Marketing expert Igor Mann gave an online seminar to students at Prof. Dr Asen Zlatarov University in Burgas. He said focusing on the customer is a business's top priority, the university said.
Mann is a marketing practitioner and the author of more than 50 books on marketing and sales. The seminar, "Growing – 22 marketing actions for fast business growth", was organised by the marketing department at the Faculty of Business and Entrepreneurship and the publisher Stream Books.
His book "Growing 1.0" sets out 22 specific steps for growth, and Mann went through its main ideas. His examples came from his own career, and he also spoke about personal meetings with Philip Kotler.
Mann drew attention to the points of contact between a company and its customers, and to better use of communication and sales channels. The talk covered how to win new customers, keep current ones and build long-term relationships with them.
Mann urged students to gain practical experience while they are still studying. He said theory becomes valuable when it is put to use.
Lecturers and students from all the economics programmes in the faculty attended and showed great interest. At the end of the seminar, students asked questions and a discussion followed.