Interview with Nicola Pansa
In the heart of Amalfi, in a place of indisputable charm, is the historic restaurant of the Pansa family. A family business active since 1830, where the cult of the Amalfi tradition has been handed down for five generations. Today at the helm are the brothers Nicola, Andrea and Marilla Pansa, who carry on one of the most prestigious and happy realities of the Campania gastronomic scene.
How important do you think digital communication is for your business today?
It is fundamental, but not from today: it has played an essential role for us for more than ten years now. Surely the basis of everything is the product, which must never betray expectations. Today, anyone who has an excellent product and doesn’t communicate it doesn’t do a good job. Just as those who communicate a product that doesn’t actually exist are wrong. Starting from an offer of great qualitative value, many years ago we asked ourselves how to communicate it at high levels. Many already knew us, but you are never known enough. For us, communication is experienced as a truthful account of what we do every day. Our social profiles are a sort of daily diary and we also enjoy this thing. All digital channels have the official website as a point of reference and this has given us sweet satisfaction. In recent years, we have seen concrete results from the online shop and visits to pastry shops, and we have won several awards related to digital communication.
What services do you offer via digital channels and with what feedback? What other services would you possibly like to introduce in the future?
We take great care of the online shop on our official website, where we insert a series of products that we sell all year round, even if the most important moments for online sales are obviously Christmas and Easter. In recent years, e-commerce has experienced significant growth, in terms of numbers and turnover, and I believe that this year the trend will develop even more, because in-store sales, unfortunately, will be greatly affected by travel restrictions . Our online shop has been operational for about ten years and works very well, because it is the fulcrum of a multi-channel and coordinated digital communication strategy that also involves social networks and the newsletter. In particular, we have seen very positive results from email campaigns, which lead us to have a 30-35% increase in sales on the days of sending. We try to optimize our offer by using multiple channels to intercept different types of users. We have been shipping throughout Italy and abroad for years: there are many tourists who come to Amalfi from all over the world and once they return home they contact us to place an order. We have many other projects for the future: for example, we are working to create an online shop also on Facebook.
How has the situation we are facing changed your digital communication strategy, if it has?
It hasn’t changed much, because we have already invested in digital communication in unsuspecting times. What has changed is our approach, especially on social media. We have perceived that people forced to stay at home want to share and participate, and we can keep them company through our content. We have therefore increased live videos, to share moments of daily work and tell a few anecdotes: people like it, they feel involved, they get a little distracted from everyday life. Beyond the commercial aspects, we also claim a “social” role through communication.
What elements did you want to include on the site and in digital communication in general to best reflect the image of your restaurant?
Our philosophy has always been to innovate, but in the wake of tradition. This is very important in any decision we make. Even when choosing a color for the site’s graphics, activating a social media campaign, creating a video, we feel the responsibility to always be faithful to our identity. We can never ignore the fact that we have 200 years of tradition behind us, we have moral and non-moral ties. We have thought a lot about this. How could we reconcile digital communication with the fact that Pansa is an institution? With intelligence, with caution and great respect. Our important past and our location are added values, which we also try to highlight in communication.
Who follows digital communication within the pastry shop? Do you rely on an external agency in whole or in part?
We do not rely on an external agency: I personally follow the communication, making use of the invaluable collaboration of a working group made up of professionals specialized in specific fields (graphics, photography, programming). Everyone knows exactly what their role is and we work together on the contents to be published, sharing ideas to arrive at the best result.
Digital communication as a means to export the renowned family confectionery tradition all over the world. Through social media and online sales channels, throughout the year, Nicola Pansa thus manages to fulfill the wishes of an international clientele. The same that, together with the brothers, delights in the historic restaurant framed by the suggestive and famous square of Amalfi.