Drugi jezik na kojem je dostupan ovaj članak: Bosnian
By: Marko Pekica
I confess to you, my dear fellow communicators, who’ve probably read this information on the Internet, that I immediately remembered the days of my youth when I would anxiously await such occasions, in order to socialize and “fool around” with dear friends, but also to meet new people. It was wonderful. We had great fun, but we also really worked. We used to go to those meetings to learn new things, take them on board, and then we usually ended up in the bars, excellent restaurants, fabulous taverns, iconic clubs and on romantic walks (in good company) along the most beautiful sea.
It’s no wonder that we jokingly called those meetings drinking parties.
My dear gorgeous gals and charming guys, I’m sure that you too are already rushing into the arms of beautiful Rovinj, to confirm that communication is always welcome, for the exchange of views, attitudes and emotions between two or more people.
And for communication to be successful – as we know – the following conditions must be met:
- Mutual appreciation and respect;
- Two-way communication;
- A relaxed, pleasant and good atmosphere;
- Communication in dialogue form (forget about monologues);
- Honesty and morality;
- Tolerance and flexibility;
- Each idea, message, proposal and argument must ring with truth.
Let’s be ready for all the possible alterations and changes that we will have to accept after Rovinj in order to enable ourselves and our associates to successfully reach all our communication objectives.
I’m sure that upon returning home all participants at the Days in Rovinj will tell their staff and colleagues that it is not only our PR experts and spokespersons who are in charge of building and maintaining our market reputation, but that each and every one of us has this role, and that we are all brand ambassadors for our companies.
Yes, it is good to know that no matter how stretched and scattered we are in a hundred different directions and how frustrated we are with hundreds of obligations, we all have to tell (communicate) our story seriously to our audiences in the best possible way:
- We have to do it every day of the year;
- In our communications, we should always be honest, correct, moral, fair, professional and easily approachable, and we have to be people who are sensitive to other people, and to their needs and desires;
- We must never be harsh, arrogant or haughty;
- We must never lie;
- We must never improvise, obfuscate or speculate;
- We don’t know what inaccessibility and rudeness is;
- We are always ready to help, understand and act;
- Our communications activities plan, to put it graphically, is like a map that helps us and shows us how to reach the established target quickly and efficiently, and the media campaign represents the path that gets us there;
- The success or failure of our campaign always depends on our ability to create the right messages and our ability to execute the plan in a disciplined and thorough manner;
- As the great Winston Churchill used to emphasize – in communication, one should be mindful of tone, diction, rhythm, the credibility of the argument and its accessibility;
- In our communication, we should always be substantive, imaginative, polite, courteous, moral, spontaneous and simple, and you will find that you will always be welcome anywhere, and you will have willing listeners;
- Let’s not forget the very important fact that communication doesn’t start with speaking, but with listening (or rather with preparation for listening);
- We must listen to our interlocutor and never interrupt them;
- We must listen to the pulse of our market, and in our communications with consumers or clients we should act in a manner that best suits them;
- We should never communication in a way that we wouldn’t want others to communicate with us (use the guideline from the previous point);
- In crisis situations, we should always be honest and cooperative;
- We must always address audiences with the truth, without hesitation or equivocation;
- Let us remember: honesty, openness and being cooperative in moments of crisis strengthen our image and our credibility;
- In our media appearances, we should keep our calm and our credibility, and should never give the impression of being agitated or overwhelmed;
- We are there to solve a problem that has arisen and to prevent it from ever happening again;
- In my lectures, I particularly stress that we have to always keep track of what’s going on in the market in order to be able to react adequately and in a timely manner, to keep our consumers satisfied and feeling important and respected;
- Let us forget big egos and small ears. Let’s leave that to the politicians and their like;
- We will achieve that much more easily if we listen, and if our messages are created so that their content represents the customer’s desires and needs, and so that they are trustworthy and understandable to the receiver;
- In our communication, we should never offend anyone on ethnic, religious or racial grounds;
- Let us forget ethnocentrism;
- Every person has the right to their pride and their social convictions;
- We respect everyone, and are always ready to understand, tolerate, act and help;
- We celebrate people, we celebrate life, we strive for the creation of a world where everyone feels comfortable;
- Let’s be true in every sense – we will feel good in our own skin, and people will believe us and our company;
- We present ourselves with a smile – anywhere and anytime;
- People love people who smile: they are more likable, they seem more intelligent, they are healthier and they live longer;
- Be spontaneous, inspiring and passionate;
- In the end, let’s remember: Speech is not an obligation to fill time, speech is the pleasure of conveying the right messages and the right attitudes;
- Speech is the essential form of every communication, including that which awaits us in Rovinj.
I hope that in Rovinj, among other useful things, you will hear that the most important part of leadership – and you are leaders – is to be a good speaker and a genuine communicator.
Oh yes, and let me whisper this:
- You will be a good leader if – allow me to repeat – you use creativity, knowledge, honesty and morality in your communications, and if you aspire to mutual respect and satisfaction (a two-way process, a dialogue, a good atmosphere…) in your communications.
Luckily, what truly fulfills me is the realization that we, marketing communicators, are people of dialogue, that we do not know what a monologue is, and that of all the personal pronouns our most favorite is “WE”. “WE” elates, “WE” connects, “WE” brings…
Let’s not be monotonous in our presentations, but the opposite. Let’s be dynamic, passionate, exciting and filled with positive emotional energy and love for all people of the world.
And, to conclude, in communication, know how to use all four language skills in the same way: listening, speaking, reading and writing – but also know how to see.
Ogni bene a tutti voi in Rovinj, più Bella Citta del mondo! (All the best to all of you in Rovinj, the most beautiful city in the world!). And please, when you are in Rovinj, don’t forget to visit St. Eufemia, for she enriches us and prays for us.
It’s lovely to communicate with God, and with you my dear friends!