How to Build a Personal Brand That Actually Drives Business Results [+ Video]

Stop everything!

Before you write another thought-leadership post about synergistic solutions and paradigm shifts, ask yourself this: When was the last time you genuinely enjoyed reading B2B marketing content? Or corporate communication made you feel something other than the urge to scroll past?

The truth is that most B2B marketing has become a wasteland of buzzwords and bland messaging that even the writers don't believe in. And it’s not just me who thinks this. Some of the leading marketing geniuses do, too. 

In a world where LinkedIn reach is dropping faster than your New Year's resolutions, Sara Stella Lattanzio has cracked the code to B2B marketing success. As Switzerland's top LinkedIn influencer and Head of Marketing at Stryber, she's mastered the art of making enterprise clients laugh while they're reaching for their wallets. Her philosophy on a “T-shaped marketer” is something you’d want to know. 

In this candid conversation, she shares how personal branding can transform your company's marketing, why no platform is overrated, and the one B2B rule that desperately needs to die.

This interview is part of G2’s Industry Insights series.  Discover more game-changing insights on Learn. 

To watch the full interview, check out the video below:

Inside the industry with Sara Stella  Lattanzio

You are among Switzerland's top LinkedIn influencers. How does your personal branding experience influence your approach as an in-house B2B marketing leader?

I've definitely developed a bias toward LinkedIn because it works so well for me. There's always the tendency to use it as a silver bullet. On the other hand, it's clear that for B2B companies — especially where I work now at a service provider for innovation and corporate growth — there's a big overlap. It's a very relevant channel.

It has influenced me because I've seen the power of consistently pushing out content that resonates with your audience and what it can lead to. I try to pass on this mindset within the company. 

What's different when you're an in-house person versus a creator or thought leader is that in B2B, there's often a gap between the content someone produces and the knowledge the expert has. The real struggle is bringing those two parties together, where marketing needs to create content with the experts' knowledge flowing in.

What's your perspective on the role of personal branding for marketing leaders in B2B spaces? And has your own personal brand influenced your company's marketing success? 

My company, Stryber, doesn't sell to marketers, so obviously, if we had a product or service for marketers, it would be a complete audience fit because I'd be the expert marketing to marketers. In my case, my personal brand has an indirect effect.

I was able to bring Stryber in front of a larger audience. Every time I joined podcasts or documented my role as head of marketing, you could see the impact on website traffic, LinkedIn page subscribers, and even people who decided to apply because they saw how enthusiastic I was about the company and role.

Another indirect benefit is the knowledge I've transferred to my team regarding personal branding and writing on LinkedIn. Some of them started creating their own posts and being more consistent, which is very nice to see.

Do you think leaders today should have a strong social media presence? 

I don't think everyone needs to be on social media or famous. Not everyone needs to create content for the sake of content. Today, it's easy to whip up a post with ChatGPT.

The real questions are: Do you like it? 

Doing it for a week is one thing, but doing it like me for four and a half years means I've had to say no to other things to make this happen. You really need drive and passion for communicating. You need passion for connecting with audiences and making yourself a little vulnerable. Every time you launch a message publicly, you need to be very aware of how, when, and what you communicate. If the answer to any of these is no, then opting for other modes of marketing or hiring someone to manage your social media is a wise choice. 

On your website, you describe yourself as a "T-shaped marketer". Can you talk about that a little? How does this approach enable more creative or unconventional B2B marketing strategies compared to traditional roles?

This question comes at a perfect time because I just collaborated on a study about the full-stack marketer. Especially with AI, this role is super important.

A T-shaped or full-stack marketer has a broad understanding of all marketing disciplines but is specialized in one area. For me, that's content, but I've worn many hats — paid distribution, strategy, content, and events. My biggest skill is understanding business strategy and immediately knowing how to translate it into marketing, thinking about all the channels that make the strategy happen. This is more important than ever because if your marketing activities aren't connected, it's time-consuming and inefficient. You end up thinking about single initiatives separately rather than as part of a cohesive strategy. With AI tools now available, execution becomes easier, so this strategic thinking becomes even more valuable.

