Content Planning and Editorial Strategy

Overview

This skill covers how B2B marketers should plan, structure, prioritize, and execute content programs—from foundational strategy and messaging architecture through format selection, editorial calendars, and distribution. All practices are sourced exclusively from guests and hosts on the Exit Five podcast; no external best practices have been added. Where guests disagree, those disagreements are surfaced explicitly rather than resolved.

Foundation: Strategy Before Tactics

Start with a written content strategy document before executing any tactics. The document should include business goals, objectives, a content mission statement, ICP definition, and content sources (SEO, internal insights, customer feedback, events). This document enables prioritization conversations and gives you the ability to say no to good ideas that don't fit the strategy. Without it, content teams stay perpetually busy but misaligned with business needs. (Source: Chelsea Castle, Episodes #262 and #172)

Define content strategy before channel or tactical strategy. Answer "what do we stand for and what are we trying to teach, inspire, or help people with" before deciding on email cadence, LinkedIn strategy, or paid strategy. Once you have a clear content strategy, channel strategy follows naturally. Jumping to tactics without this foundation produces fragmented messaging. (Source: Amanda Goetz, Episodes #244 and #158)

Immerse yourself in product, audience, and business context before proposing a content strategy. Spend time understanding: (1) the product—read technical manuals, watch old webinars, review sales decks; (2) the audience—understand their pain points, fears, and resistance to solutions like yours; (3) the business—understand internal dynamics, constraints, and what decisions will cause organizational friction. This research phase, inspired by David Ogilvy's approach, ensures recommendations are both effective and politically feasible. (Source: Brendan Hufford, Episode #242)

Write essays to clarify and develop your company's story before creating other content. Writing forces you to articulate ideas clearly and discover what you actually believe about your category. You only know you have a good idea when you write it down. Essays serve as the foundation for all other marketing—they give you material to repurpose across homepages, ads, social posts, and sales decks. If you can't write an essay about your product or category, you don't have a story yet. (Source: Harry Dry, Episode #303)

Position organic content as the foundation of B2B marketing strategy, not a secondary channel. Content (blogs, podcasts, social media, newsletters) drives awareness, builds trust, and creates the foundation for all other marketing activities. Organic content has multiple formats that can be repurposed across channels. This is especially important in B2B where buying cycles are long and trust is built through demonstrated expertise. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #225)

Treat content as a strategic business partner, not a service function. Integrate content leaders into business strategy planning from the kickoff stage, not as reviewers at the end. Content should be part of the conversation when defining company OKRs and departmental goals, and content success should be measured by the success of the teams it supports, not by standalone content metrics. (Source: Eliana Atia, Episode #166)

Messaging Architecture and Core Narrative

Establish a single core narrative that all content ladders back to before creating anything. Define the singular story everyone in the organization should tell. Once established, build a messaging framework with 2–3 pillars. All subsequent content—case studies, vertical-specific messaging, buyer journey content—should ladder back to this framework. This prevents the wiki-like sprawl of disconnected content and ensures consistency across the organization. (Source: Kira Federer, Episode #254)

Build a repeatable content loop—an Authority Flywheel—around your ownable idea. Consistently address four elements across all content: (1) the problem you're solving, (2) your point of view on that problem, (3) the big promise or outcome people will get from working with you, and (4) proof or evidence that your approach works. Repeat this cycle across all content and channels. This creates momentum and allows you to say the same thing in a thousand different ways without sounding repetitive, because each piece hits different angles of the same core idea. (Source: Katelyn Bourgoin, Episode #344)

Share one core message one thousand different ways—not one thousand messages one time. Identify your core point of view and repeat it through many different formats, channels, and creative executions. Consistency in core message with variety in execution is more effective than constantly changing what you're saying. (Source: Louis Grenier, Episode #322)

Structure your annual marketing narrative around 2–3 messaging pillars, rotating focus across events and time periods. Assign each pillar to specific events or time periods throughout the year (e.g., pillar one at SXSW, pillar two at Cannes). Ensure every event, campaign, and piece of content ladders back to whichever pillar is in focus. This creates coherence across the year while allowing you to go deep on one idea at a time. (Source: Kira Federer, Episode #254)

Pair new positioning with thought leadership and repeat it across channels over 6–9 months. Don't expect a positioning launch to land immediately. Pair it with CEO presentations, keynotes, sales decks, and product launches that all tie back to the same vision. Use current events and trends to reinforce the positioning without changing the core narrative. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #184)

Develop a strong point of view before creating content on any topic. Don't create content just because a topic is trending. First, develop a clear, differentiated point of view on that topic as it relates to your company's approach. Ask: "What's our unique perspective here? How do we do this differently than the standard approach?" Only create content if you have a strong POV to back it up. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #155)

Build B2B brand through a strong narrative and point of view to compete against price and incumbency. In B2B, buyers default to either the cheapest option or the product they used at their previous job. To compete against these defaults, develop a differentiated narrative that articulates where the market is going, what problems need solving, and why your solution matters now. This story gives buyers something they can tell their boss to justify choosing you over the incumbent or cheaper alternative. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #129)

Execute brand narrative through consistent content distribution across all owned channels. A strong brand narrative must be communicated consistently across website, content, social media, email, and other properties. Don't keep the narrative in a Google Doc—operationalize it by ensuring your differentiated point of view appears throughout your content strategy. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #129)

