The Marketing Millennials – Ep. 363

“The Secret to Building Great B2B Content with Adam McQueen, Director of Product Marketing and Content at Klue”
Guest Host: Tamara Gorminski (Founder, PMM Camp; Product Marketing Leader)
Guest: Adam McQueen (Director of Product Marketing and Content, Klue)
Release Date: November 5, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode delves into how B2B brands can break free from traditional, often boring, content approaches and embrace a “media company” mindset. Guest host Tamara Gorminski interviews Adam McQueen from Klue, exploring the origins and strategy behind Klue’s in-house media arm, Compete Network. The conversation covers why and how B2B brands should act like media producers, how to tie engaging content to strategic business narratives, the realities of producing creative work with limited resources, and practical steps for marketers wanting to build their brand’s own media presence—regardless of budget or headcount.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Origin Story of Klue’s Compete Network

• Early Observations: Adam notes that even four to five years ago, B2B content was mostly forgettable. However, a shift was emerging as individual voices and influencers began gaining traction on LinkedIn (03:14–06:02).
• Spark for Change: Klue’s approach started with a simple question: How can we consolidate valuable content and thought leadership into one place for product marketers? The team then began building media capabilities in-house.
• Adam’s Media Philosophy:

  “My belief was… to build the plumbing and produce stuff on the backend, be experts in all that, so talent… just has to do what they're best at—subject matter expertise, personality, creating the content—and we would handle the rest.” (04:50)

2. The Shift from Brand-Centric to Personality-Driven Content

• Both Adam and Tamara agree: people increasingly follow people, not brands. Adam reflects on his own consumption habits and challenges B2B marketers to think similarly (06:02–07:35).
• Notable Quote:

  “Am I following brands or am I following a person? It’s like, oh, I follow this person… it’s important when you’re doing marketing to just step out—what are my own consumption habits?” – Adam (06:29)

3. Building an In-House Media Arm: What it Means

• Defining ‘Media Property’: Klue’s properties have included podcasts, newsletters, video series, and collaborations with creators. The strategy evolved over time, from a single podcast to comprehensive video-first production.
  • Key takeaway: "Media network doesn’t mean you need to go traditional. It’s just creating unique content that resonates and meets your audience where they are.” – Adam (09:41)
• What Adam Would Do Differently: More focused property selection, ensuring content is placed where the audience already gathers (07:35–10:28).

4. Finding the Sweet Spot: Entertainment + Product Narrative

• The Challenge: B2B content tends to swing between being dry/educational and entertaining-yet-unrelated; the goal is content that’s both strategic and fun.
• Strategic Creativity: Creativity flourishes within boundaries. Adam insists creative content needs guardrails—“tight messaging gives you the box to play in”—and entertainment must be contextually relevant (11:17–13:14).

5. Case Study: The “Ready For Launch” Show

• Concept: Three product marketers compete, bringing examples and debating best launches, all wrapped in an engaging, competitive format.
  • Klue’s criteria for collaborating with creators: content quality, relationship, and relevant audience (“not just follower count, but is the right audience engaging?”).
• Distribution Innovation: Beyond standard channels, the show features a feedback loop where the audience votes for the best segment, driving LinkedIn engagement and incorporating user feedback (14:17–20:29).
• Notable Quote:

  “We created a feedback loop with our audience. It was a coordinated brand and creator effort… and we got a lot of engagement that way.” – Tamara (19:15)

6. Distribution and Plumbing: Why it Matters

• Building Systems: Adam emphasizes the importance of operational ‘plumbing’—having a repeatable playbook for recording, editing, distribution. This allows limited teams to focus on creativity.
• Pre-record and Bank Episodes: “Pre-record everything before announcing to the world… nothing stunts content quality more than being on the hamster wheel.” (23:23)
• Branding: Visual and experiential branding is a differentiator—even lean teams can outsource technical parts, like editing, to contractors (23:23–26:21).

7. Starting Small: Advice for Lean Teams or Solopreneurs

• Focus on Your Strengths:

  “If you are a natural writer, don’t jump to video right away. If you love video and multimedia, invest in that first.” – Tamara (26:21)

• Entertainment ≠ Only Humor:

  “It doesn’t just need to be funny. What’s the thing that really revs your engine? Share that and it will resonate.” – Adam (27:04)

8. Proving ROI and Winning Leadership Buy-In

• How to Pitch Media Investments:
  1. Show the end vision: pull examples of top-tier content in your desired format (29:15).
  2. Tie it clearly to company/product strategic narrative—ensure content aligns with larger goals.
  3. Collect qualitative proof: Adam’s “trophy room” technique—screenshots of social shares, DM’s, Gong calls, and customer feedback—demonstrates impact (29:15–32:13).
• Notable Advice:

  “Pull those screenshots, that story together… that’s more than enough. You can bring that to a single place and have less questions about what’s the ROI.” – Adam (31:18)

9. Final Lightning Round: Adam’s Marketing Hill to Die On (32:54)

• “Less is more.”

  “You balloon and do too much, and then you’re doing a lot of stuff superficially and mediocre… If you anchor on one or two things, I guarantee the quality will be better.” (32:54–34:20)

Timestamps for Notable Segments

• 03:14 – The spark and shift to in-house media at Klue
• 06:02 – The rise of LinkedIn creators and following individuals vs. brands
• 08:28 – Defining a “media property” and initial steps
• 11:17 – Balancing entertainment and product narrative: “the sweet spot”
• 14:17 – Case study: Ready for Launch show and collaboration criteria
• 19:15 – Innovative distribution/engagement via LinkedIn voting and feedback
• 23:23 – Team structure and operational ‘plumbing’ for content
• 26:21 – Lean team advice: zone of genius, authentic entertainment
• 29:15 – Proving ROI to stakeholders (“trophy room”)
• 32:54 – Adam’s marketing hill to die on: “Less is more”

Memorable Quotes

• Adam:

  "My belief was being able to build the plumbing and produce the stuff on the back end… so talent… just has to do what they're best at… creating the content and that we would handle all the rest." (04:50)
  "I always like creativity… you need to be put in a box before you can be creative." (12:07)
  “Entertainment doesn’t just need to be funny… what really revs your engine, share that and it will resonate.” (27:04)
  “Less is more… anchor on one or two things that you really focus on, and the quality will be better.” (32:54)

• Tamara:

  "If you are a natural writer, don't jump to video right away. Or if you love video and you love multimedia, invest in that before you think about writing long form." (26:21)
  “We created a feedback loop with our audience… and we got a lot of engagement that way.” (19:15)

Takeaways for Listeners

• Start with Where Your Audience Is: Don’t default to content types everyone else is using; fit medium and distribution to your target.
• Be Strategic: Always link creative content to broader company/product narrative.
• Focus: Do a few things really well, rather than stretching your team thin.
• Operationalize: Systemize production and distribution, so you have bandwidth for creativity.
• Show Impact: Capture and communicate qualitative wins to build stakeholder support.

Where to Find Adam & Klue’s Content

• LinkedIn: Adam McQueen
• Compete Network: Competenetwork.com (All Klue’s media properties and showcases)
• YouTube: Klue’s channel for video content

This episode is a must-listen for B2B marketers looking to transform their brand’s approach to content, regardless of team size or budget, and for anyone eager to see B2B marketing that actually entertains, educates, and advances strategic business goals.