Alberto Contri is one of the pillars of communication in Italy and in the last 20 years he has dedicated his creative energy to the publicity project of Pubblicità Progresso. But, in his professional history, there are numerous successes in which he has become the protagonist which, having now entered the daily life of the public, arise instead from uncommon inventiveness and industriousness, realizing, for example, in the role of CEO of RAInet, the internet portals of RAI and its seven Web TV channels.
Since 1999 he has been President of Pubblicità Progresso which, transformed in 2004 into a Foundation, has given itself the additional task of spreading the culture of Social Communication in Universities and in the Third Sector: in 83 Faculties of 44 Italian Universities they hold seminars, workshops and competitions reserved for students. For Pubblicità Progresso he built the most important online media library in the world with the most creative and performing international social campaigns from 1900 to today, for benchmarking purposes. In recent times it has carried out two social campaigns, on organ donation and on occupational safety - in collaboration with the Quirinale of President Giorgio Napolitano, which have been selected by the "Creative for Good" Project of the World Economic Forum to be included among the campaigns higher quality international
After teaching Social Communication at La Sapienza in Rome for five years and then for another four years at the S. Raffaele - Vita University in Milan, the sociologist Giampaolo Fabris called him to the IULM in Milan, where he has been teaching Social Communication and New Average. He is Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic.
Pubblicità Progresso is a project that came to life 40 years ago, breaking the mold and the aims of "advertising" which up until then was only commercial. In this long period, have you recorded a social impact on the communication dynamics of advertising in general?
With the development of Corporate Social Responsibility, an interesting hybridization between commercial and social communication is taking place, given that big brands are starting to communicate by promoting social values such as motherhood, fatherhood, respect for the environment.
The creativity of the authors has always been the strong point of social communication. How has language changed in the era of social networks?
Today a social campaign must be declined on all means, traditional and otherwise, modulating its contents on the basis of the grammar and syntax of each medium. Social networks make messages go "viral" which, in their creation, did not always seem so captivating.
Can social communication, on the other hand, for its own ends devise a message precisely with the intention of "viralizing" it?
I would say that he must try, also because simply raising awareness of a problem is no longer enough, indeed, it is useless. It is necessary to pursue what the Anglo-Saxons call a "call to action", the invitation to take concrete actions. If a communication is so interesting that it goes viral, this goal is much more achievable.
The successes of scientific research, in all sectors of human knowledge, constitute the progress of humanity. What are the sectors that are most easily affected by social communication?
Surely those that concern the health of the planet and man. So campaigns for the environment and for the prevention of major pathologies such as obesity, cancer, degenerative pathologies.
In recent times, the theme of environmental protection is increasingly present, in various forms, in the media. What is the message that, according to your experience, has not yet "passed"?
We have limited ourselves to raising awareness. The Greta phenomenon itself, or Earth Days and similar initiatives, risk making us believe that getting excited about events or participating in parades is the solution to the problem. Instead, we need to teach citizens what to do to save water, energy, recycle, not pollute, not waste... and convince them to do so.
Is there any message that, according to your analyses, did not have the impact it deserved? Are there messages that may have had an impact, but have achieved the goal of changing behavior?
If they didn't they were useless.
Prevention from risks (for health, for the environment, etc.) is also a relevant element from an economic point of view, above all when looking at public expenditure which is used after the occurrence of harmful events. Prevention is the result of scientific research. What is the role of social communication in spreading the culture of prevention?
Social communication is essential. Michelle Obama, for example, has promoted a major campaign to reduce salt, sugar and fat in citizens' diets, because with the current growth in cardiovascular disease, it is clear that welfare systems risk collapsing throughout the world. world.
Social care is not a cool topic yet your campaigns are so effective that, in some cases, the slogans used have become a catchphrase for decades. What is the secret of their success?
The explanation is simple: Pubblicità Progresso campaigns have been and are made by the best agencies, the best production companies, with the contribution of the best social researchers. Furthermore, the current staff of the Foundation possess very high-level digital communication skills.
To deliver a "social" message to its destination, an effective tool is needed. Considering that young people's attention is rapid and partial, what can be the secret to capturing their interest with respect to a non-commercial message?
Above all, knowing how to master social networks and knowing how to create engaging, interesting and even fun messages.
What tools do you think schools can put in place to raise awareness of the understanding of social issues proposed by the mass media?
It is clear that teachers play a fundamental role in proposing social themes in normal teaching, especially in the first grades. We know of highly successful experiences (for example the "Ambientiamoci" competition of Arpa Lombardia) which involves hundreds of children in creative projects created by them together with their teachers, on the basis of materials prepared by the Region. While having fun and competing with others, children learn forever fundamental concepts about respecting the environment.
The Pubblicità Progresso media library collects social campaigns from all over the world. Different cultures give rise to different communication approaches. In your experience, which countries traditionally produce the most captivating messages?
We created the media library above all to let Italian non-profit organizations, NGOs and institutions know how to communicate well without resorting to the usual pietistic and rhetorical stereotypes which we still abuse. I honestly can't say which countries communicate better, by now it's a very high level competition. Lately Latin American countries have struck me for their ability to create unconventional marketing projects with the use of flash mobs and viral videos.
What's the next Advertising Progress challenge?
It's not up to me to say, given that after 20 years of presidency I'm handing over to others. I can say that I hope we can continue with the same level of creative quality and with the important training project through the Media Library and the Network of teachers (Athena) that we have built over many years of work. Today there are more than 100, from 85 Faculties and Masters from 40 Universities: they must be involved and motivated to continue their free commitment also with new initiatives.