Audience Definition and ICP Alignment

Narrow your content to a single bullseye persona, even if your company sells to multiple personas. Use a two-part exercise: (1) from a marketing lens, imagine a booth at an event—who is the one person who would love your brand? (2) from a sales lens, who would your sales team want to hit the demo button? Write down one title for each. Commit to that single persona for your content strategy, acknowledging that other personas will still benefit but won't be your primary focus. This requires internal alignment and the willingness to say no to competing personas. (Source: Devin Reed, Episode #196)

Allocate content budget based on revenue contribution by persona. Rather than splitting content resources equally across personas, first determine what percentage of revenue each persona is expected to generate. Use that revenue split to dictate the proportion of content creation resources (blog posts, emails, podcasts, etc.) allocated to each persona. This ties content investment directly to business outcomes. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #155)

Reframe marketing strategy from generating leads to building an audience of your ICP. The goal is to develop a trusted advisory relationship where your brand becomes synonymous with expertise and value in their minds. Most of your target accounts are not in-market at any given time, so you must play a longer game of brand relevancy. When they do enter the market, they'll think of you first because you've been consistently delivering value. (Source: Gurdeep Dhillon, Episodes #280 and #203)

Build content strategy around becoming the go-to resource for your niche. Rather than promoting your product directly, position your brand as the expert resource for a specific audience segment. Your entire content strategy—across search, social, email, and other channels—should answer the questions and solve the problems that audience faces. This builds trust and affinity before any sales conversation. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episodes #209 and #121)

Make your customer the hero of your marketing narrative. Center your entire marketing strategy around elevating and celebrating your customer, not your company. Consistently communicate that your customers matter, their work matters, and their profession matters. This builds emotional connection and loyalty across all channels and content types. The strategy works because people are emotional about their work and want to feel that someone cares about them and has their back. (Source: Erin May, Episode #337)

Content Pillars and Topic Selection

Build content pillars using a Venn diagram of audience needs, peer behavior, and your expertise. Identify the intersection of three elements: (1) what your audience wants to know, (2) what their peers are saying, thinking, and doing, and (3) your niche knowledge and experience. Start by listing skill statements (e.g., "I know how to write a co-prospecting email") and outcome statements (e.g., "I know how to generate sales pipeline"). Then identify the most expensive problem and most urgent problem your audience faces. The content pillars that emerge from this intersection are "content that converts." (Source: Devin Reed, Episode #196)

Organize content around one major pillar per quarter with multiple sub-pillar formats. Choose one major topic per quarter (e.g., "B2B revenue attribution benchmarks"). Create multiple content formats around that pillar: a flagship research report, a podcast series, a live show, a quarterly in-person event, and supporting blog/video content. Host all sub-pillars on a central hub. This approach scales content production by reusing the same core insight across formats, making it easier to manage with a smaller team while maximizing reach and depth on a single topic. (Source: Emir Atli, Episode #165)

Maintain laser focus on one or two core topics for content. Build your company voice around one or two core topic areas and go deep on those topics rather than posting about many different subjects. This creates a clear expectation for your audience about what they'll get from following you. Avoid posting about 15 different topics. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #139)

Pick a specific lane and commit to it consistently, even if growth is slow initially. Choose a specific niche topic and commit to creating content about it consistently, even if early engagement is low (1–3 likes per post). Don't change your approach based on short-term metrics. Growth may be slow for years, but when the market catches up to your topic, you'll have built credibility and a body of work. (Source: Greg Isenberg, Episode #146)

Use community engagement as a feedback loop for content strategy. Run community events (webinars, live sessions) with your audience and pay attention to which topics generate the most engagement and discussion. Use this real-time feedback to inform your broader content strategy. If a live session topic generates lots of chat activity, create more content around that topic. This provides direct market validation before investing heavily in content production. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #139)

Source content ideas from community discussions and comments. Monitor communities (Slack groups, Reddit, forums, private communities) where your audience congregates. Read comments on popular posts to identify topics people are discussing and asking about. Use these as seeds for content ideas. Set reminders to write threads or blog posts on these topics weeks or months later. (Source: Ross Simmonds, Episode #121)

Use organic content performance to identify and validate high-interest topics. Monitor which organic posts get the most engagement, comments, and shares. When you see a post outperform others, recognize that you've identified a topic with genuine audience interest. Use this signal to decide what to write about next, what to feature in newsletters, and what to build webinars or content series around. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #134)

Use podcasts and live events as real-time feedback loops to inform product and messaging strategy. Rather than relying on surveys or periodic customer research, host podcasts and live events to gather immediate feedback on objections, roadblocks, and customer needs. Use the questions and comments from these interactions to directly shape product messaging, positioning, feature prioritization, and organizational structure. (Source: Chris Walker, Episodes #281 and #211)

Content Frameworks and Evaluation Criteria

Apply the Rule of Three filter before posting any social content. Before posting, ask: does it make people feel something, teach them something, or make them laugh? If content doesn't satisfy at least one of these criteria, reject it. This prevents the common B2B mistake of posting purely product-focused content that audiences ignore. Use this as a gating mechanism for all social posts. (Source: Chris Cunningham, Episode #347)

Evaluate all content against the Four E's: educational, engaging, entertaining, or empowering. Content should ideally hit one or more of these categories: educational (teaches how to solve a problem), engaging (provokes discussion), entertaining (includes personality, humor, pop culture), and empowering (celebrates people in your org or customers). This framework helps distinguish valuable content worth distributing from mediocre content that won't gain traction. (Source: Ross Simmonds, Episode #200)

