In this episode of Front Lines Marketing, we speak with Tara Bartley, Vice President of Marketing at REsurety, a provider of data, software and services to the clean energy economy. As the first dedicated marketing hire at the 65-person company, Tara built REsurety's entire marketing function from the ground up over nearly four years. Her journey from implementing basic marketing automation to developing sophisticated content multiplication strategies offers a masterclass in resource-efficient B2B marketing for fast-growing tech companies.
Topics...
In this episode of Front Lines Marketing, we speak with Tara Bartley, Vice President of Marketing at REsurety, a provider of data, software and services to the clean energy economy. As the first dedicated marketing hire at the 65-person company, Tara built REsurety's entire marketing function from the ground up over nearly four years. Her journey from implementing basic marketing automation to developing sophisticated content multiplication strategies offers a masterclass in resource-efficient B2B marketing for fast-growing tech companies.
Topics Discussed:
- Building marketing infrastructure and tech stack from zero at a growing company
- Content multiplication philosophy: extracting maximum value from limited resources
- LinkedIn strategy evolution and the shift from company to executive posting
- Email marketing challenges and the move toward personalized communication
- Measuring PR effectiveness and building relationships with specialized agencies
- Team building philosophy focused on leveraging individual strengths rather than fixing weaknesses
Tactical Lessons For B2B Tech Marketers:
- Master Content Multiplication at Scale: Rather than constantly creating new content, systematically extract maximum value from each piece. Tara's philosophy involves taking one expert-created asset (like a white paper from a subject matter expert) and transforming it into five different formats: infographics, LinkedIn posts, one-page briefs, webinar content, and email campaigns. This approach is particularly critical for resource-constrained teams where pulling technical experts away from their core work is expensive.
- Prioritize LinkedIn Executive Content Over Company Pages: The data is clear - executive posts significantly outperform company page content on LinkedIn. People follow people, not brands. Tara's team saw measurable engagement differences when their CEO Lee Taylor posted versus the company account. The strategy involves at least three posts per week, team amplification through likes and shares, and strategic use of LinkedIn's promotion feature ($140 can generate 12,500+ impressions with strong ROI).
- Avoid Arbitrary Marketing KPIs That Drive Mediocre Content: One of the most damaging practices in B2B marketing is setting calendar-based content schedules (monthly newsletters, weekly blog posts) without considering value delivery. Tara deliberately avoids sending newsletters just to hit a KPI, instead focusing on meaningful content that prevents subscriber fatigue and maintains engagement quality. This approach requires defending marketing strategy against internal pressure for consistency metrics.
- Implement Strength-Based Team Building Using CliftonStrengths: Rather than trying to make team members well-rounded, identify their natural strengths and push them deeper into those areas. Tara uses CliftonStrengths assessments to understand her team's natural abilities - for example, her top strength of "winning others over" becomes a strategic advantage in client-facing marketing activities. Watch for tasks that consistently get pushed to the back burner as signals of misaligned responsibilities.
- Establish Marketing as Strategy, Not Concierge Service: The most critical mindset shift for marketing leaders is refusing to drop everything for every random suggestion. As Tara learned from Akamai CMO Kim Salem-Jackson: "Marketing is not a concierge service." Successful marketing requires staying focused on planned strategy while maintaining flexibility for genuine pivots based on customer needs, not internal whims or competitor reactions.
- Measure PR Through Multiple Value Streams: Public relations measurement goes beyond traditional media placements. Track earned media placements, blog post contributions, interview assistance, script development, and strategic guidance. Tara measures not just the three earned media placements her PR firm secured, but also their contributions to four blog posts and interview preparation support. This comprehensive measurement approach justifies PR investment and optimizes agency relationships.
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Sponsors:
Front Lines — We help B2B tech companies launch, manage, and grow podcasts that drive demand, awareness, and thought leadership.
www.FrontLines.io
The Global Talent Co. — We help tech startups find, vet, hire, pay, and retain amazing marketing talent that costs 50-70% less than the US & Europe.
www.GlobalTalent.co
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