A former VaynerMedia creative director describes working for Gary Vaynerchuk, contrasting his high-energy public persona with a calmer one-on-one presence. He explains Gary's marketing philosophy as day-trading attention and recalls how Gary personally helped employees find new jobs when they quit.
So Gary Vaynerchuk was like my boss essentially. And, you know, I learned a lot from him in terms of like, yeah, I guess it's just like always think like one of my old bosses, I used to work, I was the creative director at VaynerMedia. So Gary Vaynerchuk was like my boss essentially. And, you know, I learned a lot from him in terms of like, marketing is really just about day trading attention. Like, marketing is all about attention, and attention is— the price for a billboard, you're paying so much per eyeball that sees it. It's like, yes, it could be effective, but you're overpaying for it. Versus create a yoga studio in LA, you might generate even more eyeballs and attention at a way, way lower spend. I think it's just always thinking about How do I get attention for my brand? And what are all the different possible ways that you can get attention? What's like the most cost-efficient ways to get that attention?
And I have to ask, was it awesome or not awesome working for him? Is the guy the real deal or what?
I love Gary. I think he's like an incredible human being. Like, you know, I've worked for a lot of corporate folks and I think there's a lot of egos, there's people who don't care, and I think Gary like truly cares. Like even if you're gonna tell him you're, you're quitting, like, he's gonna be like, oh, awesome, like, do you need any help finding your next thing? You know, like, he's just like, he cares. And I think that's what he's built his whole company on, is like, you can build a massive company with like a compassionate point of view on your people and not just being some like tyrant kind of.
Do you think there's any, anything about Gary, because he's a very public presence, right? He's personally out there a lot. And you know, anytime you personally put yourself out there, you're putting a part of you out there, not the whole thing. Is there anything that either people don't really know about him, or is a misconception that you've seen about him? Is there anything like that?
I would say that, like, just talking, like, just talking with him normally one-to-one is obviously the volume isn't as loud as it is when he's on camera, you know, because at the end of the day, like, he's an entertainer to a degree, right? Yeah. Now he's an educational business entertainer, but he's entertaining to watch, like the way he talks, like how his passion is, like how he's smart. Like there's plenty of business people who say smart things, but not maybe as many that are like, as animated on camera. So it's like, in a way he's kind of playing, you know, a bit of his character, but it's like off camera, like he's way more mellow, I would say, than most people think.
Like, you know, he's, you know, I was on, I was, I was on his podcast or like, the— I forget whatever it's called. And he was very nice. And, uh, I had— we— he turned it up slowly. But yeah, it was definitely just— yeah, he had— he wasn't on right away. He had to— he had to get amped a little.
That's awesome. All right, well, Mike, we'll wrap it up.
