When I entered the sales department, at Kodak I was enrolled in a Marketing class at Bocconi.
Until then I had attended university lectures on Operating Systems, Automatic Controls, etc., and then professional classes on ISO/OSI Protocols (what a bore).
Discovering marketing was like coming back as a teenager and rediscovering… the other sex…
Heartbeats and hormonal storms aside, the lessons had one merit: they taught me the fundamentals.
That is, they gave me the key to understanding the behind-the-scenes strategies that came from the U.S. to London, and from there to Cinisello.
And they provided me with a method to implement local initiatives in line with those strategies, and based on the right principles.
Otherwise I would have wandered for years like a sleepwalker, without knowing where I was, what was going on around me, and what needed to be done.
But we never stop learning.
So many years later, when I left the corporations, I discovered the hard way that there was also a second “kit” of fundamentals.
This is what SMEs need.
A SME must also use some of the fundamental principles used by multinationals; but above that common base, it’s necessary to add another layer, otherwise the house won’y grow.
It’s no coincidence that Dan Kennedy says:
“If you are a small business do not emulate the Apple of today: take inspiration from the Apple of the origins…”
However, to make it short: by practicing in the field, over the years we have developed a marketing and sales method just for SMEs. In fact, I’d say more: tailored to the SME that operates in Italy.
Nothing as high as Porter’s competitive strategy, then.
But respectful of the fundamentals, simple and fast. It’s a method for the classic “owner” who doesn’t have time to waste, doesn’t have big staff or big budgets.
A system that allows you to immediately get to the point.
When a customer talks about himself, thanks to this special lens we can understand in a few minutes if he has a problem of positioning, message, target, negotiations, sales, etc.., and we can immediately prescribe a quick solution.
But the great thing is that anyone can use the method on their own, without the need for external consultants.
Take it, learn it, use it.
