# Kellie de Leon

Kellie de Leon works in B2B content marketing. De Leon's posts focus on creating useful, buyer-centered content and thought leadership, and on making original research and creative campaigns matter to business results.

- Profile: https://b2binfluencer.marketing/creators/kellie-de-leon/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelliedeleon
- Topics: artificial-intelligence, leadership, b2b-marketing, content-marketing
- Based on 11 dated posts, latest 2026-10-07

## Summary

Kellie de Leon helps B2B brands make buyer-centered content and thought leadership that matters to business results.

- Best for: B2B enterprise software providers moving beyond basic lead magnets and activity metrics.
- Not for: Early-stage consumer-focused agencies seeking viral, high-volume social content for quick engagement.
- Check first: Confirm your campaign fits B2B enterprise software and buyer-centered content goals.

### Takeaways

- A polished direct-mail campaign failed while a story-driven video helped close large deals.
- Buyer focus means listening to sales and customer-success conversations and testing drafts for jargon.
- Thought leadership needs an informed perspective that helps readers see an issue differently.

## Main ideas

- **Prioritizing meaningful content over creative flash**: De Leon argues that marketing success hinges on substance, not merely on being impressive or clever. They value creative storytelling but stress that “sizzle” (exciting design, compelling narrative) should serve a buyer’s need and help position the brand as a market leader, not simply win internal team approval.
- **Content strategy must focus on buyer value, not AI trends**: They counter the trend of optimizing content solely for AI algorithms. De Leon argues that content strategy should instead make a brand a helpful, honest resource in its industry. AI amplifies what already exists, so truly helpful, authentic content will naturally reach its ideal customers.
- **Defining true thought leadership**: De Leon distinguishes content marketing from thought leadership. True thought leadership combines “Thought” (insightful, informed or educational perspectives that demand expertise) with “Leadership” (unique perspectives that anticipate future trends or offer a contrarian view).
- **Shifting focus from internal promotion to external listening**: To keep marketing from feeling like an “annoying party guest”—self-centered self-promotion—they suggest adopting external perspectives. This includes using the “Watering Hole” strategy to monitor industry newsletters and subreddits, and drawing on feedback from sales and customer success teams to identify genuine buyer pain points.

## Work to read

- [Your content strategy shouldn't be about tricking AI into mentioning you.](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kelliedeleon_your-content-strategy-shouldnt-be-about-activity-7376962022988738561-bRN5)
- [Is your marketing the party guest everyone avoids?](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kelliedeleon_is-your-marketing-the-party-guest-everyone-activity-7399132009174040576-v1wg)
- [Not all sizzle translates to steak.](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kelliedeleon_not-all-sizzle-translates-to-steak-early-activity-7416538539305152512-5Emw)
- [Content marketing and thought leadership are not synonymous.](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kelliedeleon_contentmarketing-thoughtleadership-b2bmarketing-activity-7092111733581852674-cZCb)

## Partnerships

Kellie de Leon specializes in strategic B2B marketing, distinguishing flashy content from meaningful, buyer-centric results. They advocate moving content strategy beyond mere 'sizzle' and 'activity' toward genuine value and impactful thought leadership, using original research, a clear definition of thought leadership (insight + unique perspective), and modern tools like AI to refine strategy and ensure its practical application for business results.

## Alternatives

- Becky Lawlor: Becky Lawlor is the stronger choice when the main problem is proving content’s business impact and tying marketing work to Sales. The available posts focus on research showing that teams that consistently demonstrate impact are far more likely to have Sales use their content frequently. They measure Sales-reported influence, Sales usage, and deal velocity or win rate. If the B2B SaaS company needs a research program that produces a flagship report, proprietary data, PR hooks, and Sales enablement material—and wants a partner who starts with Sales alignment and measurement—Lawlor fits that brief better than de Leon.
- Janefrances Christopher: Janefrances Christopher is a better fit when an early-stage or solo-founder-led B2B SaaS business needs to acquire clients directly through LinkedIn commenting and personal-brand growth, rather than build an organizational content marketing and thought leadership program. The five-step commenting strategy targets specific founder groups, engages on their posts, and uses value-add comments to attract leads. The security post shows an awareness-first approach for people building in public.
- Zach Murphy: Zach Murphy is the better choice when the central problem is late-stage buyer friction and marketing’s strategic position in the business. Murphy argues that marketing teams are good at generating interest but poor at helping buyers make a decision, and that internal friction—CFO justification, legal review, prior failed pilots, contract lock-in—kills more deals than competitors. Murphy reframes the task as selling to situations rather than funnel stages and positions marketing as a growth engine that translates activity into business outcomes. If the B2B SaaS company needs a GTM and demand-strategy shift, Murphy fits that brief better.

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AI-assisted summary of public posts. Audience demographics are not available. Engagement appears only where we checked recent posts. Method: https://b2binfluencer.marketing/methodology/