous or if I’m feeling just plain lazy.

The restaurant Max & Moritz, also in the “canteen” spirit, offers daily specials and a buffet with the bonus of a “takeaway” option.

Focussing again on the application map, I discover Sphères. This spot with its urban décor isn’t just a restaurant and a bar, it’s also a bookshop. This mix of genres comes across in its simple, seasonal daily specials that go perfectly with a novella, novel or newspaper.

As I pass by the Italian restaurant Il Gallo, I notice a varied menu: fresh pasta and pizzas for a real Italian lunch treat.

I go from Italy to Germany at Wurst & Moritz. These currywurst specialists have fun with their sausages, offering them in every imaginable form on their inventive menu.

If you’re looking for a sandwich, MenuFöif is the ideal place for you. This takeaway offers a large variety of flavours, as well as very satisfying alternatives to the traditional sandwich.

At the end of my walk, I head for the Puls 5 and discover a slew of takeaway restaurants: Migros Takeaway, Noodle House, Gnüsserei, HITZBERGER, Hokkaido, Angkor, and so on.

Thanks to the local.ch application, I have already conquered this corner of Zurich West on foot and discovered a variety of restaurants near my workplace!

There are two foosball tables and a ping pong table just a few meters away from my new workstation. This playground is called the Play Zone at local.ch. Foosball isn’t new to my breaks, so it doesn’t seem quite so exciting (yes, I’m spoiled), but ping pong: highly addictive! A friendly game can quickly turn into a bitter death match. And when I return to my workstation a quarter of an hour later, I’m all red-faced and out of breath.

Tim Luternauer has been a web consultant with local.ch since May 2012 and creates search engine optimised websites for SMEs in German-speaking Switzerland. One of his latest projects is hd-holzbau-gstaad.ch. In his first blog post for local.ch, he talks about his experience of the move from Konradstrasse to his new work place in Förrlibuckstrasse 60/62, Zurich.

Not all of my colleagues enjoy these extensive breaks. This was brought home to me when I realised that it’s always the same ones playing, while others look shyly across the playground. But I’m convinced that this is THE best way to free your mind of work and set your inner child free. Live in the moment – just you, the ball and your opponent. Give your mind a break from all that multitasking, which never really works anyway.

Encounters in open space

It’s quite a transition, moving from a small, cosy office to a huge open-plan work place. 149 colleagues working together on the same floor – obviously, there’s a lot more interaction. What might start off with a harmless glance can lead to the crossing of paths, then a nod in passing, and finally a quick chat in the cafeteria. This process of interaction is encouraged by the architecture: the front of each office is separated from the corridors by a pane of glass, if at all. Though I have to admit that I feel slightly embarrassed when I catch myself looking through the glass a bit too long, as if I’m peeking into a stranger’s living room on a late-night walk.

Identified for life

In the midst of a big change, it’s sometimes the little things that you have to get used to the most. Like the little card attached to my waistband on a cord. The first time I had my badge on, I noticed other men on the tram that were also on their way home from work and still wore their ID cards on their trousers. As I sat in the tram I really appreciated the fact that Mr. Eichenberger worked in accounts and used to have hair (I’m allowed to make that joke). So if you happen to see me hanging out on the tram with my badge on, you have my blessing to make fun of me.

The word “progress” sums it up perfectly: moving forward. This is what we set out to do with local.ch’s map application. We pushed development forward to improve user experience and convenience when searching for addresses. See for yourself what the new map application has to offer.

When I look for a hairdresser today, I get a list of results with a small map to view. We thought about how we can make this into something bigger…

Imagine you could switch from the results list to the map and vice versa. And the map could display not only hairdressers, but also a host of other categories that are sure to be of interest to you. For example, if I want to meet a friend directly after going to the hairdresser, wouldn’t it be perfect if the locations were close to one another?

After I’ve booked my appointment at the hairdresser, I return to the new local.ch map application and take another look at the area in a different map view. I can see where the restaurant is located in the satellite map view much better. The beauty of the city can be appreciated through the images. It makes exploring the city that much more exciting.

What you’ve seen just now is not the final destination of our progress. Soon it will be possible to do much more. Like share maps with friends, calculate routes, print maps and send feedback through a feedback function.

Stay tuned as we carry on our surge forward. We look forward to continuing this little adventure with you.

Time and again, we are filled with a desire for that special something – and would like a little cash to fulfil it. At the moment, it’s a new racing bike or a gym in a warm place for me… What does your heart desire? A spa weekend? A professional photo shoot? Or renting a Lamborghini for a day?

Well, get ready for your wishes to come true! Today we celebrate our Swiss record with 4’117’000 unique clients so we’re giving away a total of CHF 10,000 (and only today!):

• 1st prize: CHF 3,000
• 2nd prize: CHF 2,000
• 3rd prize: CHF 1,000
• 4th -11th prizes: CHF 500 each

What do you have to do? Start up our app, search for “Nummer 1″, click on the local.ch-icon and hope that your lucky star is looking down upon you. Good luck!

Terms and conditions

The contest is free and without obligation to buy. Only persons resident in Switzerland or Liechtenstein are eligible. The data will not be used for marketing purposes or passed on. Employees of local.ch and partners in charge of the competition are excluded from participation. The closing date is 10 April 2013. Winners will be notified in writing. No correspondence will be entered into about the competition and the draw. There is no right of appeal. The winnings can also be paid out in cash.

Thank you for visiting local.ch in March. It was quite a turn out! With 4.117 million unique clients, we’ve set a new benchmark – and not just for local.ch, but for all websites monitored by NET-Metrix.

For the past few months, you’ve helped us again and again to lead the NET-Metrix rankings for unique clients. In March, we were even able to surpass the four-million hits mark thanks to your visits from various devices!

NET-Metrix has also informed us that this is the highest value ever recorded. The previous record holder was www.bluewin.ch with 4,116,000 unique clients in January 2008. Why did this record remain unbeaten for so long? One of the key factors certainly lies in the much more stringent new data collection methods introduced in January 2010.

So what does 4.117 million unique clients in a month mean? We’ve prepared a little something for you – an animation:

We look forward to continuously providing you with the best search functions far into the future!