Strategic Storytelling - Interview with Annika Schwab & Christoph Hegger in »Die News« ENG

Many family businesses are currently facing significant pressures: international expansion, new market regulations, economic uncertainty, and disruptive technologies all at once. In times like these, storytelling may seem like a “soft” topic at first glance. But the opposite is true: Strategic storytelling is a structured approach to aligning communication, sales, and marketing on a common foundation—and thereby making them more effective. Can you afford to loose communicative energy right now?

The following excerpts are taken from an interview with DART Managing Director Christoph Hegger and Annika Schwab, Authorized Signatory, which appeared as an editorial in the March issue of the magazine “DIE NEWS” published by the Association of Family Entrepreneurs. Click here for the full German version here.

Strategic Storytelling Turns Customers into Protagonists

Successful brand communication has more to do with psychology and emotions than we realize. News Editor-in-Chief Hendrik Fuchs asked experts Annika Schwab and Christoph Hegger what this means for positioning family businesses seen as brands.

Chinese expansion, U.S. tariffs, the German economic slump: Why should family business owners and family-run companies focus on a soft topic like storytelling, especially in these turbulent times?

Annika Schwab: Because the current revolutionary and disruptive changes in markets and technologies are forcing nearly every company to rapidly evolve its business models and market positioning. What we see, however, is a certain half-heartedness: Companies would rather rely on low-cost AI tools for marketing than ask themselves fundamental questions about what their own company stands for, what sets it apart in the face of growing competition, and how it wants to engage in dialogue with new customers in particular. Everyone in the company needs to know what unified story I’m telling my customers. That is the foundation for strategic storytelling that holds the entire company together communicatively—from sales to recruiting—and realigns it where necessary.

Christoph Hegger: Strategic storytelling follows hard-and-fast rules in all of this. There’s nothing "soft" about it. And it’s not an isolated tool. It’s about a new, structured way of thinking within the company that elevates the dialogue among all stakeholders—management, employees, and ultimately their customers—to a higher level.

What potential does B2B storytelling offer family businesses in terms of brand development?

Annika Schwab: Storytelling is particularly recommended for companies that aim to build long-term customer relationships and also need to communicate complex products that require explanation. Both of these are common in family businesses. They often represent corporate brands that have grown over a long period of time, sometimes across generations. There are not only many “stories” to be found there. One can very credibly demonstrate sustainable and values-driven action. However, care must be taken to ensure that customer communication is not overloaded with narratives that primarily reflect the company’s own self-image. It is always crucial to address the customer’s issues and problems from their perspective.

Christoph Hegger: The fundamental approach to strategic storytelling is, first and foremost, universal: jointly developed core messages are organized according to a defined narrative structure so that everyone in the company can apply them to their specific tasks. At its core, the principle aims to ensure that everyone is pulling in the same direction when it comes to communication, whether they are working on the new website or preparing a pitch for a new client in sales. While the form of the message may vary depending on the situation, the story remains the same. This standardization significantly increases the effectiveness of your message. Additionally, communication becomes more efficient, as companies can avoid having to repeatedly coordinate content for every single initiative. With strategic storytelling, everyone in the company knows which binding core message underpins their respective task—from the website to trade shows, from sales to recruiting.

Annika Schwab: Above all, however, storytelling makes them more successful, because it all starts with the customer. Storytelling turns the customer into the hero of their own success story!

What pitfalls do family-owned businesses face when it comes to B2B storytelling?

Annika Schwab: Family business owners typically operate on the basis of personal responsibility. They think in terms of generations rather than daily stock prices. Deriving positive arguments from this is as natural as it is tempting, because they are often misused. Their company’s history spanning several generations is undoubtedly impressive. However, the communication value derived from this increases dramatically when you embed it in the broader context of a story. After all, your clients’ challenges are not overcome by your history alone.

We know from studies that nine out of ten initial sales conversations fail to meet potential customers’ expectations. Why is that? Because salespeople don’t frame their arguments from their customers’ perspective. Instead, they focus on heroically promoting themselves and their products. I keep noticing that marketing often plays out like speed dating. If I only talk about myself, I’ll need many more dates because I rarely succeed. Strategic storytelling does the opposite: the hero of every narrative is the customer themselves. Only if I manage to convey genuine interest in their challenges and opportunities will I gain their attention. To do this, you have to learn to listen attentively. Storytelling comes after story listening.

Christoph Hegger: Entrepreneurial families simply fall into the trap more easily of telling their own story out of justified pride, rather than addressing the success story from the customer’s perspective.