SAP’s Tim Hoppin on why emotional storytelling belongs in B2B

B2B marketing has long been stuck with a somewhat boring reputation: rational, buttoned-up and forgettable. Tim Hoppin is on a mission to change that. As chief brand and creative officer at SAP, he’s helping one of the world’s largest software companies embrace big creative swings — and prove that business buyers are humans too.

On this, the first edition of The Big Impression — The Current Podcast’s brand-new name — Hoppin sums up his philosophy as follows: A brand must influence everything a company makes, says and does. That means branding isn’t just logos and colors — it’s the product experience, the tone of its communications and even the values a company chooses to stand behind.

That thinking is evident in SAP’s latest campaign, “Unstoppable,” which uses high-concept metaphors and cinematic visuals to spotlight the stress points of modern business. These stories are rooted in real customer challenges but dramatized in bold, unexpected ways. “They’re all metaphors,” Hoppin says, “but they’re also very real stories.”

It’s part of a broader effort to push B2B into more emotionally resonant territory. “We are seeing a renaissance in B2B where emotional, strong, insight-driven work is what works,” Hoppin says. The results back it up: SAP’s campaign outperformed industry benchmarks and was shortlisted at the Cannes Lions festival this year. “So, we’re excited because, as we like to say, if creative doesn’t work, it’s not working,” he adds.

Hoppin also discusses how AI is reshaping the creative process — not replacing it. “Creatives are going to have to change,” he says. “You’re going to have to act more like a director than an executor.” In short, he says, AI is a tool, not a threat.

The real differentiator is still human storytelling.