♾️ Part 2: Building an Expert Advisory Board

You’re reading The Content Loop — a 5-min read on how B2B SaaS marketers can use original research and product-led content as a growth lever.

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This issue is Part 2 of a 4-part series I’m creating on building a realistic Expert Advisory Board—a roster of experts you can lean in on to build high-value content assets.

If you missed Issue 1, you can check it out here.

We’ve already established that content teams are stuck playing expert hot potato—frantically hunting for one perfect voice every time they need insights.

But here's what I've learned after years of building expert-led content: you're not looking for one expert, you're casting a movie.

You wouldn't cast the same actor to play every role, right? The romantic lead can't also be the villain, the comic relief, and the wise mentor. Each character brings something different to the story.

Your content works the same way.

You need different types of expert voices to tell a complete story—and today I'm breaking down the exact framework I use to "cast" every piece of content I create.

I call it the BOARD Framework.

The three perspectives your content needs

Before we get to the specific roles, let's talk about the three core perspectives every piece of strong content should include:

• Strategic: The big-picture thinkers who see trends and predict where industries are heading

• Operational: The people who actually do the work and understand what happens when strategy meets reality

• External: The humans who live with your industry's problems every single day

Most content gets one of these perspectives right. Great content combines all three. And that's where the five specific expert roles come in.

The 5 roles every Expert Advisory Board needs

Strategic perspective:

1. The Visionaries

These are your industry futurists, the people who see around corners and predict shifts before they happen. Think keynote speakers, thought leaders, former C-suite executives who've moved into advisory roles.

Where to find them: Industry conference speaker lists, bestselling business book authors, LinkedIn "Top Voices" in your space, podcast hosts of industry shows.

What they bring: The "here's where this is all heading" context that makes your content feel forward-thinking instead of reactive.

2. The Researchers 

Your data-driven voices who can back up everyone else's hot takes with actual numbers. Think industry analysts, academic researchers, data scientists at research firms, economists who track your sector.

Every industry has them. In B2B SaaS, we see a lot of Gartner and McKinsey reports but industry publications play a HUGE role here.

Where to find them: Gartner, Forrester, McKinsey reports (check the author bylines), university research departments, think tanks (Y Combinator, etc.), government research agencies.

What they bring: The credibility and quantitative backing that transforms opinions into defensible positions.

Operational perspective:

3. The Practitioners

These are your hands-on doers who know the difference between what sounds good in theory and what actually works in practice. They usually know of the problem—but don’t directly feel it everyday.

For example, individual contributors (ICs), team leads, people who execute strategy daily.

Where to find them: LinkedIn groups, niche communities, Slack workspaces, professional associations, people commenting thoughtfully on industry posts.

What they bring: Real-world implementation insights and the practical wisdom that comes from actually doing the work.

4. The Scaling Experts

Your battle-scarred veterans who've been there, done that, and have the organizational trauma to prove it. Former VPs, consultants who've worked across multiple companies, people who've scaled teams from 5 to 500.

Where to find them: Consulting firms, ex-employees of fast-growing companies in your space, advisory board members, fractional executives, people who write about scaling challenges.

What they bring: Process optimization insights and the hard-earned wisdom about what breaks (and what works) when you're growing fast.

External perspective:

5. The Problem Owners

Your customers, prospects, and end users who live with your industry's pain points every single day. These are the people your product or service is ultimately trying to help.

Where to find them: Your customer base, prospect lists, industry forums, Reddit communities, user groups, social media conversations about industry problems.

What they bring: Authentic voice-of-customer insights and the emotional context that makes your content feel human instead of corporate.

Your next round of homework 😉

Before you plan your next piece of expert-backed content, try this:

1. Define your content goal: Are you trying to establish thought leadership? Prove ROI? Show implementation best practices?

2. Pick your lead roles: Based on your goal, which expert types should be your "main characters"?

3. Add supporting voices: Which 1-2 other perspectives would add depth without overcrowding the narrative?

4. Check for balance: Are you missing a key perspective that would make this content more complete?

For example, if you're writing about "The Future of Sales Enablement," you might cast:

• Lead role: Visionary (sales/enablement leaders or founders/CEOs of such platforms) + Researcher (analysts in your space)

• Supporting roles: Scaling Expert (lessons from sales leaders who've transformed their sales process) + Practitioner (IC or sales manager)

The beauty of thinking about this as casting is that you can start building relationships with potential "actors" before you need them for specific "roles." And yes, the same kind of expert can double up as more than one of these roles.

Which expert type do you find hardest to source in your industry? I'm genuinely curious—reply and tell me about your biggest casting challenges.

P.S. Liked the issue? Share it with someone who could benefit from it.

That’s all for today!

As always, if you have any questions or feedback, hit “Reply” and let me know 😄