My career has been built across very different environments, from founding and growing businesses to leading marketing strategy for a Pittsburgh-based contractor and contributing to enterprise digital strategy inside a Fortune 100 organization.
Today, I lead Essey Marketing, which has served more than 100 clients; serve as Chief Marketing Officer of 3Rivers General Contracting; and work at Nationwide on large-scale digital strategy, web experience, search, content, and transformation initiatives. I also publish across marketing, Pittsburgh, business, philosophy, and intentional living, creating platforms that extend beyond my day-to-day professional work.
That combination of entrepreneurship, executive leadership, enterprise experience, and publishing has shaped how I approach every challenge: understand the bigger picture, build thoughtfully, and create work that compounds in value over time.
Pittsburgh 30 Under 30 · Featured in Entrepreneur Magazine · Founder & Business Owner x4 · Pittsburgh’s 50 Finest · Digital Marketing Consultant · Fortune 100 Marketer · Mentor, Connector, & Published Author
My career has developed across entrepreneurship, enterprise organizations, privately held businesses, publishing, and community initiatives. I founded Essey Marketing after leaving a traditional corporate career path to build an independent marketing practice. Today, that company has served more than 100 organizations while allowing me to work directly with founders, executives, nonprofits, and businesses across a wide range of industries. At the same time, my work has expanded into enterprise digital strategy at Nationwide Financial, executive marketing leadership with 3Rivers General Contracting, publishing and thought leadership, student mentorship, and initiatives designed to connect business growth with measurable community impact. The environments are different. The work is connected by a consistent focus on strategy, communication, sustainable growth, and building systems that continue creating value over time.
I founded Essey Marketing in 2021 after several years of independent and in-house marketing work. The company has since grown into a full-service digital marketing agency serving more than 100 organizations across small business, nonprofit, professional services, healthcare, construction, industrial services, entrepreneurship, and other sectors.
The agency’s work spans digital strategy, SEO, websites, content, paid media, social media, analytics, branding, and advisory services, with an emphasis on practical strategy and long-term growth.
I began working with 3Rivers General Contracting in 2021 and have remained closely involved as the company has expanded its operations and market presence.
Today, as Chief Marketing Officer, I help lead brand strategy, digital marketing, acquisition, content, search, advertising, partnerships, market positioning, and business-development initiatives supporting the company’s commercial construction, mitigation, and restoration businesses.
At Nationwide, I work across enterprise digital strategy and web experience, helping guide initiatives that sit at the intersection of marketing, content, search, analytics, user experience, technology, and business strategy.
The work requires collaboration across complex organizations and provides a perspective that complements my entrepreneurial experience: how digital strategy operates when scale, governance, regulation, technology, and customer experience all have to work together.
Recognition has come through business awards, media features, university honors, sustainability designations, and ongoing professional engagement.
Pittsburgh Business Times
30 Under 30
Duquesne University
Dukes from the Last Decade
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
Pittsburgh’s 50 Finest
Sustainable Pittsburgh
Silver-Level Sustainable Pittsburgh Workplace
Entrepreneur Magazine
Featured as a marketing expert, contributing insight on customer experience, marketing technology, and automation.
University & Professional Speaking
Guest lecturer and speaker on marketing, entrepreneurship, digital strategy, AI, and career development
Mentorship & Education
Mentor to students and early-career professionals through university, alumni, and professional programs
People Building Pittsburgh highlights the entrepreneurs, founders, small business owners, startup leaders, creators, freelancers, and community builders helping move Pittsburgh forward.
Through professional spotlights, founder Q&As, small business features, local opportunity posts, and community-focused content, this page exists to give more visibility to the people doing meaningful work across the Pittsburgh region.
→ Read the People Building Pittsburgh Newsletter
The Essey Marketing newsletter is a strategy-first resource for business owners, marketers, and founders who want to build a durable digital presence. Each issue breaks down topics such as SEO, content strategy, website performance, analytics, and long-term growth—without jargon, hype, or trend chasing.
The focus is on how digital marketing actually works inside real businesses, helping readers avoid costly mistakes and make better strategic decisions over time.
→ Read the Essey Marketing Newsletter
Digital Marketing for Students is a weekly educational newsletter designed to make digital marketing fundamentals clear and approachable. Each issue focuses on one core concept and explains it in practical language that can be read and applied in about five minutes.
The newsletter emphasizes understanding over tactics, helping students and early-career professionals build confidence, think strategically, and prepare for real-world roles.
→ Read Digital Marketing for Students
Stoic Life (formerly Stoic Saturdays) is a weekly philosophy newsletter dedicated to translating ancient Stoic wisdom into practical insight for modern life and leadership. Each issue explores a single concept—such as resilience, discipline, mortality, control, or purpose—and applies it to real-world personal and professional challenges.
What began as a personal writing practice has grown into a widely read platform that has led to speaking engagements, university lectures, and a forthcoming book. The writing is reflective, grounded, and designed to be read slowly and applied thoughtfully.
Wilderness Within is a collection of long-form essays published on Medium. These pieces explore nature, meaning, mortality, resilience, and the inner life, often drawing connections between personal experience and philosophical reflection.
This writing is more personal and reflective, serving as a counterbalance to Chris’s professional and educational work.
I believe businesses should create value beyond their financial performance. That philosophy is built into Essey Marketing through a Triple Bottom Line approach centered on People, Planet, and Profit.
8% of Revenue Committed to Giving Back. Essey Marketing commits 8% of revenue to nonprofits, scholarships, community initiatives, and causes aligned with our values. As the business grows, its ability to contribute grows with it.
Four Annual Student Scholarships. Essey Marketing supports students pursuing entrepreneurship, digital innovation, marketing, and environmental conservation. The scholarships include the Emerging Entrepreneurs Scholarship, Digital Innovation Scholarship, Future Marketers Scholarship, and Environmental Conservation Scholarship.
10 Parks, 10 Days. This Pittsburgh-area initiative focused on ten consecutive days of park cleanups, putting environmental stewardship into direct action across shared public spaces.
Allegheny County Adopt-A-Roadway. Essey Marketing participates in the county’s Adopt-A-Roadway program, creating an ongoing commitment to local cleanup and environmental stewardship.
Nonprofit Support & Mentorship. I also contribute through nonprofit marketing and strategy support, student mentorship, educational programs, and guidance for early-career professionals and emerging entrepreneurs.
Silver-Level Sustainable Pittsburgh Workplace. Essey Marketing has earned a Silver-Level Sustainable Pittsburgh Workplace designation, recognizing its efforts across sustainability, responsible business practices, community involvement, and environmental responsibility.
Together, these initiatives reflect a simple principle: the value a business creates should extend beyond the business itself.
©2026 Chris Essey | Essey Marketing
