Most B2B companies spend a lot of time explaining their products. Showing their technology. They talk about their services and the results they achieve.
Thought Leadership is different. It is about showing that you understand your industry, not just that you operate in it.
This can come from a CEO, a technical director, a researcher, or another expert in the company. The subject could be where the industry is going, how a technology is changing, or why a common assumption about the market is wrong.
The important thing is that there is a real point of view behind it. You are not trying to sell a product. You are sharing an informed opinion based on experience and knowledge.
Why Thought Leadership matters
When buyers research a B2B purchase, they are not only asking: “Which companies offer this?”
They are also asking: “Who really understands this?”
Being able to answer the second question changes how buyers see you.
You are no longer just another supplier they need to compare. You start to become a source of information and expertise.
This is especially useful during the buying journey described in one of my previous posts.
Thought Leadership can help at the very beginning, when people first discover your company.
But it becomes particularly valuable during the evaluation stage. A buyer who already sees your company as an expert is approaching the next stage from a different position.
They are not simply comparing you with three other suppliers. They are paying attention to what you have to say.
That makes it easier to build trust before the sales conversation even starts.
Why video works well for Thought Leadership
You can publish Thought Leadership as articles, reports, presentations, podcasts, and other formats. Video adds something that text cannot.
People don’t just hear the idea. They hear the person behind it. They can see the expert explaining the subject, listen to how they talk about it, and get a better sense of their knowledge and experience.
That’s important in B2B, where the people behind the company are part of the decision.
There is also a practical benefit. One recording can become several pieces of content: a longer video for YouTube, shorter clips for LinkedIn, an audio version, or an article based on the same conversation.
This means a single Thought Leadership project can support several channels without starting from scratch each time. From a fraction of the cost.
And unlike a social post that disappears quickly, a useful video can continue to attract viewers long after it was published.
The most important part is not the production
A good camera doesn’t create Thought Leadership. The most important thing is what the expert has to say.
If your technical director records a video saying things that any competitor could say, the video is unlikely to make much difference.
But if they explain something from a perspective that comes from years of experience, or challenge an assumption that most people in the industry accept, you have something much more valuable.
The point of Thought Leadership is not to sound clever. It is to have something worth saying.
And this is also where many companies struggle. Not every company is ready to take a public position on an industry issue. And that’s fine. Thought Leadership only works when the opinion is genuine and the person sharing it is willing to put their name behind it.
But companies that are prepared to do that can create a very clear position in their market.
Where Thought Leadership matters most
For Data and Insights companies, Thought Leadership is often much more than a marketing activity. It is close to the foundation of what they sell. Their clients are paying for knowledge, analysis, interpretation, and a way of understanding markets or customers.
Making that thinking visible helps potential clients see the expertise they are buying before they become customers.
For other B2B companies, Thought Leadership can be especially valuable during the validation stage of the buying journey.
When a buyer is comparing technical solutions, assessing risk, or deciding whether a company really understands their industry, useful expert content can build confidence before the sales team is involved.
The role is slightly different, but the principle is the same: show buyers that there are people behind the company who understand the subject and have something useful to say.
Where does Thought Leadership perform best
For B2B, LinkedIn is an important part of the picture because it is where many of your buyers, industry peers, and potential employees already spend time.
There is also an important difference between publishing Thought Leadership from a company page and publishing it from the expert who actually has the opinion.
For many companies, especially Data and Insights businesses, the goal is to turn a small number of experts into recognised voices in their industry. Their personal visibility becomes part of the company’s marketing strategy, not just an employee’s own activity.
People tend to connect more easily with people than with company logos. That’s why many companies encourage their experts to publish from their own profiles. The company can help with the research, production, editing, and direction, while the expert provides the knowledge and credibility.
Some companies worry that making experts more visible will also make them more attractive to competitors. But that’s a subject for a different post. In practice, the goal is not to hide your experts. It is to give them good reasons to stay: meaningful work, recognition, growth, and a strong culture.
Some examples
Worldpanel: expert-led and simple
Fraser McKevitt is Head of Retail & Consumer Insight at Worldpanel. Around twice a month, he shares short videos about developments in the British grocery market, based on Worldpanel’s own data.
