Our break was over, it was time to get back into the routine of hustling from place to place and listening to speakers. On our list was Burson Marsteller and Rai Milan, two well known companies in the city and throughout Italy.
A longer public transportation ride was needed for Burson Marsteller, but this trip was a piece of cake compared to Rome. While the first bus was crowded and only a few of us could hop on, we fit easily on the second one and had an easier time following the stops.
Several speakers talked to us at this company. Along with Burson Marsteller employees, we heard from two others at Wavemaker and Ogilvy & Mather. All three of these intersect and work together.
Here are some highlights from each speaker:
Luca Vergani- “Are you a T-shaped or I-shaped employee?”
- T-shaped: lower understanding of a specific sector but wider understanding of the puzzle
- I-shaped: very deep knowledge in one specific sector
Fabio Caporizzi
- The Italian business language is English
- For Italian companies to grow, they have to move and sell products internationally
- For example, Fiat moving to Detroit
Elena Silva
- She taught us a lot about influencer marketing and how that is huge in Italy right now.
Sergio Rodriquez
Sergio’s presentation was easily my favorite- and the most intriguing. He started off by discussing this bright red drink called Campari. He offered us some to taste, and it was one of the worst tastes in my mouth. It reminded me of cough syrup, however, this is a well known, highly-thought-of product around the world.
He discussed with us the marketing strategy for the drink and then proceeded to show us advertisements for the brand. Campari is meant to be enticing, mysterious, and sociable, so that was the foundation for the advertisements.
In the first year, the advertisements were focused around several bartenders and a special drink made with Campari, to tell their stories. The second year, a short film was made with a trailer release put elsewhere. I couldn’t believe I was watching an advertisement. Campari had established actors, directors, and film crew working on the project to show how “elite” the drink is.
I highly suggest you watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDOQyMzxbb8
Next up was a visit to Rai, a company focusing on television, radio, and Internet in Italy. It’s the audience leader in Italian TV and has the lowest license fee in Europe. Anna had joined us for this meeting, and we were all excited to see her again! She had visited our class several times throughout the semester while her husband was working in a Pittsburgh hospital. She also works for Rai as a journalist.
Our tour of Rai included viewing the radio station booth (and being live on air!) and several news studios.
