WHAT WE'RE HEARING
This startup turned a podcast into their #1 marketing channel. Here’s how.
I’ve heard both sides of it: podcasting is too crowded. Waste of time. No one has the time for podcasts. But I’ve also felt the ROI of a podcast first hand…it’s just a bit hard to explain in a pithy LinkedIn post.
I talked to Jess Cook
(Head of Marketing at Vector) about how her podcast with their CEO has become their #1 marketing channel. Not because of downloads. Not because of deals that came from specific episodes. But they know it’s working. Here's what Vector’s been doing (and a little of what I've learned along the way).
I've been podcasting for over a decade.
It started in 2014 with a side project called Tech In Boston.
I had no name and no brand, but I spent $200 on a microphone, $15/month on a SoundCloud hosting subscription, and had a free Wordpress site.
Everyone thought I was crazy. "Who's going to listen to that?" "How does that help your career?"
But that podcast led me to meeting 60 founders and investors. That led to my job as a podcast producer at HubSpot. Then Drift. Then CMO at Privy. And eventually was the catalyst for starting Exit Five.
Hundreds of hours (and episodes) later, I know exactly where podcast ROI shows up.
But don’t just take my word for it. Vector is proving the playbook can still work in 2026.
This Meeting Could Have Been a Podcast
Last year, Jess Cook (VP Marketing at Vector) started a podcast with her CEO Josh called,
“This Meeting Could Have Been A Podcast”
and took the concept of building in public to the extreme.
The goal? To create an awareness magnet, not a lead magnet.
Something that would continuously bring people to them. Customers, partners, future employees.
But they didn't want the show to be about the product. So they came up with this concept: each episode feels like you’re sitting in on their 1-on-1s and covers one decision they had to make together.
- "Josh went to a conference and has crazy ideas."
- "Jess wants to start a podcast."
- "Josh wants to run ads."
That's the show. So why does it work so well?
That Can’t Be The Whole Thing, Dave…What’s The Secret Sauce!?
It comes down to the format. They took a concept that is obvious and everywhere - two talking heads on a podcast - and decided to NOT DO THAT! They innovated.
First there’s the topic: there are always things you want to say to your CEO that you might not be able to. But Jess and Josh have great chemistry and a working relationship that makes recording these conversations really natural. She can ask the questions you might not feel comfortable asking. She can push back. And she gets real answers.
That chemistry is the first piece. And this is what great marketers do: they find things that might be right in front of their noses and use them for good marketing. Podcast? Boring. Jess and Josh on a podcast together? Better.
Then comes the second piece? They record in person.
Every few months, Jess flies from Michigan to Florida. They block off two days, she brings multiple changes of clothes and they record an entire season.
The prep work is intense. Detailed outlines with points they want to hit on and stories they want to tell. A full script for their show opener skit.
But once they get into it? It feels like one continuous conversation.
You can feel all of it in the episodes. The chemistry. The energy. The entertainment.
That's what makes people lean in.
I feel this one personally. I’ve done 300+ remote podcasts, and they don’t hold a candle to how much better the chemistry and conversation is in person. Plus, I think that in-person videos get better engagement. I don’t have data on this, but it’s what I see. The talking head podcast clips with the blurry background vs. two people sitting on location. It just works better.
How Do You Scale The Podcast Success?
Now sometimes in marketing the answer is right in front of you: we have something that’s working, let’s go invest in this and take it up another notch. Let’s do more and make it better, that’s the strategy.
One of their company goals for 2026 is to "be your marketing team's favorite marketing team” since their ICP is marketers (hey btw). And the podcast is an incredible way to do that - because you actually see a name, hear someone’s voice and you build rapport with your audience unlike any other channel. So Josh and Jess are wise to double down (and already have Seasons 3 and 4 in the works).
They also both talk about how LinkedIn was a big indicator that the podcast was landing. Halfway through Season 1, both Jess and Josh started seeing steady, consistent growth on their personal profiles. Week after week. New followers. More engagement. People commenting on episodes. DMs about specific topics they covered.
That organic growth told them something the download numbers couldn't: people were actually paying attention. The content was resonating. The audience was real.
And no, Jess can't tie the podcast back to many deals. She can't show you pipeline sourced by "Episode 7."
But it creates air cover for everything they do. People know Vector exists. They like Jess and Josh. They think the marketing team is doing cool stuff. They feel it everywhere.
Here’s How I Think About Podcast ROI
If you’re looking for a short term lift in sales or the perfect direct response channel, podcasting is not the answer.
But if you know how to think about it (and get into the game for the right reasons), podcasting can be an amazing tool for business.
And after all these years in podcasting, I know the ROI very well. It's in:
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The content you create. Audio and video that your customers consume and feel like they get to know you without ever meeting you. You don’t get that with a blog post. Plus, the podcast can become the content engine that powers everything else: clips for social, transcripts for written content, topics for newsletters, material for webinars.
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The relationships you build. You spend an hour with your ideal customer or a key player in your industry. I've recorded 325 episodes for Exit Five. That's hundreds of relationships with marketers and subject matter experts. Some became customers. Some became speakers at our events. Some became friends. None of that shows up as "sourced by podcast" in your CRM. But it compounds like crazy.
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Your employment brand. Nearly every candidate I’ve talked to mentions listening to the podcast first. It's a great way to get a feel for how we operate, how we talk, and how we think.
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Long-term sales. After LinkedIn, our podcast is the #2 source for us at Exit Five. But often they've been listening for 6+ months before they join. That's how it works. Jess sees the same pattern. She can't track most deals back to the podcast. But customers mention it. Sales reps hear it on calls. The podcast is in the mix. It's just not the last touch.
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Brand affinity. Thousands of people listening every week. For months. For years. You're in their ears while they walk, run, commute, clean the house. It goes so much deeper than reading a blog post.
Execs often kill podcasts after 10 episodes because pipeline hasn't grown. They treat it like a media buy. Spend X, get Y leads back.
But that's not how this works.
If you're measuring success by weekly downloads, you'll panic and kill the show.
Podcasting is a Trojan Horse for learning. 250+ hours talking to marketers? That's an education you can't get anywhere else.
The Real Question Isn't "Should We Start a Podcast?"
It’s "are we willing to commit and judge it on the right metrics?"
If the answer is no, don't start.
If it’s yes, commit to a full season minimum. Don't obsess over downloads early. Look for signals like LinkedIn growth, people mentioning it in sales calls, DMs from listeners. Invest in chemistry and production quality. Record in person if you can.
The companies winning with it treat it as a relationship and brand-building tool. Not a lead gen channel.
They commit long-term. They invest in quality. They measure success by more than download numbers.
And it compounds like crazy.
– Dave
P.S. Did this land with you? Are you working on a podcast? Reply and let me know - or just say hey, I read every reply. Sitting here sipping my coffee waiting for replies on newsletter day…
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