Structure your content strategy around four pillars: Teach, Inspire, Help, and Show (not Sell). Teach (share knowledge and expertise), Inspire (motivate your audience), Help (address pain points and provide solutions), and Show (demonstrate results through testimonials and humble brags rather than direct selling). This framework applies across industries and niches, forcing clarity on what value you deliver and how you communicate it. (Source: Amanda Goetz, Episodes #244 and #158)

Apply the Chocolate Covered Almond model: balance nutrient density with taste. Ensure that educational or dense value content is wrapped in engaging, entertaining formats. A chocolate-covered almond is nutrient-dense and good for you, but also tasty and crave-worthy. This prevents content from being purely transactional or purely entertainment, making it more likely to be consumed, shared, and remembered. Particularly effective for thought leadership and brand-building content. (Source: Katelyn Bourgoin, Episode #344)

Prioritize content by how many business functions it serves, not by urgency alone. Use an Eisenhower-style framework: the more things a piece of content does for the business, the more important it is. Evaluate each content piece against multiple criteria: Does it drive search traffic? Is it highly shareable? Does it enable sales? Does it support buyer enablement? Does it build backlinks? Content that serves 3–5 functions simultaneously is more important than content that serves only one. (Source: Brendan Hufford, Episode #242)

Prioritize three non-negotiable content types: thought leadership, product use cases, and SEO. These three types form the foundation of a demand flywheel and should be non-negotiable in your content plan, even if you deprioritize other content types. (Source: Kyle Coleman, Episode #206)

Map content and CTAs to Eugene Schwartz's five stages of awareness. Segment your marketing funnel and website content according to five stages: unaware (no knowledge of problem), pain-aware (knows problem exists but not solution), solution-aware (exploring solution types), product-aware (comparing competitors), and most-aware (ready to buy). Create distinct content and calls-to-action for each stage. This prevents forcing early-stage prospects into high-friction actions like "book a demo" before they're ready. (Source: Talia Wolf, Episode #132)

Map the buyer journey to core thoughts, not just actions. Most buyers progress through five to six consistent thoughts regardless of industry: (1) I have a problem, (2) Can it be solved?, (3) Which vendors solve it?, (4) What do my peers think?, (5) Can I afford it?, (6) Which should I choose? Create content and outreach that directly addresses each thought stage. (Source: Chris Rack, Episode #140)

Execute content using the Research-Create-Distribute-Optimize framework. Structure your content program in four phases: (1) Research your audience's pains, problems, and sales objections by listening to sales calls and talking to your team; (2) Create valuable content in formats and on channels where your audience spends time; (3) Distribute that content across multiple channels and formats, not just publish once; (4) Optimize quarterly by reviewing assets, improving them from a conversion and SEO lens, and ensuring nothing sits unused. (Source: Ross Simmonds, Episode #200)

Demand Generation and Buyer Journey Content

Recognize that people buy on triggers, not pain points—identify and position around life-changing moments. People can experience pain for years without taking action. They buy when a specific trigger event occurs—a life-changing moment that creates urgency. For example, a manufacturing software company discovered their buyers didn't purchase because of general overwhelm, but when they expanded to a new factory, moved locations, or bought new equipment. Once you identify these triggers through customer interviews, create content around those trigger events and associate your brand with them. (Source: Louis Grenier, Episode #322)

Map category entry triggers and create content for each trigger point to move out-of-market buyers in-market. Recognize that 95% of your buyer audience is not in-market at any given time. Identify the specific triggers or events that move buyers from out-of-market to in-market (e.g., budget approval, new hire, regulatory change, competitor switch). Create targeted content for each trigger point that helps prospects recognize they have a problem and enter your category. This shifts content strategy from reactive (answering in-market searches) to proactive (creating demand). (Source: Dave Steer, Episode #324)

Create content for adjacent topics to circle the buyer before they're in-market. Map all topics a prospect researches at the top of the funnel, even if not directly related to your product. Build awareness and consideration with the 80% of prospects not yet ready to buy, so they know your brand when they enter the market. Document this in a keyword planning doc and commit to a 6-month content calendar focused on 1–2 primary keywords, updating existing ranking content at least annually. (Source: Marcy Comer, Episode #324)

Invest heavily in enablement content for non-customers to establish trust and generate word-of-mouth. Spend more time and resources creating educational content and enablement for people who are not yet customers than for existing customers. The goal is to educate the broader market on how to use tools and solve problems in your space, positioning your company as a trusted expert. When these educated prospects eventually need a solution, your company will be top-of-mind because you've already helped them succeed. (Source: Eoin Clancy, Episode #326)

Build brand through customer education and career advancement support. Create content that makes your customers smarter and helps them succeed at their jobs, independent of whether they buy from you. When customers associate your brand with education and value that helped them advance their career or solve problems, they develop long-term loyalty and affinity. This can take years to convert to a sale, but the brand association is durable and powerful. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #129)

Build brand affinity by providing copy-paste templates and frameworks. Create marketing assets (templates, frameworks, guides) that customers can immediately use to look good in front of their boss or team. The asset should be high-quality and directly usable—not a sales pitch. When a customer successfully uses your template or framework and receives praise from their manager or peers, they develop brand affinity toward your company, even before considering your product. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #311)

Create free, genuinely useful tools and content that solve buyer problems without immediate conversion pressure. Build free assessment tools, guides, or resources that provide real value to prospects and help them solve problems related to your category. The principle is to help your audience first, with conversion as a secondary outcome. (Source: Dave Steer, Episode #324)

