This morning we had our first media visit in Milan at the offices of Burson-Marsteller. The public relations firm works as part of the WPP group along with other communications agencies like Wavemaker and J. Walter Thompson.
We first heard from Luca of Wavemaker. He spoke to us about the purchasing journey and how he uses data to identify target audiences. Pretty basic stuff. What was crazy for me was that with their data management platform they could reach 80% of the Italian population. That’s insanity.
After hearing from Luca we were joined by Burson-Marsteller CEO Fabio Caporizzi. He was very funny and engaging and showed us three excellent social awareness campaigns that the company had worked on.
He stressed the fact that the Italian market is often overlooked, but that they are just as capable as other countries when it comes to creating great campaigns. If you want to cry and be amazed, Google “Chat Yourself Italia Longeva.”
Also, did you know that in all of Italy there are only 31 people who work for Facebook? That’s minuscule compared to the U.S.
Next, we heard from Elena (the “boss” Fabio called her) of Cohn & Wolfe, another large PR firm that is in the process of merging with Burson-Marsteller.
She shared some of their successful PR campaigns for brands like Maserati and Pfizer with us and it was really interesting for my little PR nerd heart.
After working in PR agencies for a small fraction of time, what she was saying made a lot more sense to me than it might have a year ago. (She talked a lot about digital influencers too which is something that fascinates me.)
However, nothing could top the last presentation we heard. A creative director from J. Walter Thompson, Sergio, came and showed us the work he had been doing with the liquor brand Campari.
The first thing he did was take out a bottle and pour all of us a taste. Save yourself some time, it’s foul. It looks pretty, it’s lying to you. The winces on everyone’s faces should be evidence enough.
He took us through his creative process and then showed us a series of short films he worked on to promote the ‘air of mystery’ surrounding the brand. I strongly recommend Googling “The Legend of the Red Hand.” It was cinematic and amazing.
After that, it was off to RAI Milan’s production studios. Super cool to see their radio and TV studios but I was truly exhausted. Broadcasting is definitely not a passion of mine.
In the evening Carrie, Emily, and I decided to head back to the city center of Milan and get dinner. It was our last free evening in Italy and were determined to make the most of it.
Other than our waiter having a bloody nose and riding the 54 bus all the way to the end of the line, the night was great. Milan is a very modern city in many ways, but it still has the history and charm that makes Italy so different from the U.S.
As this trip nears its conclusion, I am so thankful that I was able to experience all these unique cities with some phenomenal people. One day more
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