Disclaimer: The opinions represented here are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent those of their current or former employer.
Scott Reyburn has spent over a decade building high-impact content programs for fast-scaling B2B tech companies. He’s known for turning content into real pipeline, and for cutting through the noise with clarity, relevance, and results. We recently sat down with Scott to learn more about his approach for creating content that not only resonates with marketers (often the most skeptical of audiences) but also drives conversions.
Watch the full interview below, or read on for a selection of key takeaways.
If there’s one theme Reyburn returns to again and again, it’s that people can tell when you’re spinning your wheels. Most content simply isn’t actionable, and that’s a turn-off for anyone, but marketers in particular. To compete, content marketers must help readers do their jobs better, solve real problems, or offer fresh perspectives. This means avoiding vague thought leadership and instead offering specific insights, examples, and takeaways that marketers can actually use. The content also needs to be relevant and appealing to the audience. Information is great, but it won’t land if it’s packaged in an unappealing way.
“If your content is just a bunch of fluff, marketers will see it. I’m always thinking about how we can make content that isn’t perceived as fluff but actually provides utility and actionable information. We want to give them something that makes them better at their job... That’s always the goal with content marketing, especially when your audience is marketers… They’re constantly trying to figure out how to do better at their job. If we can be the ones that provide content to make them better at their job, that’s how we’ll reach them."
That approach came to life when Splendid Engines partnered with modl.ai. Together, the duo pivoted modl’s content strategy away from dense academic whitepapers and instead publish peer-led, tactical content. The result was over 260 qualified leads and $1 million in pipeline within three months. The shift illustrates how putting useful, real-world content in front of the right audience outperforms abstract theory or jargon-filled filler. Content that teaches, not just tells, earns attention, and attention drives results.
Want to learn more? Get in touch with Splendid Engines to learn how our GTM engine can power your business.
Data confirms what most marketers know intuitively: peer voices are far more trusted than vendor content. A Forrester study found 90% of B2B buyers trust peer input, while only 29% trust vendor salespeople. Content that features customer interviews, expert quotes, or community voices builds credibility, engagement, and ultimately pipeline. This is especially true in marketing, where audiences are saturated with noise. Elevating practitioners as co-creators not only increases trust, but it can also directly generate leads when executed well. Smart marketers invest time in surfacing these peer-led insights as the backbone of their strategy.
"What I’ve learned is marketers… can smell your BS. And as part of that, no one cares what I have to say. If the byline is Scott Reyburn, that doesn’t matter. Marketers want to hear from other marketers in the industry. This is true for almost any industry. The audience wants to hear from their peers. Even if they don’t recognize the name, seeing information from a fellow practitioner has higher value in their mind. That type of content is harder to do and takes more time… but doing the research and then injecting subject-matter experts into content just enhances it. I’ve been doing that style of content for a decade."
The Mobile Heroes program that Reyburn co-led at Liftoff is a perfect example. The series featured interviews with mobile marketers, building a community that not only attracted attention, but closed deals. Many featured “heroes” became customers or drove strong expansion ARR over time, reinforcing the program’s value, while simultaneously providing actionable tips even to those who didn’t become Liftoff customers.
B2B buyers want content that respects their time, yet much content rem ains too theoretical, leaving readers unsure how to act. Marketers should aim for “quick wins,” a concrete tip, experiment, or next step a reader can apply in under 20 minutes. This small but effective shift transforms content from passive consumption to active utility, encouraging immediate action and increasing recall. Helpful, usable content doesn’t just build trust, it accelerates pipeline by providing value up front.
"The things I’m always looking for [are whether] content…is providing real utility, has some form of actual information. That’s always the baseline: Is this something someone can actually do something with? Whether they learn something that will help them look good at their job or do better at their job… I don’t want it to be all theory with no practice to it. I want to see something about the practice of whatever topic you’re talking about. That’s when I know something useful came out of it."
HubSpot’s early growth is a great example of quick-win content. Rather than selling software directly, they published templates, how-to checklists, and marketing calculators on their blog that delivered instant utility. This tactical approach fueled audience trust and SEO success while subtly reinforcing their product's relevance. The strategy didn’t require huge resources; just practical insights tied to real challenges marketers faced daily. Even a basic checklist or script embedded in a blog post can turn passive readers into active users.
Your sales team knows which accounts are warm, who has influence, and what objections need to be addressed. Deep audience knowledge is a superpower, and your sales reps are often the best source. Reyburn highlights how important it is to collaborate with them to identify potential expert contributors, warm up introductions, and pitch win-win content partnerships. The goal is to support sales by acting as a consigliere: guiding the strategy, sourcing subject-matter experts, and opening doors.
"One thing I’ve learned about executing this type of content is: Don’t try to do it all by yourself as the marketer. Use your sales teams, build relationships with them. These people have Rolodexes of contacts… and in those Rolodexes are many potential folks you can feature. I always say your job as a marketer is to be the mafia consigliere. You build the strategy and plan for how to do subject-matter-expert-driven content, but you want to become an advisor to the sales team on how they can execute the process. You’re going to need them to convince their contacts, ‘Hey, would you like to speak with our content marketing team and share your expertise?’ So you’ve got to become very ingrained with your sales team and build those relationships if you truly want to execute such content."
Reyburn says this approach worked repeatedly at Liftoff, Fyber (now Digital Turbine), and Chartboost. At Liftoff, Reyburn’s team would tap sales to identify key accounts where the marketing team wanted a foothold, then invite someone from that account to be featured in Mobile Heroes. That opened the door to sales conversations and led to high-value deals. Sales got meetings, prospects got free promotion, and marketing delivered credible content. It’s simple: When you embed your content team into the sales motion, content creation becomes lead generation and your subject-matter experts become the bridge between brand and buyer.
Too often, companies bury their best content in blog feeds or resource pages. But community-led content like interview series, industry reports, and customer profiles should be treated like product lines: prominently featured, consistently updated, and cross-promoted. When buyers land on your site, seeing a hub of credible peer stories builds trust faster than any pitch deck ever could.
"One of the biggest projects I led was taking our Mobile Heroes program and nesting it inside the main Liftoff website. It used to live on a separate microsite… I refreshed the look and feel and made Mobile Heroes a featured part of the Liftoff site, almost like a product we offer... If you go to the site, you’ll see Mobile Heroes right there in the top navigation. People would come to our website to vet us as a vendor, to check that Liftoff’s product had all the checkmarks like others, and then they’d see ‘Mobile Heroes’ and click. Then it’s, ‘Wow, these folks really know the topics I care about.’ That becomes a selling point in itself."
That content integration helped Liftoff become a magnet for top mobile marketers, long before sales ever reached out. It also mirrors what Salesforce has done with its Salesblazer initiative, which attracted over 5 million page views and 15,000+ Slack members in its first year. Centralizing community-driven content in your main nav not only increases visibility but signals to buyers that you understand their world. Whether it’s Mobile Heroes, Salesblazer, or your own flagship content series, the message is the same: community content drives revenue and grows your brand.
Reyburn’s playbook for content is field-tested and revenue-proven. The common thread across his strategies is a deep respect for the audience: their time, their intelligence, and their need for substance. From embedding peer insights to partnering closely with sales, each move is designed to build trust and drive action. If you want to learn more from Reyburn and his time in the field, follow him on LinkedIn.
Want help building this kind of expert-led, conversion-driving content? Splendid Engines specializes in content that earns attention and turns it into pipeline. Check us out.