What’s Working Right Now in B2B Marketing - Live from Drive 2025 with Sylvia LePoidevin, Trinity Nguyen, and Natalie Taylor
Timestamps are as accurate as they can be but may be slightly off. We encourage you to listen to the full context.
Podcast Summary
This episode features a live panel from Drive 2025 with three accomplished B2B marketing leaders: Trinity Nguyen (CMO, UserGems), Natalie Taylor (Head of Marketing, Capsule), and Sylvia LePoidevin (CMO, Kandji). (03:46) The discussion focuses on what's actually working in B2B marketing right now, moving beyond strategy to practical execution.
- Main themes include events as pipeline drivers, AI-powered outbound that still converts, building media properties that LLMs cite, and the tactics these leaders have stopped doing (like generic webinars and thought leadership virtual events)
Speakers
Trinity Nguyen
CMO at UserGems, an AI solution for sales and marketing that helps capture buying signals and convert them into pipeline. She leads a lean team of three marketers plus consultants and an SDR team, having been the first business hire at the company six years ago.
Natalie Taylor
Head of Marketing at Capsule, a Series A video editing software company for enterprise brands. She leads a small but growing team, notably hiring an events specialist as her first marketing hire who previously worked at 11 Madison Park and Calendly.
Sylvia LePoidevin
CMO at Kandji, which manages Apple devices for companies in the IT and cybersecurity space. She leads a team of 13 people total with a core marketing team of 5, at a company approaching 300 employees in growth mode.
Key Takeaways
Events Drive Pipeline When Done Strategically
Natalie Taylor revealed that events have become Capsule's runaway successful channel, but success requires strategic execution. (05:49) The key is having a very focused ICP, thoughtful prospect selection, and structuring events around peer networking at cool restaurants with interesting topics. Most importantly, it's a full go-to-market effort involving customer and prospect invitation strategy, targeted account planning, and a comprehensive follow-up plan where AEs are assigned and conversion strategies are mapped out. By the end of these dinners, at least half the attendees typically want to continue conversations and book demos.
Hire for Roles You've Already Mastered
A critical insight emerged about hiring: every marketing leader's best hires came in areas where they had personally done the work first. (08:15) Natalie's success with her events hire worked because she had personally run all the events, understood what good looks like, and could identify the perfect background - someone with high-end hospitality experience (11 Madison Park) plus tech sales understanding (top CS rep at Calendly). This principle applies across marketing functions - hire for roles you understand deeply, not ones you think you need.
Outbound Still Works With Proper Signal-Based Targeting
Trinity Nguyen demonstrated that despite claims that "outbound is dead," it works exceptionally well when executed properly. (09:52) UserGems targets 600 accounts monthly using a combination of company-level and contact-level signals, ranking accounts by over 100 data points. The messaging that converts combines multiple signals: congratulating on role changes, referencing past relationships, and mentioning specific company challenges. When reps make calls, they have clear reasons and context, which dramatically improves success rates compared to generic outreach.
Build Media Properties That LLMs Actually Cite
Sylvia LePoidevin shared how Kandji created "The Sequence," a media property on its own domain that's being heavily cited by LLMs. (14:45) By putting high-quality content on thesequence.com rather than their company blog, LLMs treat it as an external source worth citing. Recent data shows 17% of website visitors found them through LLM search, with The Sequence frequently appearing in ChatGPT's source links. The content includes editorial pieces, demo day recaps, and various content streams, all designed to be genuinely valuable rather than promotional.
Align the Entire Go-to-Market Team Around Revenue
Successful marketing requires full go-to-market alignment, not siloed departments. (33:10) This means weekly company-wide wins sharing, sprint meetings where all teams align on priorities, and marketers deeply understanding sales compensation plans and processes. Marketing leaders should know exactly how sales reps get deals done, their incentive structures, and operational workflows. This alignment enables events to become true revenue-generating machines and ensures all marketing efforts support the sales process effectively.
Statistics & Facts
- UserGems targets 600 accounts every single month using one-on-one outbound, with accounts ranked by over 100 data points to prioritize outreach efforts. (10:45)
- 17% of Kandji's website visitors reported finding them through LLM search engines like ChatGPT, according to their recent "how did you hear about us" survey. (15:41)
- Kandji's demo day webinars attract 400-500 attendees and generate 200-300 questions, despite being straightforward product demonstrations rather than thought leadership content. (17:35)
