The Expert with a Thousand Faces: How to Guide Your Firm’s Heroes to Marketing Glory

Years before I became a professional marketer, my head was filled with stories. As a recent graduate with a philosophy and religion degree, I spent my early twenties consuming creative writing, mythology, and the timeless principles of narrative. I was fascinated by how stories shape our understanding of the world, and few thinkers captured this better than Joseph Campbell. His work, particularly The Hero with a Thousand Faces, revealed a universal pattern in myths—a “monomyth”—that described the hero’s transformative journey from the ordinary world to a new, special one and back again.

What I didn’t know then was that this framework would become the single most powerful lens through which to view one of professional services marketing’s greatest challenges: getting your company’s subject matter experts (SMEs) to participate in marketing.

We often think of marketing as our responsibility alone. But the most impactful professional services marketing today is a heroic quest, and your firm’s experts are the reluctant heroes.

Let’s explore this hero’s journey deeper and identify our role in the story.

The Dilemma at the Heart of the Ordinary World

The “Ordinary World” of a professional services firm is defined by a clear, powerful rhythm: billable work and business development. Your engineers are designing, your consultants are strategizing, or your lawyers are litigating. It’s a world of deadlines, client demands, and the constant hum of productivity.

In this world, a marketer’s call to action—to write a blog post, record a video, or network more on LinkedIn—is often met with a “Refusal of the Call.” It’s not that your experts don’t believe in the value of marketing. It’s that they are facing a profound dilemma. The time spent on marketing feels like it comes directly at the expense of their billable work.

They see marketing not as an integral part of their career, but as an extra chore—homework to be squeezed in around their “real” work. They feel a legitimate tension between serving the client they have today and trying to attract the client they need tomorrow. The dilemma is real, and it’s why a simple request for a 800-word blog post can be met with crickets.

As marketers, we can’t simply push harder. We can’t get frustrated with a hero who is rightfully concerned about their responsibilities. Our role isn’t to force them to cross the threshold into our “Special World” of marketing. Our role is to be their guide. We are the mentor who helps them see that the journey isn’t a distraction, but a vital part of their transformation.

The Marketer as Mentor

In Campbell’s work, the hero always meets a mentor who provides wisdom and equips them for the journey ahead. For us, this means shifting our approach from demanding participation to guiding perspective. This is a critical step because a guide doesn’t command; they show the path forward.

Our first task is to understand our heroes. What are their unique motivations? What are their career ambitions? What kind of clients do they love working with? What do they genuinely want to be known for? Like Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, the relationship is built on trust and a shared understanding of the goal. The goal isn’t just to “do marketing”; it’s to build a reputation, attract better opportunities, and grow their personal brand—which, in turn, grows the firm’s brand.

Once you understand their passions and ambitions, you can tailor your marketing requests to align with their deepest desires. Instead of asking for a generic blog post on a topic, you might say to them: “I know you’re passionate about the future of AI in manufacturing. I have an idea for an article that could position you as a thought leader on that topic. Would you be open to a 30-minute chat to discuss your unique insights?” This approach demonstrates that you’ve listened and you respect their expertise. It makes the task feel less like a chore and more like a strategic step on their personal and professional journey.

Making the Expert Journey Efficient

A hero’s journey is a dangerous, time-consuming quest. A mentor’s job is to make that journey as efficient as possible. This is where our responsibility as marketers moves from changing people’s minds to clearing the path forward. The goal is to make it so easy for our experts to participate that the “Refusal of the Call” is replaced with an enthusiastic “let’s do this.”

This is where the principles of a modern, efficient marketing engine come into play. We must do everything in our power to reduce the effort required from our subject matter experts.

• Become the Content Engine: Don’t ask your experts to write a full blog post from scratch. Instead, schedule a 30-minute interview and record it. Use that conversation as the source material. You can then work with professional writers, AI tools, or both to turn their spoken insights into a polished article, complete with an engaging headline and supporting visuals.
• Streamline the Process: The hero needs an effective “talisman” or “weapon” to help them on their quest. For us, this is a clear, repeatable process. Once the article is drafted, the expert’s role becomes simple—review, edit, and polish. This cuts down their time commitment dramatically.
• Build the Promotion Machine: The hero’s return is only celebrated if the community knows what they’ve accomplished. It’s our job as the guide to ensure their content gets the visibility it deserves. For instance, use the blog post to create a series of LinkedIn updates, an internal newsletter mention, and a clip for social media. The expert’s only job is to provide the initial content and be ready to engage with the praise and questions that follow.

This approach isn’t just about making things easier; it’s about respecting an expert’s time and billable responsibilities. It’s the difference between asking them to single-handedly slay a dragon and handing them a sword, a shield, map, and logistical support.

The Return with the Elixir

In Campbell’s framework, the hero’s journey culminates in a “Return with the Elixir.” The hero comes back to the Ordinary World, transformed by their experience, and they bring with them a treasure—a new tool, a new wisdom, or a new perspective—that benefits their community.

For a subject matter expert, the “elixir” is their reputation as a Visible Expert. They return to the Ordinary World of their practice, but they are no longer just an engineer or a consultant. They are a thought leader. The marketing journey we guided them through has become a gravitational force, pulling in new opportunities, strengthening client relationships, and establishing their authority in the marketplace.

When you can show your experts the direct return on their investment—a new lead who mentions an article the expert wrote, a speaking invitation they received because of their public profile, or a client who says, “I already feel like I know you because of your videos”—they have successfully completed the journey. You have helped them transform their perspective and see marketing not as a chore, but as the heroic quest it truly is.

So, the next time you need to engage your team, don’t think of your experts as obstacles to overcome. See them instead as the heroes of your firm’s story. Your job is not to write their journey for them, but to provide the guidance, tools, and perspective they need to embark on a quest that will ultimately lead to glory for them and for your firm.