Episode
Thought Leaders, Influencers and Advocates | Introducing the B2B Matrix of Influence
- Podcast
- Trust & Influence in B2B
- Published
- Feb 25, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 2040
- Processing state
not_requested- Canonical source
- https://joelharrison1.wpenginepowered.com/draft-episode-ep-47
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Summary
In this episode of Trust and Influence in B2B Marketing, Joel Harrison sits down with Katy Howell, Founder and CEO of Immediate Future, a social media agency she has led since 2004. Together, they tackle one of B2B marketing's most persistent blind spots: the difference between thought leaders, influencers, and advocates — and what happens when brands get it wrong. Are you unknowingly leaving your most powerful trust-building channels completely unused? ➡️ Katy brings deep, practical experience in influencer strategy and pulls no punches. She and Joel explore why B2B marketers default to treating influence like a media buy — focused on reach and clicks — rather than asking how each persona actually shapes buyer decisions and builds lasting credibility. Joel also introduces his new B2B Matrix of Influence, built from analysis of over a thousand B2B marketing awards entries, mapping five distinct trust personas and how they should be deployed. They dig into why customer advocates are used in just 11% of campaigns, why employee advocates are chronically undervalued, and how brands can stop over-controlling the very people they need to trust them. Katy's closing soundbite says it all: influence is not a content tactic — it's a trust system. If you want to rethink how your brand earns credibility in a world drowning in AI-generated content, this episode is essential listening. Chapters: 00:00 - Introduction to the B2B Matrix of Influence 01:02 - Why Marketers Confuse Thought Leaders, Influencers & Advocates 02:09 - Treating Influence Like a Media Plan: The Problem 04:21 - Why the Trust Problem Has Gotten Worse 06:47 - Internal vs. External Voices: Understanding the Difference 09:04 - The Jazz Metaphor: Giving People Freedom Within a Framework 12:37 - Research Findings:…