Today, we visited Burson-Marsteller Italia, the global public relations and communications company office in Italy. Even though I am a journalism major, this media visit fascinated me.
The CEO, Fabio Caporizzi, made us think outside of typical marketing and advertising. He told us what it is like to be in this field in Italy.
“For you, 50 kilometers is nothing. For us, it is three different dialects… this is the reason for weak economy. Trying to survive on the global scale is not easy,” Caporizzi said.
We take it for granted, but marketing beyond borders is something crucial for Italian brands. Fiat had to move to Detroit just to survive.
And sometimes, it’s a little more personal.
Fabio told the story of his son. He studied at NYC and now works in New York for a Swiss company. He isn’t just working for a foreign brand, but changed his own brand to fit in. He changed his name so that Americans can more easily pronounce it.
You could see, when Fabio was telling this story, that it hurt him that his son had to change his name. Family and family name is something incredibly important to Italians.
It isn’t just the Italian brands that are expanding beyond boarders, but the people too. It is a dream of theirs to work in the U.S., and we take it for granted.
But they have still managed to be successful, delivering Italian brands worldwide. For Sergio of J. Walter Thompson in Italy, this success comes from telling stories and conveying emotion.
Their latest success story? Compari.
It was a brand that was struggling, going for many different prices in many different places. It needed a revamp.
Sergio did this by telling stories in a series of “Red Diaries,” featuring some of the best bartenders and their recipes using Compari. It was cinematically beautiful, playful and professional.
But before he even showed the video to us, he pulled out a bottle of the liquor and offered everyone a taste. It was gross, but nonetheless, those stories sold it to me. Like I said, I am a journalism major, but I can appreciate good marketing. Stories are stories, no matter what venue they come in, and that is my passion.
The essence of the brand is intriguing, stimulating pleasure, Sergio said. Through these videos and others, they have been able to effectively sell the brand, and Compari has doubled in consumption worldwide.
I don’t really drink and I don’t like Compari, but through their stories, they make me wish I did.
Next, we visited Rai Milan, the main broadcast in Italy. It began with radio, but then grew to news broadcasts and even tv shows. It is funded through a tax revenue that the people of Italy pay every year. Recently, they attached it to the electricity bill, providing a steady stream of revenue.
We were able to visit Rai because of Anna Vitaliani, the Italian journalist who lived in Pittsburgh this past year with her family. She came to our class and gave us a great wealth of information on what it is like to be a journalist in Italy. It was so nice to see her again, across the pond!
It was so neat to visit their radio station, their news broadcast with augmented reality background and their TV show set. They even put Emily on air on the radio. It was perfect because today was her birthday and she even hosts a radio show back at WPPJ.
Visiting places like Burson-Marsteller and Rai, with employees who are truly excited and passionate about their jobs, invigorates me as I continue my education and career.
Compari is still gross, though.