Phil Pilalas, a content strategist specializing in empowering subject matter experts, discusses the challenges of getting buy-in from those who aren't used to being on camera. He emphasizes the importance of generating passion and confidence in SMEs, and suggests recording in comfortable settings to capture genuine conversations. Phil highlights the effectiveness of simple content over heavily produced pieces and shares strategies for aligning SME personalities with appropriate marketing stages. He also notes that even minimal time investment can yield impactful content.
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insights INSIGHT
Buy-In Starts With Passion And Confidence
Buy-in comes from generating passion and giving confidence to subject matter experts.
Present the content in a platform and format that makes SMEs feel capable and safe.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Record SMEs Where They’re Comfortable
Find the natural venue where the SME already opens up and record there.
Help facilitate the conversation rather than forcing a staged presentation.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Keep SMEs In Control With Clear Approval
Give SMEs a strong review and approval process so nothing surprises them.
Set clear expectations about how content will look, sound, and be used before recording.
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Subject matter experts are often scientists, coders, founders, or salespeople who never planned to live on camera or spend their days writing, yet the revenue team still needs their stories. On Scrappy ABM, host Mason Cosby and Phil Pilalas, content strategist at Scrappy ABM, get practical about how to create content with people who don’t think of themselves as “content people.”
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Phil walks through how to get buy-in by generating passion and giving confidence, starting from an environment that already feels natural to the founder or SME. They talk about simple ways to record real conversations, give SMEs a strong hand in review, and place each piece of content at the right point in the progression model. From faces associated with brands to “something is better than nothing,” this conversation shows how 30 minutes a week or an hour a month can turn SME time into subject matter expert content that actually moves accounts forward.
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👤 Guest Bio
Phil Pilalas is a content strategist at Scrappy ABM who helps subject matter experts document why they do the thing, why they want to do the thing, and why it matters. He produces podcasts, creates micro content, and supports social media so ideas are presented in an efficient, confident way. Phil focuses on giving founders and SMEs a natural venue to talk, helping them feel comfortable on camera, and building a regular cadence of subject matter expert content. He is pretty regular on LinkedIn and points people there to find him.
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📌 What We Cover
Why getting buy-in from subject matter experts is “a big deal,” and why it starts with generating passion and giving confidence around a specific problem, product, or solution.
How to find the natural setting where a founder or SME already opens up—one-on-one, a small room, or a simple back-and-forth—and then figure out how to record it without throwing them onstage before they’re ready.
The role of clear expectations: what the content will look like, how it will sound, the purpose of it, and how a strong approval process keeps SMEs from being surprised when someone says, “Hey, I saw you on LinkedIn.”
Expectation versus reality in content quality, and why “a couple of people sitting in an office having a conversation” is often good enough compared to heavily produced, studio-style content.
How SME content fits in an account progression model: founder energy at the top of the funnel, technical depth and numbers at the lower, more meaningful engagement parts of the progression.
Why it matters to have faces associated with brands—because there is no building sitting on a Zoom call, only human beings with eyes, words, and passion about the problem they want to solve.
Practical time expectations: 30 minutes a week or an hour a month of recording can fuel a full month of micro content when paired with production, outlines, and a focused theme.
Messy but real ways to communicate success: podcast growth, opportunities where people say they heard the show, DMs from peers, and correlations between regular SME content, engagement, and pipeline.
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Resources:
Phil Pilalas on LinkedIn: Phil is pretty regular on LinkedIn; he tells listeners to look for “Phil plus Scrappy ABM” to find him and connect around subject matter expert content and podcasts.
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