Why I founded Salvatore Ltd.
I wanted to write a piece about my motives for setting up Salvatore. People have been asking, of course. What is going to be distinctive about Salvatore? What are you going to focus on? And why the name?
I've been doing 'Salvatore'-type work for over 20 years, perhaps without realising it until now. It's my best work, the things I did for other people which really made a difference to them and their organisations.
It was the series of seminars I designed for Bloomberg, to allow non-financial people to understand the financial markets in only 3 hours. The results? We sold a whole bunch of advertising space to that audience, we built relationships, we opened eyes. It was the strategic marketing sessions I did at Etrali in Paris which created a messaging framework around Communications Compliance. In that case, the Compliance focus had a major commercial impact, leading to high-value sales and the acquisition of Etrali by IPC Systems. It was the business process analyses I carried out in Contact Centres all over the world, in their native languages, which enabled the companies to save time and money processing customer enquiries, and which resulted in a better customer experience.
More than that, I've come to realise that Communications isn't about straplines, or logos, or powerpoint decks per se. It is about bridging gaps, making connections, triggering desired actions. No matter who you are and what you are trying to achieve, your approach to communications cannot be generic, cookie-cutter, bland. Of course, you have to tailor the approach to your situation. After all, there is a right and a wrong time for strategic marketing work. Are you building a brand? Are you trying to reach a new audience? Is your organisation going through change?
These are all good reasons to take a fresh approach. I want Salvatore to be your key to being truly distinctive, with an engagement model which suits your needs. The answers are there waiting to be found, and Salvatore's mission is to help you find them quickly, and put them to your audience in the most impactful way.
There are three main areas where Salvatore can help:
1. Technology: What is your approach to technology as far as comms is concerned? Does your web presence help you to achieve your aims? Do you need to capture your communications for regulatory purposes? Does your firm's technology create risks for you, such as GDPR non-compliance?
My 20+ years of experience in the communications space can help you find the right solutions, encompassing online (web, social, SEO), digital telephony and Unified Communications, recordkeeping for regulatory purposes, collaboration tools and more.
2. Strategy: Does your marketing strategy align with your commercial strategy? Does your organisation struggle to express itself? Is the organisation going through growth or other rapid changes, and needs to move quickly to adapt?
I can help your organisation to find its voice. Often, young companies or companies that are going through change cannot find the way to express core values, or to reach a common understanding of the company's offering and associated customer benefits. I've helped individuals, teams and companies to do this vital work, to do it quickly, and to make the changes stick.
3. Personal: I have met people who are inspirational, natural communicators. Put them on a stage and they shine. Lucky them! I've also seen bright, confident people shaken to the core by the prospect of public speaking. I've seen leaders struggling to inspire, pitches falling flat, performers failing to engage. Why this happens is not a mystery.
This is one of the things that makes Salvatore distinctive. Communication is not just about technology and strategy. It's about performance in the moment, and that is about you as an individual. I've coached and mentored individuals to be better, more confident, more engaging public speakers. Combining this personal aspect with the technology and strategic can have the greatest impact of all.
Thanks for reading - and if you want to find out more, including the name, click here to get in touch!