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Carol Frer

Strategic marketing & comms consulting

Background

 

   

About me

             

I am a curious soul, that's the driving force behind everything I do.

 

I have studied Sociology in Bologna and ever since I loved research: the perfect match between creativity and rigour. 

I have started my career doing research for the internet industry, and ever since I have mostly focused on brand and communication, using all types of methodologies and working for some of the most of the most respected insights companies.

 

During this time I have worked in several countries and supported some of the most iconic brands in the world: Coca-Cola, IKEA, Adidas, Qatar Airways, Unilever, Procter & Gamble, GlaxoSmithKline, VolksWagen, English Heritage, just to name a few.

 

I really enjoyed liaising with my clients, but also with art directors, copywriters, web developers, usability experts, social media managers, brand and media planners (etc...) and I am always keen to keep up with the latest innovations in these industries.

 

As you probably guessed by now, I like discoveries... but what I really love is to use those discoveries to "make things happen": for this reason I choose work and learning experiences where I progressively deepened my knowledge not just of research methods, but also of strategic and operational marketing, for which those research are conduced.

 

Now I can finally offer my clients a complete consulting suit and "take them by hand" along the difficult path between research and implementation of results.

 

My latest personal challenge is now to make my competencies available not just to big corporations, but also smaller realities needing a rounded marketing consultancy.

 

My method

 

Over the years I have observed that clients often contact consultants and researchers to collect information about “things they don’t know”. 

 

I have found that this “not knowing” normally refers to one of these options:

  • They don’t know what they should know
  • They don’t know how to discover the information they are missing
  • They don’t know how to implement their research findings

 

My ambition is to overcome all these limits to produce meaningful results.

 

 

# They don’t know what they should know

 

Companies are complex, and a number of variables come to play when there are big decisions to make... but not all of them are equally functional to achieve your priority business goal.

 

With such a buzz around "big data" and information abundance, being able to make sense of the numbers provided by databases and tools is fundamental.

Seneca once said " If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable", it is shocking to discover how current this sentence still is.

 

The first step to sail through the sea of information is therefore to analyse the current status quo and the goal we are setting for ourselves.

Once discovered the real aim of our project we will focus only on those actions producing real value for your company.

 

 

–# They don’t know how to discover the information they are missing

 

At first you might find this counter-intuitive, but a fundamental step to discover which new information you need is to fully understand what [information] you possess already.

 

I take pride in building a strong relationship with my clients and I believe a satisfied client is the perfect advocate for me. For this reason i strive to propose you only the projects you really need.

 

We will map the information available and your internal competences, to understand how to best leverage them and identify the informative gaps. This way I will only focus my work on what you are still missing.

I will then propose you the project best suited to your needs, coordinating the various internal and external stakeholders who will need to participate and eventually complement my expertise.

 

–# They don’t know how to implement their research findings

 

A research project often finishes with a great presentation to c-level executives, after which operational departments are left to take action and expected to bring the company closer to its business goals.

 

I strongly believe in research in testing different scenarious, and I believe in “doing” just as much. 

 

For this reason my work does not necessarily stop with a Powerpoint presentation or a nice infographic to stick on the coffee machine. I want to accompany you also through the other phases of work.

 

I am therefore available to be on-site and help your teams to integrate the various resources available and discuss together the practical meaning of data.

 

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