Human warmth works when it makes business value relatable
Business communications need to address practical concerns such as budget, reputation and business strategy, but their audiences are still people. The difficulty is making serious messages engaging without losing the expertise behind them. Emotion and imagination need not replace explanation: they can help people connect with what a business does and why it matters. Start with the human response you want to elicit, then choose a creative approach that reflects the brand and the people it affects. Familiar experiences, expressive design and conversational storytelling can make complex subjects more accessible. The balance is between education and inspiration, with confidence in the underlying message supporting more adventurous execution.
The Frameworks applied this approach to IBM by turning case studies and internal materials into concise, shareable stories connecting its innovations to familiar objects, places and human experiences. Expressive visuals and consistent content across digital channels, internal communications and physical materials helped employees communicate IBM's impact, increasing engagement and brand understanding.
For Dematic's first sustainability report, The Frameworks took a different route to human connection. It built a process around the company's rigorous internal ESG reporting and drew on business leaders' expertise to tell the stories behind the numbers. This gave the report a factual base while presenting Dematic's sustainability pledges honestly and humanely. In both cases, the human dimension came from the substance of the business rather than being added as decoration.
Sources: This is IBM: Brand Awareness Campaign, Four Creative Lessons B2B Designers Can Learn from B2C, And the winner is, Credibility in ESG Means Showing Your Work, Telling authentic tales, Humanising B2B and leading with empathy