Build brand gravity through digital mass and visibility. Think of brand as having "gravity"—the stronger the brand, the stronger its pull on buyers during their research phase. Brand gravity requires consistent, valuable presence across the channels where buyers are searching and asking questions. When buyers launch into a search, strong brand gravity keeps them engaged with you until they're ready to engage directly with sales. (Source: Lisa Cole, Episode #315)

Content Calendar and Campaign Planning

Structure marketing around 2–3 major tentpole campaigns per quarter called "Bangers." These are significant, differentiated content or product launches that get the entire company involved. Bangers can be top-of-funnel (fully in marketing's control, e.g., research reports) or bottom-of-funnel (product launches, less in marketing's control). Plan these on a quarterly calendar so the company has a predictable rhythm of major marketing moments. This creates momentum and gives marketing a forcing function to produce high-quality, unique work. (Source: Erin May, Episode #337)

Once a Banger proves successful, lock it in as a recurring annual event on the marketing calendar. This creates predictability, allows you to improve the offering year-over-year, and gives the team a clear deadline to work toward. Examples: annual research reports, annual tool comparisons, annual state-of-industry surveys. This removes the need to brainstorm new ideas for that slot each year and lets you focus on execution and incremental improvement. (Source: Erin May, Episode #337)

Allocate 70% of content effort to core channels and 30% to experimental channels. Dedicate 70% of your content resources to channels and tactics that support short-term business needs and proven ROI (e.g., LinkedIn for B2B SaaS). Use the remaining 30% to experiment with emerging or underutilized channels (e.g., Instagram, TikTok, YouTube) where you can build audience and test new formats. This balance allows you to fund the business while still making strategic bets on future channels. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episodes #262 and #172)

Test content ideas at smaller scale before full launch. Before committing to a large-scale content initiative, test the core idea at a smaller scale to validate audience interest and get early feedback. For example, test a topic as a tweet or LinkedIn post before investing in a full video or long-form article. This reduces risk and provides signal on whether the idea resonates before allocating significant resources. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #166)

Test content ideas like improv bits; iterate based on audience reaction. Treat content ideas like an improv comedian treats bits—test them in live settings (podcasts, webinars, social posts), observe audience reaction, and double down on what lands. If a comment, analogy, or idea gets strong engagement or multiple emails from listeners, mark it as a "pocket" and plan to expand it into a full piece of content. This turns real-time feedback into a content development pipeline. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #155)

Separate content concept from delivery channel; test multiple formats. Develop your core content idea (the hook, the concept, the value) independently from the delivery mechanism (webinar, podcast, article, event, etc.). Once you have a strong concept, test it across multiple formats to see which resonates most with your audience. The same concept can work as a webinar, YouTube video, podcast episode, in-person event, or written article. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #155)

Use content performance data to inform webinar and event topics. Analyze which content pieces are getting the most engagement on LinkedIn, driving the most website traffic, and converting best. Use these signals to identify topics for webinars and live events. This ensures you're investing in events around topics your audience has already shown interest in, and it creates a flywheel where event transcripts become additional content assets. (Source: Kyle Coleman, Episode #206)

Establish a content strategy before building nurture email sequences. Before designing nurture email flows, first establish a foundational content strategy across owned channels (newsletter, podcast, social media, blog). A consistent content machine that delivers value across multiple channels does much of the nurturing work automatically. Only after this foundation is in place should you layer in targeted nurture emails. (Source: Matt Carnevale, Episode #129)

Content Format and Voice

Attribute all content to a specific person and write from their perspective to increase engagement. Stop publishing generic, company-attributed content. Every piece of content—articles, videos, editorials—should be attributed to a specific person on your team and written from their perspective. Include personal anecdotes or experiences that connect to the marketing lesson or insight. The story or anecdote is the hook that gets people to read; the tactical insight is what they stay for. (Source: Sylvia LePoidevin, Episode #306)

Hire people with distinctive personalities who are comfortable being on camera and being the face of the company. Move away from corporate, faceless content (e.g., blog posts authored by "the company team"). Author content under individual names with clear voice and style. This makes content more trustworthy, memorable, and shareable. It also creates a flywheel where individual personalities become brand assets. (Source: Ryan Narod, Episode #330)

Leverage founder background, expertise, and unique perspective as core marketing assets. Founders often have deep domain experience (e.g., a lawyer who built legal tech, a doctor who built healthcare software) that becomes the most compelling marketing content. Rather than generic company messaging, surface the founder's authentic story, expertise, and insights as the primary content asset. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #319)

If a CEO lacks a compelling founding story, position them as an industry curator rather than a creator. Position them as the go-to source for industry news, insights, and trends. They become known for aggregating and commenting on what's happening in their industry, rather than sharing personal origin stories. Start by reading articles, surfacing stats, and sharing strong points of view about industry direction. Over time, this curator role can help them develop a voice and become a source of meetings for the industry. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #196)

Mix industry-specific content with personal, empathy-driven stories that address broader human concerns. These emails and posts often outperform traditional marketing content and generate more replies. The content doesn't have to be directly related to your product or industry—it just needs to resonate with your audience as whole people. Document what resonates and add those insights to your ICP documentation for future campaigns. (Source: Jess, Episode #312)

Balance reach content with teaching content; test and iterate based on performance. Use a "reach versus teach" framework to balance your content mix. Reach content is designed to get engagement and impressions (e.g., personal moments, off-site updates, relatable observations). Teach content is directly tied to your core expertise. Test both types, measure which performs better, and iterate. The ratio depends on the executive's comfort level and goals, but always measure performance to inform future decisions. (Source: Devin Reed, Episode #196)