Many B2B marketers focus primarily on lead generation. What's your philosophy on balancing short-term demand generation with long-term brand building in B2B?

It's important to understand marketing's role, which depends on the company structure and business model. Some companies have shorter sales cycles of a few months. Others have cycles spanning years. Your marketing strategy needs to match this reality.

If a company has a year-long sales cycle and you think pushing out a post or webinar will generate immediate leads, you're disconnected from business reality. You might get a few leads, but people will quickly realize it doesn't work.

You need to build the journey to long-term results day after day.

 Sara Lattanzio
Head of Marketing at Stryber

If you can explain exactly how short-term tactics lead to the bigger picture, you win. It's about setting expectations — short-term, this is what you'll see; long-term, this is what you'll see.

Brand building is abstract and hard to measure, but we know that brands with strong reputations like G2 see their short-term tactics succeed more often. You need both, and you need to be good at managing expectations.

In one of your recent LinkedIn posts, you address declining LinkedIn reach. What have you been observing, and how are you adjusting your strategy to the changing algorithm?

I've been on LinkedIn for over four years and seen quite a few shifts in formats, reach fluctuations, and seasonal changes. The reach has been steadily declining over the last two years.

I did an experiment about a year ago where I repurposed one of my highest-performing posts — a visual with a marketing graphic. The same post got 70% fewer impressions. However, the engagement rate in proportion to impressions was stable, which is what really matters.

This trend continued throughout this year. Richard Vanderbloom, the biggest LinkedIn expert, recently released his annual LinkedIn report with extensive data analysis. He confirms that reach has declined about 50% year-over-year, with at least 90% of creators seeing the same thing. But engagement remains stable.

Building an audience on LinkedIn today is much harder than when I started. What matters now is focusing less on vanity metrics and more on LinkedIn's interaction side — going to events, doing interviews like this one, organizing live events, or simply reaching out for coffee chats. That's how you build relationships, and there's a correlation between DM interactions and how much people see your posts.

It's about thinking of the whole ecosystem, not just creating content and posting. Impressions shouldn't be your golden metric.

 Sara Lattanzio
Head of Marketing at Stryber

Beyond LinkedIn, which other platforms do you see as undervalued for B2B marketing, and how should marketers adapt their approach for these channels?

I don't think any channel is completely underrated right now. There's no "LinkedIn five years ago" situation where it was just CVs, and different content would make you boom.

With content being super saturated due to AI, it's more about how you stand out. Marketing is like fashion — trends come back when something becomes too saturated. For example, online channels are very saturated, and people are fed up. They don't want to spend more hours on platforms after working eight hours at a laptop.

So, offline communities are making a comeback after being killed during COVID. You see this pendulum swing. Another trending platform is Substack, which mixes social platform features with email newsletters. It's simple, without a complex interface with 500 functions.

What's a marketing "rule" in the B2B services space that you believe is outdated and ready to be broken?

Many people still think that if you're selling to the C-suite or enterprise, you need to sound robotic and buttoned-up to be taken seriously. C-level executives are people, too. They use LinkedIn and social media, read newsletters, and maybe even laugh at memes, even if they don't tell anyone.

They want easy-to-consume content, even for business topics. Creating a 500-scroll-length technical blog post won't make them think your company is serious. They'll check out at the beginning.

Also, when you ask B2B companies about their target audience, they'll say "CMO, CFO, CDAT, board members." While I understand this thinking, B2B decisions aren't made by one person. They're made by committees. Even a middle manager or someone with three years of experience can initiate a purchasing decision and influence the entire process.

If you only target decision-makers with LinkedIn advertising and content, you're completely ignoring part of the decision-making process that can really make the difference.

Follow Sara Stella Lattanzio on LinkedIn to know more about B2B marketing, content marketing and everything in between. 

Edited by Supanna Das