Hello friends of Balsamiq!
I'm Francesca, the seventeenth member of the Balsamiq family.
What can we expect from you?
My primary role at Balsamiq is to be the Community Manager; you can meet me on all the major Social Networks and at some conferences. I intend to let you know more about Balsamiq and what we do, how and when; I'll also share with you things we love and that we hope will make YOU more successful.
Since I'm based in Bologna, Italy, I'm also going to help with tech support for our European customers.
My email is francesca@balsamiq.com. And if you are coming to Bologna, let me know: I’ll bake you a cake!
Francesca Fabbri… such a cute name!
Actually, Francesca Fabbri is a very common name in the geographical area where I live and has always caused me identity issues: 'Are you related to...?' - 'No, I'm not'. 'That's funny, I know another Francesca Fabbri!', etc.
Lucky for me, my namesakes were not as good at internetting, so I was able to snag “francescafabbri” on every social network! Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Linkedin, SlideShare, Flickr, Google+, Pinterest… they are all MINE! Muahahaha!
...and now you know how to find me online 😉
How did you get into Balsamiq?
It’s a long story, grab a seat!
I first met Peldi and Marco in 2010, when Balsamiq was... Peldi and Marco! We all were attending to an Italian conference. Peldi began his talk by saying something like: “Hey, hello, I just got back from San Francisco, I'm here with Marco, I’m now in Bologna but I don’t know anyone here…”
After he had finished I looked for him, picked him out in the crowd (you know… red hair), tapped him on the shoulder and said: “Hey, ciao! We are from Bologna too!”.
I don’t want to tell you the whole story, there'll be time for that. Suffice it to say that Balsamiq was looking for a workspace and there was one free to rent next Mimulus office (Mimulus is the amazing agency that I worked for). So we became office-mates for a few years.
In those days I coined the term “Balsamíco” - it's a blend between 'Balsamiq' and 'amico', the italian word for friend...ever since then, that's what Balsamiq staff members call each other: we're your Balsamíci! 🙂
After a couple of years Balsamiq Bologna moved to a bigger office, but I’ve kept in touch with Peldi, Natalie, Val, Marco, Paolo, Luis, Mike… I saw the company growing and doing great things, and I wanted to be a part of it.
Well... now I am! 🙂
Do you have any advice for us?
Considering the way I've joined Balsamiq, I want to tell you: do not be afraid to desire great things and try to reach them. The reality may surprise you beyond imagination!
See you online!
