- I was in the same position as you a couple of years ago so I’d like to help you to understand what you are studying, says area sales manager Frantz Kruger.
He graduated from VAMK in 2010 and is now working for ABB Distribution and Automation. He wrote his thesis for ABB titled The Effect of Culture on the Sales Process.
The students and lecturer Satu Lautamäki from the course Business-to-Business Marketing appreciated the interactive atmosphere of their visit to ABB. Frantz Kruger and marketing manager Olli Sotka were genuinely interested in the feedback the students gave about brochures on products and their web site.
The products (relays) and their features are not the easiest to conceive for business students and they found the technical information on the brochures challenging.
One of the teams had also sent a test message through the ABB web site and they found their questions answered thoroughly and promptly.
- Long term business is built on trust and customers saying “we trust ABB” is the best marketing, says Olli Sotka.
Camille Chaux, Mattias Lassus and Ossi Jääskä learned that trade fairs have a higher impact on sales than they could imagine. ABB invests in events aiming at brand awareness, leads and partners.
Mattias was also interested in the marketing manager’s comments on improving marketing communication. Olli Sotka said that in a conservative company it’s not easy to change but for example social media is something they will have to look into.
Ossi Jääskä, Mattias Lassus and Camille Chaux learned that everything is not digital in marketing – events like trade fairs are crucial for ABB.
The students had examined relay brochures as a pretask for the visit.
Text and photos: Pia Liedes