Murder, Marketing, and Metrics: How Wellhub Turned a Fictional Podcast into a B2B Power Play
- Christopher Dean, VP, Content Marketing & Integrated Campaigns
- Content Strategy and Marketing, Customer Experience (CX), Lead Gen / Lead Mgmt, Strategy and Trends
What happens when you ditch the lead magnets, scrap the standard sales pitch, and tell your B2B audience a great story instead? If you’re Christopher Dean (also known as Dean), Vice President of Content Marketing & Integrated Campaigns at Wellhub, you might just end up with a podcast that racks up over 1.2 million downloads and opens doors across the marketing funnel.
The Martechify team recently sat down with Dean, who leads content marketing and integrated campaigns at Wellhub, a global employee wellness platform founded in Brazil. Our conversation took an unexpected and delightful turn into the world of entertainment as B2B strategy—highlighting the company’s bold, fictional podcast series, “Murder in HR.”
The Martechify team recently sat down with Dean, who leads content marketing and integrated campaigns at Wellhub, a global employee wellness platform founded in Brazil. Our conversation took an unexpected and delightful turn into the world of entertainment as B2B strategy—highlighting the company’s bold, fictional podcast series, “Murder in HR.”
Check out the full interview with Christopher Dean, where he shares how Wellhub turned a fictional podcast into a B2B marketing funnel. If you’re ready to ditch the lead magnets and scrap the standard sales pitch, this one’s for you.
From civil engineering to content strategy
Dean’s journey into marketing wasn’t linear. He started as a civil engineer, drawn to analytics and design. But after leading a rebranding initiative in his first job—while surrounded by engineers uninterested in branding—he discovered his passion for marketing.
“I had so much fun learning about brand identity and how it represents your culture and mission,” he shared. That experience led him back to school for an MBA and into a career that’s spanned print, SEO, video, and now audio content creation. Throughout, one thing has remained constant: a love for content that delivers value beyond the sale.
“I had so much fun learning about brand identity and how it represents your culture and mission,” he shared. That experience led him back to school for an MBA and into a career that’s spanned print, SEO, video, and now audio content creation. Throughout, one thing has remained constant: a love for content that delivers value beyond the sale.
Breaking the B2B mold with fictional podcasting
Wellhub’s “Murder in HR” is not your average B2B campaign. It’s a scripted, clue-style podcast featuring big-name talent like Brett Gelman, Kate Mara, Ben Schwartz, and Adam Devine, and produced by Caspian Studios With quirky humor and compelling storytelling, it brings levity to HR professionals—he brand’s core audience.
“HR teams deal with hard conversations all day,” Dean explained. “We wanted to give them something just for them—something that says, ‘We see you.’”
The podcast wasn’t wellness-focused, and that was intentional. Instead of pushing product features, the team prioritized brand affinity and entertainment. “There’s value in creating something that makes people feel good—and that helps them remember who you are,” Dean said.
“HR teams deal with hard conversations all day,” Dean explained. “We wanted to give them something just for them—something that says, ‘We see you.’”
The podcast wasn’t wellness-focused, and that was intentional. Instead of pushing product features, the team prioritized brand affinity and entertainment. “There’s value in creating something that makes people feel good—and that helps them remember who you are,” Dean said.
Leadership buy-in and measurable impact
Launching something so unconventional required more than creativity—it required buy-in. Dean built a case using early audience research and worked with a supportive CMO who was open to risk and innovation. The initial download target? 60,000.
The result? 1.2 million downloads in Season 1 alone.
Beyond downloads, the podcast drove website traffic, brand searches, and even sales engagement. “We started seeing the show mentioned in Gong [call recording software] calls,” Dean shared. “One company had an entire HR team dress up in character and invite us to introduce an episode. It became a cultural moment for them—and for us.”
Navigating metrics in a tech-heavy ecosystem
Tracking success for entertainment-first content in a data-rich martech stack isn’t simple. Podcasts don’t integrate neatly with CRMs or attribution dashboards.
But Dean found creative ways to connect the dots:
— Branded search volume through tools like Ahrefs and Google Trends
— Referral traffic with UTM parameters
— Keyword mentions via Gong software
— Organic social engagement and anecdotal feedback
“It’s not like SEO content where everything is measurable,” Dean noted. “You have to piece together the story manually—but it’s worth it.”
But Dean found creative ways to connect the dots:
— Branded search volume through tools like Ahrefs and Google Trends
— Referral traffic with UTM parameters
— Keyword mentions via Gong software
— Organic social engagement and anecdotal feedback
“It’s not like SEO content where everything is measurable,” Dean noted. “You have to piece together the story manually—but it’s worth it.”
What’s next? Edutainment, short-form, and more
Following the success of Murder in HR Seasons 1 and 2, Wellhub is exploring new directions—leaning further into edutainment, short-form video content, and multimedia storytelling. “We’re creating content that informs and entertains,” Dean said. “That’s how you rise above the noise.”
Of course, walking the line between humor and sensitivity, especially in B2B, is a delicate art. “We never want to offend,” he emphasized. “You have to bring levity without crossing the line—and do it with heart.”
Of course, walking the line between humor and sensitivity, especially in B2B, is a delicate art. “We never want to offend,” he emphasized. “You have to bring levity without crossing the line—and do it with heart.”
Dean’s advice for fellow B2B marketers
Thinking of trying your hand at entertainment in B2B?
Dean offers this advice:
— Set the right expectations. This is a brand play, not a short-term MQL driver.
— Do your research. Use focus groups, test audiences, and existing case studies to build your case.
— Create real entertainment. Don’t use your show as a long-form commercial. “If you try to sell in the middle of entertainment, your audience will tune out.”
— Let the story lead. Use ad rolls or subtle integrations to tie your brand in—but let the content speak for itself.
At Martechify, we’re all about making sense of complex tech stacks, data overload, and evolving platforms. But sometimes, success is simple: tell a great story, make someone smile, and be unforgettable.
Dean and Wellhub did just that.
Dean offers this advice:
— Set the right expectations. This is a brand play, not a short-term MQL driver.
— Do your research. Use focus groups, test audiences, and existing case studies to build your case.
— Create real entertainment. Don’t use your show as a long-form commercial. “If you try to sell in the middle of entertainment, your audience will tune out.”
— Let the story lead. Use ad rolls or subtle integrations to tie your brand in—but let the content speak for itself.
At Martechify, we’re all about making sense of complex tech stacks, data overload, and evolving platforms. But sometimes, success is simple: tell a great story, make someone smile, and be unforgettable.
Dean and Wellhub did just that.
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