I was hosted by Radio Venice Live Social to examine the main differences between Italian and American business practices based off of my time in the United States.
The energetic speaker who interviewed me, Matteo Biasin, heated the mic with some questions about Chick’n’Mango, specifically how I'll be able to keep the project buzzing now that I'm back in Italy and if I have plans to head overseas again.
So, guys I might have overlooked the answer during the interview, but… hell yeah you have no idea how much I want to go overseas again! This is my main goal for 2018-2019.
Anyways, let's not get too off topic with Chick’n’Mango's origin story. In this interview, I told the tearful version, but if you want to find out more about my project and its vlogging potential, click here and watch the video.
What they don’t tell you about Italy
Pizza, pasta and great monuments are only one side of the coin. The employment situation here in Italy is critical. The lucky few who have stable employment live with an average of €1000 - €1200 per month (roughly an annual net income of €15.000) and in the south, they live with government funded unemployment aid.
I hoped it would have changed by the time I had gotten back, but what I found was a disaster.
To put it into perspective, if we look at the US unemployment rate coming in at slightly below 3% and compare it with Italy's current unemployment and inactivity rate at 35% (source: ISTAT, February 2018), I'm sure you're thinking WTF, right?
So what gives?
THE PRICE WAR
Italian business market background
Long story short, after I arrived in Italy, I started to work on my international marketing consultancies, met many entrepreneurs and understood that their best marketing leverage was the price.
Italy is made up by thousands of SMEs, mainly family run businesses, where entrepreneurs haven’t updated their fundamental management skills. As the managing partner of yourCFO Consulting Group, Andrea Pietrini, says: «Italy is a country with a high level of entrepreneurship and a low level of management».
It seems impossible that in 2018 the average Italian entrepreneur doesn’t know the meaning of "e-commerce" or what a "landing page" is.
By the way, the most common question that I receive is: «clients always choose low prices, so how can I differentiate myself from competitors?».
And they might have a point. Actually, the economy is critical, the middle class is fading and new generations are growing unemployed. Price is important for most people, but you still see them futzing around with iPhones or the latest Samsung.
Where do they draw the line? The Italian culture looks after good deals, but not for every product. So, how can you be that product?
The answer is actually easy. Ask yourself, what makes people pay a premium price and buy Nike, Apple or even an ice-cream at Grom? I can assure you that Grom’s ice-cream is totally shit compared to other Italian ice-cream shops.
Vision and mission: these unknowns
Dear friends, the most valuable and intangible asset that a company can have is its brand. Brand is everything.
People buy experiences, emotions, lasting moments and bla bla bla. And even if it’s a bla bla bla, nobody sells it.
I usually answer back to entrepreneurs with another question: «when you wake up in the morning, what’s the energy that pulls you out of bed?».
Because that energy is the key.
It is the key which also pulls people into your journey and make them become clients. This is the vision. It’s the vision which makes a brand unique.
Many people start a business just to survive or maybe take over as the next family member in line, so they didn't actually decide on the kind of job they really wanted to do. Nevertheless, the point stays the same: do you want to grow or not? Do you want to beat your competition or not?
If you don’t have a vision yet, you can make one. Search inside you and find the non-economical energy which makes your product/service spark.
And if you don’t find one, quit everything and follow your heart: you are only on this planet once.
If you want to better understand how to build a strong brand founded on your unique vision, watch this video of Simon Sinek who shows how great leaders inspire action.
WHAT DO YOU THINK
Tell me more about your business, but…above all…what’s your vision?
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