Thursday, 20th April, was saved for successful stories from the world of technology, marketing and entrepreneurship. We attended the LeapIn Podgorica conference to scent the atmosphere of Leap Summit, which will be held in Zagreb, in May 2017.
Thanks to the organization of NGO Digitalizuj.me we heard many useful tips from several successful individuals at the Youth Center:
At the very beginning, Sanja Gardašević helped us bust a few myths about digital marketing. Two of them perhaps most of us have often hear in their private and, unfortunately, business environment:
1. Everyone can be engaged in digital marketing (i.e. the neighbor’s son who is “hanging” on Facebook can create an online strategy for your business),
2. Digital marketing is great, but it does not work in our country (Montenegro stays behind trends and this will never change).
Maja Jaredić used practical examples to show us why we need to invest in inbound marketing, what powers Internet gave to the customers and how businesses should focus on customers and attract them to their brand and product. Youth activism in Montenegro remains at an unsatisfying level, even though the opportunities are numerous, so Ivana Grgurović talked about benefits of internship programs and student exchange programs. Through her own example, Jennifer Buxton has pointed out that a successful job can only be built if you know who you are, if you trust yourself and allow yourself to get out of your comfort zone. Dražen Vujović has encouraged young people to think about new ideas, as a key to establishment of a startup.
An interesting lecture was also delivered by Radivoje Drobnjak, Master of Economics, as he was referring to disadvantages of the Montenegrin educational system, rewarding learning for the sake of good grades rather than to be able to make a critical reflection. At the very end, Vladimir Vulić talked about the importance of falling in love with your customers before loving your own product or service. Starbucks, Victoria’s Secret, Harley Davidson and many others are examples of successfully defined sales strategies, which many companies have been building for years.
Source: Leap Summit
Concluding that customers need to satisfy their needs, not just to by the specific product, the conference ended with a nice surprise by the organizers: all attendees were awarded tickets to the Leap Summit, which will be held in Zagreb on 11 – 13 May.
We thank Digitalizuj.me for its excellent organization and efforts to map Montenegro as a place of many marketing, innovation and technology fans. See you in Zagreb! :)
