What I Learned about Direct Marketing on Holiday Abroad in Italy
I've just returned from an eye opening family vacation in the land of the EURO. Ouch! No question, the value of the dollar is hurting abroad. A soft drink cost the equivalent of $9.90! It was very interesting to observe how Europeans market themselves...especially to Americans. But we'll get to that in a moment.
Lest you think I was actually relaxing and enjoying the wonders of Italy, Spain and France, I'll have you know that I had 100% access to my work desktop and was on line for almost 800 minutes servicing clients and prospects thru a remote access feature. While my email replies were a little tardy (after all, I was 6 hours ahead, and I was ostensibly on Holiday...lol) I replied to each and every inquiry, ran counts, emailed counts, etc...Had my Cell Phone Carrier not failed to activate me for International service as they told me they had (I won't mention them by name, but it rhymes with "hint") I would have also had International phone service too. But enough about broken promises.
When in Rome
How does that famous saying go? "When in Rome, do as the Romans do". Well I can tell you that doesn't apply to Roman Pizza. It sucked, ugh, doughie, almost no sauce, and even less cheese. But the Romans do have personality. They are charming, helpful and attentive. And they are clean.
We saw some of the magnificent Roman sites: 
The Coliseum-It's amazing how similar the design of many of today's Football stadiums in the US are to this ancient edifice.
The Roman Baths-the Romans took being clean to a new art form.
Trevi Fountain & The Spanish Steps-I kept expecting to turn around and see Cary Grant or Debra Kerr. 
And more Obelisks, domes and ruins than you could shake a stick at.
Here are some key take-aways:
The Romans were very good at recycling what works. The original Mosques and Temples of the old city were built by early invaders. When they were vanquished, the victors would take Marble, Granite and other building materials from the existing buildings and use them to build new buildings. Then they would be conquered and so on, and so on. It is why pictures we see of The Coliseum today show all these craters and holes in the remaining structures. Those holes are where the rods from the fascia Marble came together. The Romans used Marble like we use wood or siding for our houses.
I. To put it in a direct marketing perspective, they borrowed winning elements of prior packages to create a newer more up-to-date ones. And the cycle was continuous.
II. Don't eat Roman pizza.
III. Custom Service is what keeps clients as clients.
Pisa
Everything is leaning in Pisa-the Tower, the Cathedral, the Baptisimal, even the Cemetery. The Miracle square is quite impressive.
The architecture is a blend of many influences 
throughout time, and everything is spotlessly clean.
But what struck me most about Pisa was the goods for sale. A throng of stall after stall of identical merchandise. I'm not going to dwell on the Italian vendors' penchant for showcasing "private parts" emblazoned on boxer shorts or "boobie" aprons. Some vendors' goods were more expensive than others (for the same item, mind you) and some were more negotiable than others, but it was all the same stuff...stall after stall after stall. The vendors stayed back in their stalls and rarely engaged customers.
It was the most egregious example of lack of marketing savvy I had ever witnessed...and yet sales were made.
Portofino 
Portofino might be the prettiest little town I have ever seen. It is more picturesque than I can find the words to describe it. Walking down the main quay, I had the feeling I was on a Hollywood set for "Portofino, the Italian Riviera".
The collection of multi-million dollar yachts (with and without optional Helicopters) moored at the Pier made me giggle. It also reminded me that there is a level of affluence in this world that I cannot begin to imagine.
While anyone can walk along the streets of Portofino, and even have an Espresso while sitting outside at one of the dock-side Restaurants, the prices in the stores made it quite clear that I was NOT a member of the privileged elite.
We ran out of sunscreen by the time we got to Portofino and I had the misfortune to need to purchase some from the local Farmacia. For the equivalent of generic sunscreen in the US, I paid 25 Euros or about $40 bucks for a store sample sized spray.
Clearly, I am NOT their target market...lol!