Limit customer stories to 20% of your content mix. Customer stories and testimonials should comprise no more than 20% of your social content. The other 80% should be value-add content that educates and provides insights. This follows the "give, give, give, ask" principle. If all your content is customer stories, audiences perceive it as advertising. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #139)

Plant a flag in the headline to self-select your target audience. Write headlines that explicitly signal who the content is for, making it clear to your target persona while naturally filtering out irrelevant readers. This reduces wasted impressions and ensures the people who read your content are the ones it was designed for. Example: "15 Tips Every Crossfitter Should Know" signals the audience immediately. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #155)

Distinguish between messaging (what you say) and content (how you say it). Messaging is your core value proposition and should be validated through customer conversations, sales testing, surveys, and community feedback—not through LinkedIn organic or paid testing. Content is how you deliver that message (video vs. text, timing, format, channel). Once you have validated messaging, use LinkedIn organic to test different content formats and delivery methods, then amplify winners with paid. Don't use social media to discover your core messaging. (Source: Chris Walker, Episode #139)

Content Format Selection

(Note: how to choose your primary content format is contested — see Where Experts Disagree)

Identify your 2–3 marketing superpowers and build content around them. Ask yourself what you're genuinely gifted at in marketing (e.g., writing, interviewing, simplifying complex ideas, distilling insights). Build your content and personal brand around those superpowers rather than trying to be good at everything. This allows you to create at scale and with authenticity. (Source: Jason Lemkin, Episode #207)

Study and adapt unique content formats—not just humor—to stand out on social. Humor is one approach, but other unique formats can work equally well: man-on-the-street interviews, behind-the-scenes content, news roundups, industry commentary, or novel presentation styles (e.g., interviews on a ladder, music reactions, golf course conversations). The key is finding a format that aligns with your brand and ICP, then executing it consistently. Pick a format that feels authentic to your company and double down on it. (Source: Chris Cunningham, Episode #347)

Run a recurring weekly topical content series to build brand and enable sales. Create a recurring weekly 30-minute session (e.g., "What You Should Know This Week") featuring internal experts discussing timely topics relevant to your target buyer personas. Distribute content across multiple channels (LinkedIn, communities, events, internal enablement). Use the same content to enable sales teams with messaging and talking points. (Source: Morgan Cole, Episode #315)

Data-Driven and Proprietary Content

Identify and leverage internal data sources for content creation. Every company has unique internal data that can be used for content: sales calls and transcripts, internal chat channels and knowledge bases, software engineer insights, sales enablement decks, product-level data (transaction data, usage patterns), and team expertise. Start by identifying what internal data you have access to, then extract and format it for use in content creation. This doesn't require building new tools—it's about recognizing existing data sources and using them strategically. (Source: Eoin Clancy, Episode #336)

Create exclusive content using product data. Use your product's unique data to create original, exclusive content that customers cannot get elsewhere. This content should be immediately actionable—readers should be able to apply insights within minutes. Examples: analyze call recordings to extract sales tactics, or use product usage data to identify patterns. This approach combines data credibility with product promotion: readers see the value of your product through the insights it generates, creating demand for the product itself. (Source: Udi Ledergor, Episode #237)

Use aggregated customer data from your product to identify trends, validate product ideas, and support content with data before building features. If your product collects data across many customers, use that data to identify patterns and trends. Publish research reports on those trends to build thought leadership. When considering new product features or expansions, use the same data to validate the idea and understand customer needs. This creates a virtuous cycle: data informs content (which builds trust), data informs product decisions (which are better informed), and product improvements generate more data for future content. (Source: Emir Atli, Episode #165)

Create a recurring content series that documents and shares the work happening across different functions within your company. Frame engineering experiments, sales approaches, people operations innovations, and CRO testing as relatable stories and learnings that your target audience can apply, not as self-serving company promotion. This creates valuable, authentic content while showcasing company culture and expertise. (Source: Chelsea Castle, Episodes #262 and #172)

Mid-Funnel Content Assets

(Note: the right replacement for gated ebooks is contested — see Where Experts Disagree)

Build free tools and templates to meet buyers earlier in their journey. Create free, downloadable tools (calculators, templates, job description builders) that solve a specific problem your target audience faces, without requiring a product demo or sales conversation. Use these tools to capture intent and educate buyers about their own needs before introducing your product. (Source: John Short, Episode #148)

In sales-led B2B organizations, replace direct response ads with thought leadership and high-value content assets. Stop running direct response ads (sign up, get demo, download X) in sales-led B2B companies where the gap between awareness and demo is too large. Instead, drive traffic to high-value content assets like playbooks or reports that help prospects with their job regardless of whether they use your product. This reduces ad spend waste and improves intent quality by letting prospects self-select into consideration. (Source: Taylor Udell, Episode #190)

Structure case studies around specific tactics and plays rather than just brand validation. Instead of generic case studies that only validate that a well-known company uses your product, create case studies that showcase the specific tactics and plays a customer is running, with your product as one component. This makes the content more tactical and helpful to prospects evaluating similar strategies. (Source: Taylor Udell, Episode #190)

Build brand campaigns around customer needs and aspirations, not product features. Create brand content that addresses what customers care about (their hopes, dreams, and challenges) rather than focusing on product features. Start by asking: "Would I want this? Is this something I would use?" and ensure it connects to customer value before product. (Source: Jaleh Rezaei, Episode #248)

