Attention Is the Real ROI
In July 2023, we launched Threat Vector, the podcast from Palo Alto Networks, as a 7-minute segment on The CyberWire Daily. We had a simple idea: create something that people in cybersecurity would choose to listen to.
Twelve short episodes later, we knew we had something. In January 2024, we expanded to biweekly full-length episodes. By August, we went weekly.
Fast forward to today: we've delivered over 70+ episodes. But I don't measure the success of Threat Vector by episode delivery alone.
I measure attention.
Why Attention Matters
Let's face it, most marketing metrics are kind of boring. Clicks. Pageviews. Impressions. These numbers tell you something, sure, but they rarely tell you whether your audience actually cares. Podcasts are different.
According to The Podcast Consumer 2024 by Edison Research:
Listeners aren't just dipping in for a few seconds, weekly podcast listeners now average 7 hours and 43 minutes per week with podcasts, up from just 2% of all audio time in 2014 to 20% today.
Even better? They're the audience you want. Podcast listeners are:
More likely to earn $75K+ per year
More likely to be employed full-time
More likely to hold a college degree
This is who's giving us their attention every week.
How I Measure Success
1. Deliveries
Of course we track this. Threat Vector has been delivered 780K+ times (as of this writing) across platforms like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and The CyberWire. But this is just the starting point.
2. Ear Minutes
This is where things get interesting. We calculate "ear minutes" using an 80% rule. I’d love to think that our audience listens to every single minute of every episode, but I think it’s safer to assume that isn’t always the case. To calculate ear minutes, I’m estimating that listeners hear 80% of each episode (even though Edison Research says 93% stick around for the entire episode). Multiply that by the number of times each episode was delivered, and you get a solid proxy for how much of our content was actually consumed.
(LE x 80%) x D = EM
(LE = Length of Episode | D = Delivery | EM = Ear Minutes
3. Value of Attention
According to Chris Marshall's breakdown of ad spend vs. media consumption, 1 minute of attention is worth $1.03 (as of 2021). Using this valuation, Threat Vector has generated more than $21 million in earned attention since launch.
That's not fluff. That's quantifiable value, earned, not paid.
Podcasts and the Marketing Mix
Here's the broader takeaway: podcasting isn't a niche anymore. It's a strategic channel for reaching decision-makers with high-value content that earns their voluntary attention.
It's not a billboard. It's not a pop-up. It's not a newsletter sent to the wrong inbox.
It's a voice in your ear, one you chose to hear. Let me say that again. it’s a voice in your ear you CHOSE to hear.
In a world where time is the scarcest resource, that kind of trust and attention is priceless.
Threat Vector started as a small idea, a 7-minute voice in a crowded space. Now it's grown into a multi-million dollar asset.
If you're thinking about starting a podcast don't just count downloads. Pay attention to attention. Because that's the metric that really matters.