Modern way of communication, clear message - Diego Magrini - interview post EBACE 2023

I always say that EBACE is a special opportunity to meet face-to-face with colleagues, customers, partners and friends from the industry; I have to admit that despite the precise and detailed planning, each time life brings a few changes. Diego Magrini, previously CEO and Founder of aviowiki, mover to new project in industry, so I had to find out more in details. For once, we were ready for the discussion and recording, we had to change location, once, then twice... To cut a long story short - I lost the song battle to a great DJ, present already at 8.20 in the morning. I was too keen to share the essential of our discussion with you, so I thought I'd do it again and go into more detail. Enjoy the read and the video:

T.O.. We are not at EBACE, no one is checking our IDs, you can enter Media center, I can enter exhibiting floor… I guess I will ask questions in a different way, because when you’re back from event it is different. So, your first post EBACE 2023 impressions?
D.M. I saw it in a bit different way, because of being there in a different role. This year I wasn’t exhibiting, I was starting a new…

T.O. This is the next question, because I will spread the message that you are not just changing the company but you are doing something different. As you were not exhibiting, you had your time for your own, you were the decision maker.
D.M. It was very interesting to have that freedom, to just go and meet pretty much everyone. I noticed a trend, we already seen last year – going smaller. After COVID break in 2022 went smaller, this year, at least me as a visitor, I expected things to start growing again. 
But actually, I’ve seen a little bit of a shrinking. Avinode had this beautiful design, very open space, but it certainly was much smaller than last year. Even the big ones, like Jet Aviation, they used to have restaurant upstairs. I don’t know to which trend it would be connected, globally or specifically in our industry. I don’t’ say necessarily it is bad, it felt more like people are outside of their castles. I saw a lot more people walking. I saw people very inventive – doing demos in the bistro. It felt a little bit more dynamic I would say.

T.O. The industry is changing and we have to find another way to communicate. As promised – you are changing your role. You are not with aviowiki anymore, you’re starting your consulting company. 

D.M. When I sold and left aviowiki in the beginning of this year I was nt exactly sure what I was going to do growing up. A lot of connections, people in the industry reached out to me and started to tell – now that you are free, could you help us with your competences. I left the door open to the industry. So, I can choose projects, some very interesting. I try to keep the line mostly on technology, what I’ve been doing until now. Then something interesting opened up because I own a web design company, my guys started to see that my network in business aviation was very powerful. They suggested instead of selling websites to hotels to start tapping to that. So, we’re preparing to launch a business aviation marketing agency. Very specific to the industry because we have competencies. People who are working there – designer, content creators, have done a lot for business aviation, some even worked in business aviation. It was quite natural to do this. We spoke, me and you about the need of industry to communicate in more modern way, clear way with clear messages. This is a little bit the idea behind this.

T.O. When we discussed, I was joking that you will become a concurrent. For me there are friends in industry. I think all together we can do much more to be more creative, interesting, dynamic or different. I see it only this way in fact. A lot of collogues I know since many years became friends.  I see it from a good perspective. That’s why I have my next question – the need to be different. Do you see that sometimes people are afraid of being different, of think different, communicate different? How do you think we can help? It is like people are afraid of asking, of thinking different. But the time has come. A lot of information we’re sharing as an industry, you have an impression people don’t hear that. We are still bad guys, bad industry, very easy target. It is not about we need to do it at some point. We have no solution, here and now we should do something to spread the message but in a different way. How do you see that?

D.M. Absolutely. I think a lot of people in our industry are looking tent to look for communication playbook. Then say – ok, everybody is talking about carbon offsetting, so we should talk about. If people are talking about SAF, then let’s talk about SAF. I think it is a little bit of dangerous place. Especially for companies with a specific niche which is technology. I was talking to a marketing manager of one of these. When I asked – how do you communicate about sustainability? He answered – you know, it is not really something that touches us, because we are not dealing with fuel, but we feel worth it to put out a narrative about this. So, we pushed the fact that we support locations that provides SAF and things like that. Sometimes it is really a forced stage communication. Only few people are trying to go beyond of what mainstreams are. Get tagged as completists. Fundamentally, the industry is very boring. We communicate in a very boring way. I think a lot of people haven’t yet understood the power of faces. It is very difficult to put a person in front of a camera and say you will be the face of this company. There still a lot of fear of judgment, on many different levels. I know you couldn’t care less, and I am starting to think like that, this is the right way. We don’t’ do this for others to like us, we want to put out a message. The only way to do it is to pick up the camera, to pick up the microphone and go out.

T.O. Afraid of being different and afraid of reach out. The problem I see – the industry needs to be well precepted by a larger public. Being between colleagues and friends, inside of a bubble, will not help us to become less climate criminals. Even if numbers are quite different. This is the problem; we’ve waited for much too long to explain what is our positive impact, what is what we are bringing – jobs, development, technology… So many things that business aviation already did and developed are now used in everyday life. We were quite good during COVID, back then business aviation was necessary due to some reasons. Memory is quite short and as soon as bad things ended, we are bad guys again and being pointed out. It is not about being afraid – I don’t like my voice on the camera, but if you won’t scream, who is going to hear it. 

D.M. I think there are two things on that evilness of the industry. First - climate claims are often associated with social inequality claims. I don’t think it is anything that is going to go. And it is not something we can fight. Because it is true that a lot of our users are high worth individuals, regardless of the use they do of the tools we provide. It can be for business; it can be for leisure. The fact is that you need a certain amount of wealth to afford this., weather you are a company or individual. That is something that worries me just as it was always claimed as climate, but the undertext is social inequality.  The other things – is the next generation. I think we are losing a generation in our industry. Because people will be afraid to approach and to be labeled as.. what we do.

T.O. I can assure you – I’ve spoken with a lot of guys and the positive thing is – there are still a lot of dreamers. This is something that gives hope, that we will still have next generation of people in aviation and in business aviation. I am always telling – if I can do something to spread the message, to let someone dream – I am there, I will always help. Last year I’ve seen an amazing Day – Girls in aviation, Saint-Martin, at the French side. When I saw those 8 to 14 years old young ladies asking questions to pilots, drone pilots,  ladies from handling, engineering. There were quite precise with questions, what do they need to learn, do I need to be good in math’s… I left the airport, and I knew, at least 10 of them will do everything possible. It starts with little something, a communication of something different in a different way, and you are giving a goal to someone. 

D.M. We both have kids we know how powerful they can be with their eyes. 

T.O. Thank you very much! Remember – anything you need with your new marketing agency – I am always glad to support. Let’s dance on the table to spread the message, or do something different, we’re there!

D.M. Thank you very much Tatiana! Let’s do synergies, that’s what we need to do!