Sales Enablement Content

Create modular content that allows sales to use a single slide instead of full decks. Recognize that salespeople will not use a 10-slide deck in every call. Provide a single-slide version of key messaging that salespeople can drop into their existing pitch. Pair this with FAQs, anticipated objections, and social media copy they can adapt in their own words. Customize account lists by territory and ICP so each seller gets only relevant targets. This flexibility increases adoption because it fits into their actual selling process. (Source: Kira Federer, Episodes #254 and #184)

Use a messaging framework to structure your content program by pillar. Create a core messaging framework with 2–3 pillars. Build a content program where each pillar gets dedicated coverage over time (e.g., pillar one for six months, pillar two for the next six months). Ensure every piece of content—events, campaigns, thought leadership, sales materials—ladders back to one of these pillars. (Source: Kira Federer, Episode #184)

Create a launch video as your primary anchor asset for product launches. Develop a 1–2 minute launch video as the foundational asset for your product launch campaign. The video should condense your entire story, positioning, and key features into a concise narrative. This video serves multiple purposes: it forces you to nail your story and messaging, it provides visual and audio assets you can repurpose across other channels, and it makes writing supporting copy and social content significantly easier. (Source: Natalie Taylor, Episodes #163 and #162)

Establish a predictable cadence of shipping one new product feature per week and create short-form video content for each. Distribute these videos across founder and team member profiles (including engineers). This creates a consistent content drumbeat that signals product momentum to prospects and early customers, differentiating you in crowded markets. Early customers will buy based on your velocity and vision, not just current feature parity. (Source: Emir Atli, Episode #165)

Ship product updates or features monthly at minimum to maintain narrative momentum. This creates regular opportunities to retell the company narrative, reinforce positioning, and maintain momentum with customers and the market. Monthly shipping also forces prioritization and prevents the accumulation of unannounced work. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #133)

Audience Building and Distribution

Build an audience and reputation in your market before launching a new product. Establish credibility, email list, and social following in your target market before launching a new company or product. This audience becomes a distribution channel for your new venture, reducing customer acquisition costs and validating product-market fit faster. (Source: Peep Laja, Episode #119)

Specialize in an underserved category to build authority and market dominance. Rather than remaining a generalist marketer, identify an emerging or underserved category with minimal competition and high-quality content gaps. Become the category expert by systematically replicating what category leaders do (conferences, books, frameworks) but with better execution. (Source: Peep Laja, Episode #119)

Use subscriber count as the primary leading indicator for audience-building success. Track email opt-ins (reframed as "subscribers" to emphasize relationship) as the core metric for audience growth. Supplement with engagement metrics: exclusive content consumption, referral activity, and social amplification. This simplifies measurement away from traditional funnel metrics (MQLs, SQLs) and focuses on relationship depth rather than lead volume. (Source: Anthony Kennada, Episode #145)

Position brand and thought leadership marketing as the primary go-to-market strategy, not a separate function. Shift from treating brand marketing as a separate, discretionary function to making it the core marketing strategy. SEO and paid ads become supporting channels that feed the audience-building engine, not the primary demand drivers. (Source: Anthony Kennada, Episode #145)

Prioritize audience quality and business relevance over social media growth metrics. When evaluating social media content performance, measure not just engagement and follower growth, but whether the audience you're attracting aligns with your target customer profile and business goals. High engagement from the wrong audience will not translate to product adoption or revenue. Favor depth and niche relevance over top-of-funnel reach. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #133)

Measure non-direct response initiatives (brand, podcasts, content) by reach and impressions. For marketing initiatives without direct calls-to-action, measure their impact by tracking reach and impressions as inputs into your marketing mix model, not by waiting for direct clicks or conversions. The podcast itself is not the metric—the number of people actually listening to it is. Feed these reach/impression numbers into your correlation analysis alongside your outcome metrics (demos, trials). (Source: Pranav Piyush, Episode #130)

Build audience-first media assets to funnel into community without founder reliance. For teams without a strong founder social presence, create a standalone media asset (e.g., job board, resource library, benchmarking tool) that solves a problem for your target audience and attracts them independently. Use this asset to build an engaged audience first, then funnel them into a community later if they request it. (Source: Matthew Carnevale, Episode #213)

Reverse-engineer your own recent purchase decisions to understand buyer behavior. Reflect on a recent purchase you made and trace the steps you took: what problem triggered the search, which channels you discovered solutions on, what content influenced you, and what finally convinced you to buy. Use this personal case study to understand how your target customers likely make similar decisions. (Source: Matt Carnevale, Episode #141)

Event Content Strategy

Balance three elements in event content: educate, entertain, and inspire attendees. Successful events deliver on three dimensions: educate (teach attendees something valuable), entertain (give them a story to tell), and inspire (make them feel something). Balance all three to create a memorable experience. This requires knowing your audience deeply and customizing content accordingly. (Source: Stephanie Christensen, Episode #227)

Tailor event content to what executives care about to drive attendance. When inviting executives to an event, ensure the content addresses what's top-of-mind for them. Research their priorities and make sure the event agenda speaks to those concerns. Generic content won't drive executive attendance. (Source: Kristina DeBrito, Episode #227)

Narrow your talk scope early by identifying the one real person and their core need. When you have too many ideas for a talk, use the single-person framework to ruthlessly narrow scope. Ask: which of these ideas would actually help that one person succeed? Focus on the high-value, unique ideas that only you can deliver based on your experience, rather than trying to cover everything. (Source: Vincent Pierri, Episode #272)

