Chiara Piancatelli: Next-Gen Marketing: the right communication to engage the audiences of the future.

As Chiara Piancatelli, Associate Professor of Practice in Marketing at SDA Bocconi School of Management, tells us, today, more than ever, what really makes the difference is the ability to create an empathetic connection with your audience, that is, with the people to whom we want to tell, even before selling, our products and services. We live in a constantly evolving context, which we can define as "phygital": an ecosystem in which offline and online intertwine, contaminate and reinforce each other. In this scenario, the way of doing marketing and communication also inevitably changes. It is no longer enough to communicate through traditional channels, advertising banners, magazines or television, which remain important tools, but which are evolving in their narrative and role. Today it is essential to create value, that is, to build authentic relationships, activate and nourish communities around a brand, generate conversations and belonging. The product remains central: it is the heart of the offer, with its characteristics and elements that make it unique. But alongside the product, everything that surrounds it emerges forcefully: the intangible aspects, the stories, the values, the soft skills that define the identity of a brand. It is precisely there that the real difference arises: in the ability to transform a product into a story, and a story into a lasting relationship with people.