After the D/A/CH edition took off, a bunch of you asked the obvious follow-up:

What about inside the different countries?!

The North-South / East-West divide is old, real, and still shapes how people do business today! That's why we decided to share a bit more insights into the different countries and start with Germany.

‼️ Disclaimer ‼️

This is a topic we can talk about for years and everyone will have different opinions! The truth is, no one of us has lived in all of the places. In this Newsletter we've tried to keep the insights relevant & short and based it on research as well as personal experience. If you see Best Practices we haven't mentioned, feel free to comment and share it with the community!

It's based in the German History:

North-South variations remain noticeable in German business culture, with northern regions typically showing more reserved communication styles and formal business protocols, while southern areas often combine strong traditional values with a bit more expressive interaction patterns.

A lot of this traces back centuries! The cultural gap between northern and southern Germany is rooted in history. Let's look at it on the map:

The North, shaped by Prussian values of restraint and civic discipline, tends toward a more reserved, understated social style.

The South carries a different inheritance: Little kingdoms with tradition and religious holidays still emptying offices.

And this is just a little insight into German Business Culture! We could go on and on about the 'Mental-Wall

East vs West -> On top of that we have to acknowledge the Mauer im Kopf (the "wall in the mind"), which means that Leipzig or Dresden for instance carry a different historical weight than Cologne or Frankfurt which again shapes a different cultural fluency!

You can see there is A LOT to talk about when trying to explain WHY we are how we are. But instead of creating History Class 2.0, let's dive into why you read this newsletter:

3 Best Practices for pitching to North vs. South Germany:

1. North: get to the point, stay understated.

Hamburg and the Hanseatic cities run on trade-city pragmatism:

• reserved

• efficient

• allergic to overselling.

Warmth is there, but it's earned slowly. Locals describe it as "hard shell, soft core." Don't mistake early reserve for disinterest!

2. South: more warmth upfront, but don't confuse that with informality.

Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg blend traditional values with a more expressive style, more small talk, more personality in the room. But this isn't a green light to go casual fast! It sits alongside strong hierarchy and precision-driven decision-making, especially in the Mittelstand engineering firms concentrated there.

3. Match your proof to their economic DNA.

Southern buyers tend to think like engineers. Bring the technical depth and long-term ROI case.

Northern buyers, shaped by centuries of trade, tend to respond better to a tighter, more commercially-framed pitch, what does this do for the deal, not the lab.

‼️ Disclaimer, again 😅‼️

This is a HUGE topic and we tried our best to share the most relevant parts based on research. With this we also appreciate there are different opinions and experiences out there! If you see Best Practices we haven't mentioned, feel free to comment and share it with the community!

From the Ecosystem 🫂

If the D/A/CH edition resonated, this one's for the same reason:

DACH rewards sellers who stop treating it as one homogenous block. Got a North-vs-South story from your own pipeline? Reply and tell us! We'd love to feature you in our next Newsletter Edition! 😍

Your Sales in DACH Team ✨