Sponsored and Partnership Content

Structure sponsored content around user value and use cases, not product features. When creating sponsored content for brand partnerships, identify a real pain point or use case you're familiar with and show how the product solves it. Walk through the problem-to-solution journey using the product interface, but focus on the practical outcome rather than pushing features. Avoid adding logos or defaulting to CTAs like "click this button." Instead, provide a complete, executable solution that readers can implement themselves, even with competing products. (Source: Sara Lattanzio, Episode #268)

AI and the Evolving Content Landscape

(Note: the right strategic response to AI disruption is contested — see Where Experts Disagree)

Recognize that as LLMs become the primary interface for information discovery, traditional informational content loses value. Buyers are shifting from searching for answers (starting on Google) to using LLM assistants to get direct actions. This means informational content that ranks on Google is becoming less valuable. Marketers must shift strategy to focus on awareness and attention at the top of the funnel, and then optimize for what happens when you capture a contact—where AI creates new opportunities for personalization and micro-audience targeting. (Source: Kieran Flanagan, Episodes #318 and #257)

Where Experts Disagree

1. Should B2B marketers prioritize human-created content over AI-generated content as a competitive moat?

Support summary: 4 vs 1

Position A: Human creativity is the primary competitive moat Chris Cunningham (Episode #347) argued that audiences still prefer human-created content and that real actors, genuine scripts, and authentic human moments create emotional connection AI cannot replicate. He framed human creativity as the primary competitive advantage when product differentiation is increasingly difficult.

Mark Schaefer (Episode #261) advocated for raw, unpolished, lo-fi content with intentional imperfection to signal authenticity and human emotion, explicitly noting that audiences are rejecting over-polished, mass-produced content. He framed this as a trend across gaming, video, and social platforms.

Ryan Narod (Episode #330) recommended moving away from corporate, faceless content and hiring people with distinctive personalities who are comfortable being on camera. He argued individual personalities become brand assets and make content more trustworthy and shareable.

Dave Gerhardt (Episode #319) argued that in the AI era, audiences are skeptical of generic AI-generated content and trust human expertise and voice, making founder expertise and authentic human perspective the most compelling marketing content.

Position B: The strategic shift in content purpose matters more than who creates it Kieran Flanagan (Episodes #318 and #257) predicted that 95% of B2B buyer journeys will start with LLM assistants by 2027, making informational content (regardless of creator) less valuable. He argued the strategic imperative is shifting from answer-based content to awareness content—not doubling down on human creation. The human vs. AI distinction matters less than the strategic shift in content purpose.

Context dependency: Flanagan's position applies most forcefully to SEO-driven informational content, while the human creativity advocates are speaking more broadly about brand and social content. However, both camps are making claims about the same AI-disrupted environment, and their prescriptions genuinely conflict—one says invest more in human creators, the other says the content type itself needs to change regardless of who creates it.

Trend note: The human creativity advocates span 2024–2026, so there is no clear chronological clustering. However, Flanagan's position (episodes 257 and 318, mid-2025 to early 2026) represents a more structurally disruptive view that emerged as LLM adoption accelerated.

Why it matters for your decision: B2B marketers deciding where to invest limited content budgets need to know whether doubling down on human creators is the right hedge against AI commoditization, or whether the entire content strategy model needs to change regardless of who creates the content. These are not the same bet.

2. Should mid-funnel content be gated ebooks/whitepapers or interactive tools?

Support summary: 3 vs 1

Position A: Replace gated content with interactive tools Dave Gerhardt (Episode #271) explicitly recommended replacing traditional gated content with interactive tools, citing examples like website graders and A/B test previews as superior mid-funnel assets.

John Short (Episode #201) recommended building free mid-intent tools or calculators that solve a specific problem, citing HubSpot's Website Grader and Drift's free chatbot trial as examples. He argued these work well in paid campaigns because they provide genuine utility and can be shared.

Dave Steer (Episode #324) recommended building free assessment tools that provide real value to prospects without immediate conversion pressure, citing Webflow's free AEO assessment tool as an example.

Position B: Replace gated content with ungated high-value content assets Taylor Udell (Episode #190) recommended stopping direct response ads and gated content in sales-led B2B companies, arguing the gap between awareness and demo is too large. She advocated for high-value content assets like playbooks or reports instead—ungated, but not interactive tools.

Context dependency: These positions are more complementary than conflicting—both reject traditional gated ebooks, but one recommends interactive tools while the other recommends ungated high-value content assets. The disagreement is about what replaces gated content, not whether to replace it. The right choice may depend on your GTM motion (product-led vs. sales-led) and available resources (interactive tools require engineering investment; ungated content assets require content investment).

3. Should you choose your content format based on personal strength/passion or based on where your audience is?

Support summary: 2 vs 1

Position A: Choose format by personal strength and passion Dave Gerhardt (Episode #225) explicitly recommended choosing your primary content channel based on personal strength and fluency, not market trends, arguing this removes the learning curve and lets you focus on quality and consistency.

Jason Lemkin (Episodes #207 and #142) recommended choosing content format based on what you genuinely enjoy creating and your natural strengths, arguing that forcing yourself into a format you don't enjoy results in mediocre output and burnout.

Position B: Choose format by audience and channel Erin May (Episode #337) recommended a channel-first approach to content planning, arguing that starting with channel selection ensures content reaches your audience where they actually are rather than creating content and hoping it finds an audience.