It is a good example of how a relatively simple setup can build authority when the expert has something useful to say.
Gartner: the same idea at scale
Gartner takes a similar approach with its Top of Mind Expert Insights series.
Its analysts share their views on topics such as AI, enterprise resilience, and changing priorities for business leaders.
The format can change, but the principle stays the same: make the company’s expertise visible through the people who have it.
ABB: explaining technical subjects
ABB takes another approach with ABB Explains.
The series focuses on technical subjects related to its products and technologies. They’re not simply promoting a product. They’re helping people understand a technical subject.
That makes the company part of the conversation around the technology, not just a company selling it.
And here’s the reassuring part for anyone who thinks their subject is too dry. This video has passed 700,000 views.
Hundreds of thousands of people, on YouTube, watching a video about frequency drives. The audience for genuinely useful technical content is bigger than you’d think.
Rockwell Automation: experts in conversation
Rockwell Automation’s ROKStudios takes the idea further by putting executives, customers, and partners into conversations about the future of industrial automation.
It is not a product catalogue. It is a way to discuss where the industry is heading, what is changing, and what that means for businesses.
Video podcast: a deeper format
This example was commissioned by AlTi Tiedemann Global and is about the future of AI in wealth management.
Their Chief Investment Officer hosted a conversation between their CTO and the CEO of the AI company they work with.
The format worked because the people in the conversation had real expertise and something interesting to discuss. The production then helped give that conversation the right level of importance.
Produced by Here Now Films
Where should you start?
The first question isn’t what camera to use, or whether you need a studio. Start with the person and the idea.
- Does someone in your company have a strong opinion about where the industry is going?
- Have they learned something through years of experience that would be useful to your customers?
- Can they explain a subject in a way that is genuinely useful, rather than simply repeating your marketing messages?
If the answer is yes, you already have the most important part of a Thought Leadership video.
The production can be simple or sophisticated. What matters most is that there is something worth listening to.
The companies that become references in their field are not necessarily the ones with the biggest production budgets.
They are the ones that make their expertise visible.
Key takeaways
- Thought Leadership is about sharing a genuine point of view based on experience and expertise, not promoting a product.
- For data and insights companies, Thought Leadership is often central to how they demonstrate the expertise clients are buying.
- For other B2B companies, Thought Leadership can be especially valuable during the validation stage, when buyers are deciding whether they can trust your expertise.
- Publishing through individual experts can help turn company specialists into recognised voices in their industry.
- Video adds the person behind the opinion: their experience, voice, and way of explaining a subject.
- The most important part of a tThought Leadership video is the idea, not the production quality.
- One recording can create several pieces of content for different channels, making Thought Leadership easier to maintain consistently.
Frequently asked questions
What is Thought Leadership in B2B?
Thought Leadership is when someone with relevant experience and expertise shares a clear point of view about their industry or a topic that matters to their audience.
It is not simply talking about your products. The goal is to contribute something useful to the conversation.
Who should appear in a Thought Leadership video?
It doesn’t have to be the CEO. It could be a technical director, researcher, analyst, head of R&D, or another senior expert who has real knowledge of the subject.
The most important thing is that the person has something valuable to say and is comfortable putting their name behind it.
Does a Thought Leadership video need to be highly produced?
No. A simple video can work very well when the idea is strong and the person speaking has real expertise. Production quality can help make the content more engaging and easier to understand, but it cannot replace a useful point of view.
What should a Thought Leadership video talk about?
It could explore where your industry is going, explain a change that will affect your customers, challenge a common assumption, or share something you’ve learned through experience.
The subject should be relevant to the audience, but it should also give them a reason to listen to you specifically.
How often should a company publish Thought Leadership?
There isn’t a fixed number. What matters more is consistency and having something useful to say. A regular series of good insights is more valuable than publishing frequently just to have more content.
Can one Thought Leadership video be used for different channels?
Yes. A longer video can provide the basis for shorter clips, LinkedIn posts, audio content, or an article.
