Three episodes in, you will be willing to die for Ser Duncan the Tall and Egg. No backstory required. No sprawling lore to decode. Just a knight who may not even be a knight, a boy who follows him anyway, and storytelling so elemental it hits like a gut punch.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms works because it does what most B2B content refuses to do: it puts the human at the center, leaves you wanting more, and trusts the oldest storytelling mechanics in the world. In this episode, we dig into what that means for marketers with our special guest Tara Corey, SVP of Marketing at Optimizely.

Together, we unpack why the best content finds the friction point in a story rather than avoiding it, why you should be the biographer and not the subject, and what Optimizely's upcoming rebrand taught Tara about bravery and standing out from the B2B sea of sameness.

About our guest, Tara Corey
Tara Corey is SVP of Marketing at Optimizely, where she leads brand, content, and the company's upcoming rebrand. With over 20 years in marketing, she's known for building editorial-driven content strategies, championing authentic human storytelling, and running toward the hard moments — in her career and her content. She's a passionate believer in community, mentorship, and the idea that bravery isn't optional.

What B2B Marketers Can Learn From A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms:

Put the human at the heart of the story — then leave them wanting more. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms doesn't try to tell you everything at once. It earns your investment in two characters and then trusts that investment to carry you through. Tara connects this directly to how B2B content fails: "Creating content has never been easier than it is right now with AI. But creating quality content that truly has that art of storytelling and a truly human-connected story — I think that's harder and harder to stand out and do well." Fewer things, done better, is the whole strategy.

Be the biographer, not the subject. Most origin stories are boring because the subject tells them. The interesting version requires someone who knows which parts actually matter. Ian's challenge for B2B marketers: "Volunteer to be the biographer. Don't let someone else tell their own story. Tell their story in a way that you think is interesting." That means getting in person, asking the follow-up questions people skip, and hunting for the moment of friction — the "no kidding, there I was" — where everything shifted.

Find the elemental story hiding in your B2B content. Betrayal. Honor. Trust broken and rebuilt. These mechanics work because they've always worked. Ian ties them directly to the world every marketer lives in: "How many of us have been there when it's like, 'You said you were gonna promote me. You said you were gonna do this. Why did you never do it?' — that's so elemental. And yet we just don't put it in B2B marketing, even though it's all around us." The richest stories aren't in the product. They're in the people.

 "Bravery isn't optional. There's fear, there's excitement — but we've got to be brave, try not to be afraid, and be excited about what's possible. And also try to balance that with the simplicity of a great story and that human connection."
— Tara Corey

Links
Connect with Tara on LinkedIn
Learn more about Optimizely

About Remarkable!
Remarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both nonfiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering — The Business Thriller — Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com.

In today's episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios) and Meredith Gooderham (Head of Production). Remarkable was produced this week by Jess Avellino, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is "Solomon" by FALAK.

Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.