Context dependency: Erin May's advice is specifically about planning major tentpole campaigns where distribution is a primary constraint, while Gerhardt and Lemkin are speaking about personal brand and ongoing content strategy. However, the underlying question—what should drive format selection—is the same, and the answers genuinely conflict.

Why it matters for your decision: A marketer who picks a format they're bad at because it's where the audience is will produce low-quality content; a marketer who picks a format they love but that doesn't reach their audience will produce great content nobody sees. Understanding which constraint matters more in your specific situation is critical.

4. Should you mention competitors in your content?

Support summary: 2 vs 1

Position A: Mention competitors to build credibility and authenticity Ross Simmonds (Episode #200) explicitly recommended mentioning competitors in content, giving the example of saying "there are actually a handful of great tools out there, like Close, HubSpot, Salesforce" rather than only pushing your own product. He argued this drives higher engagement and trust.

Dan Cmejla (Episode #134) recommended using competitive commentary as a content pillar, calling out competitor weaknesses or practices with ethical guardrails: don't punch down (only target larger competitors), don't make it personal, don't share private information. He argued this creates engaging content that resonates with customers who have had negative experiences with competitors.

Position B: Avoid competitor mentions at the top of the funnel Kyle Coleman (Episode #206) explicitly recommended avoiding competitor comparison pages or content at the top of the funnel, arguing that such content introduces competitors to prospects who may not have heard of them and shifts focus away from your unique vision and problem definition. He recommended architecting a "from-to" journey that forces your audience to choose a different future state rather than compare you to alternatives.

Context dependency: Kyle Coleman's advice is specifically about top-of-funnel content and comparison pages, while Ross Simmonds is talking about general content credibility and Dan Cmejla is talking about competitive commentary as a content pillar. However, all three are addressing the same underlying question of whether to name competitors in your content, and the prescriptions conflict at the top-of-funnel stage.

Why it matters for your decision: Mentioning competitors can build credibility and authenticity but risks educating prospects about alternatives they hadn't considered—getting this wrong at the top of funnel could actively send prospects to competitors.

What NOT To Do

Don't create content without a written strategy document. Without a documented strategy including business goals, ICP definition, and content mission, content teams stay perpetually busy but misaligned with business needs. (Source: Chelsea Castle, Episodes #262 and #172)

Don't jump to channel tactics before defining what you stand for. Too many companies jump to "what should we do on LinkedIn" or "what's our email cadence" without first answering "what do we stand for and what are we trying to teach, inspire, or help people with." (Source: Amanda Goetz, Episodes #244 and #158)

Don't post content that doesn't make people feel something, teach them something, or make them laugh. If content doesn't satisfy at least one of these criteria, reject it. This prevents the common B2B mistake of posting purely product-focused content that audiences ignore. (Source: Chris Cunningham, Episode #347)

Don't constantly invent new messages. Identify your core point of view and repeat it through many different formats, channels, and creative executions rather than constantly changing what you're saying. (Source: Louis Grenier, Episode #322)

Don't create content just because a topic is trending. First develop a clear, differentiated point of view on that topic as it relates to your company's approach. Only create content if you have a strong POV to back it up. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #155)

Don't publish generic, company-attributed content. Every piece of content should be attributed to a specific person on your team and written from their perspective. (Source: Sylvia LePoidevin, Episode #306)

Don't make customer stories more than 20% of your content mix. If all your content is customer stories, audiences perceive it as advertising. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #139)

Don't use social media to discover your core messaging. Messaging should be validated through customer conversations, sales testing, surveys, and community feedback. Use social media to test content formats and delivery methods, not to discover what you stand for. (Source: Chris Walker, Episode #139)

Don't force yourself into a content format you don't enjoy. Trying to force yourself into a format you don't enjoy will result in mediocre output and burnout. (Note: this is contested — see Where Experts Disagree.) (Source: Jason Lemkin, Episodes #207 and #142)

Don't run direct response ads in sales-led B2B companies where the gap between awareness and demo is too large. Stop running "sign up, get demo, download X" ads and replace them with high-value content assets that help prospects with their job regardless of whether they use your product. (Source: Taylor Udell, Episode #190)

Don't create comparison pages or content that positions your product against competitors at the top of the funnel. This avoids introducing competitors to prospects who may not have heard of them and keeps the conversation focused on your unique vision. (Note: this is contested — see Where Experts Disagree.) (Source: Kyle Coleman, Episode #206)

Don't keep your brand narrative in a Google Doc. Operationalize it by ensuring your differentiated point of view appears throughout your content strategy across all owned channels. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #129)

Don't build nurture email sequences before establishing a foundational content strategy. A consistent content machine that delivers value across multiple channels does much of the nurturing work automatically. (Source: Matt Carnevale, Episode #129)

Don't create content for content's sake. Evaluate each content piece against multiple criteria—does it drive search traffic, is it highly shareable, does it enable sales, does it support buyer enablement, does it build backlinks? Content that serves only one function is lower priority than content that serves 3–5 functions simultaneously. (Source: Brendan Hufford, Episode #242)

Don't design community as a discussion forum optimized for daily engagement. Build community around access to curated resources rather than optimizing for daily discussion. Avoid the failure mode where communities become spam-filled promotion channels as they scale. (Source: Dave Gerhardt, Episode #146)

Don't start ads with logos or celebrities. This immediately signals "advertisement" and triggers dismissal. Raw, lo-fi aesthetics are trending as audiences reject over-polished, mass-produced content. (Source: Mark Schaefer, Episode #261)

Sources