Italiaonline Selects Vendasta’s AI Workforce Platform to Power “MARiO,” Democratizing AI for 100,000+ Italian SMBs

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MARiO already has 25 businesses actively onboarded through pre-orders ahead of today’s full launch. In the months following, Italiaonline will expand MARiO’s capabilities to include automated WhatsApp and email follow-up campaigns, multilingual support, and in-store redemption tools, enabling businesses to serve more customers, in more languages, without adding headcount.

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A rigorous standard for SME success

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Italiaonline serves 100,000+ SMBs and 700 large enterprises through a network of approximately 700 consultants across Italy. The choice of technology partner was a critical strategic decision. After a rigorous evaluation of the global technology landscape, they selected Vendasta — a platform that provisions full AI employees within minutes, including local Italian phone numbers and GDPR-compliant communication packages, with consumption-based AI credits their consultant network can package and resell.

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The need is clear: in Vendasta’s proprietary research across the SMB economy, 74.5% of small businesses say online reputation and customer responsiveness are critically important to their success today — yet most still struggle to manage customer engagement consistently at scale.** MARiO was built to close that gap.

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“We conducted a deep-dive search for a partner who could match our scale with industrial-grade reliability,” said Umberto Poschi, Chief Web & Media Services Officer at Italiaonline. “Vendasta stood alone in its ability to address a comprehensive set of small business needs. By combining Vendasta’s horizontal AI platform with our own vertical expertise in the Italian market, we have built a true AI workforce for Italian SMEs. One that does the work, not just assists with it. MARiO gives entrepreneurs back the freedom to stop managing tools and start focusing on results.”

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Democratizing AI for local business

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The launch of MARiO proves that AI is no longer a tool reserved for large enterprises. Today, 52% of large firms use AI compared to just 17.4% of small businesses***, a gap driven by complexity and cost, not relevance. Among SMBs that have made the leap, 91% report a direct boost in revenue.**** Vendasta’s platform was built specifically to close that gap, putting sophisticated AI capability to work at the neighborhood level.

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“By powering MARiO, we are proving that an AI workforce is a scalable reality for every local plumber, lawyer, and retailer,” said Brendan King, CEO of Vendasta. “Italiaonline is setting a global standard that other service providers will inevitably follow. We are helping SMBs stop managing software and start achieving outcomes.”

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MARiO’s launch is the foundation of a multi-phase collaboration. Italiaonline and Vendasta will continue expanding the platform’s capabilities through 2026, with additional AI and digital products planned for Italy’s local business community.

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For more information about MARiO, visit italiaonline.it. To learn more about Vendasta’s AI workforce, visit vendasta.com.

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About Italiaonline

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Italiaonline is Italy’s largest internet company and the country’s leading digital partner for small and medium-sized businesses. Through its network of approximately 700 consultants across Italy, Italiaonline supports 100,000+ SMBs and 700 large enterprises with a comprehensive portfolio of digital services spanning web marketing, digital advertising, web design, ecommerce, social media management, and cloud solutions. Its digital properties — including Libero, Virgilio, PagineGialle, PagineBianche, DiLei, QuiFinanza, and TuttoCittà — reach over 24 million unique users monthly and generate more than 4 billion impressions. With nearly 10 million active email accounts, Italiaonline operates Italy’s most-used email service and the country’s most visited national network of web portals. Learn more at italiaonline.it.