A Night With Gary Vaynerchuk: 17 Takeaways On Crushing It With Content & Social Media

If you don’t know Gary. Here’s the short story: Gary Vaynerchuk is an insanely successful, charismatic, unconventional entrepreneur that has attracted a cult-like following (self-described “Vayniacs“) of more than 60,000 viewers per day to WineLibraryTV.com. He’s written a new book called “Crush It.” He was in Tampa tonight and made so much sense it hurt. Thank you Gary for mentioning the word “content” 20 million times tonight. It warmed my heart!

The biggest takeaway…

If you produce awesome content you can “crush it” in business. Plain and simple.

The 2nd biggest…

Too many people are “chasing cash.” They go after trends rather than build businesses around the passion and topics they know best.

Other Takeaways and “Gary Vee” Nuggets of Wisdom:

  1. Storytelling is essential to branding. To the consumer, storytelling is key. Consumers want you to sell them something different!
  2. Think Twitter and FaceBook are silly? How can you ignore media that millions of people are using?
  3. The internet is 15 years old and is still changing our lives. Twitter is three years old. Pay attention.
  4. NEVER get romanced by the platform. ONLY focus on the message. If you don’t know your message. The platform won’t do a thing.
  5. Twitter’s not about talking. Twitter’s about listening. Search.Twitter.com is where you should learn about your customers.
  6. Many people consume media today. Too few create it.
  7. We are very bad, as humans, at detecting social shifts. We need to recognize that this technology movement is not waiting for anyone.
  8. If you’ve ever taken a Marketing class, you know that word of mouth is most effective. 70% conversion for word of mouth. 12% conversion for traditional advertising. These social media tools are going to continue to connect us. Do the math.
  9. Everything you do is being documented. Cameras are everywhere. Your blog is your brand. You’re leaving a legacy. You need to focus on making proper decisions. Too many people are chasing cash (amen).
  10. The small niches are going to kick a** coming soon. The Wal-Mart era is on its way out. Things are changing. The little guy is starting to win. They’re going to win because they care. They have the culture. Look at Zappos.
  11. Amazon and Walmart thrive on price. The little guy will win on culture.
  12. The consumer is going through a massive expectation shift. Price doesn’t win. Sally who makes peanut butter at home is going to kick butt by producing content aroun her passion. Kraft will care too. They’ll try to buy her!
  13. Business owners ignoring or scoffing at Twitter and social media right now can do so because they’re making money…at the moment. They’ll wake up.
  14. Content around what you do and what you love is key (amen). Think there’s already enough content out there about what you do and what you know? Nonsense. Gary was up against wine.com and winespectator when he went out on his own.
  15. How do you build brand equity? You “get out there” by building content.
  16. Anyone who says they “Twitter” instead of blog is an [expletive]. You’re content needs a HOME.
  17. The world is TRANSPARENT. Any skeleton in your closet or anything you’re trying to hide about how you do business will come out. You will break. Legacy is greater than currency.

Deana Goldasich

Deana Goldasich, CEO and founder of Well Planned Web, plans and implements Content Marketing to help clients nurture leads, market their expertise and create an impactful presence online.

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13 Comments

  1. […] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Deana Goldasich, Kim Geralds. Kim Geralds said: Thanks Deana! RT @goldasich Gary Vaynerchuk in Tampa – Watch LIVE : http://ow.ly/TuHl […]



  2. The Carl Vervisch on January 6, 2010 at 11:46 pm

    Great post Deanna. Couldn't make it myself, but glad to see there was plenty to take home!



  3. Peter Rad on January 7, 2010 at 12:25 am

    Great write up! I know Content is King, but with Gary Vee it is the answer to every small business issue. If you want to be in business, know what you are selling and create good content around that. Period.



  4. Deana Goldasich on January 7, 2010 at 10:57 am

    Thanks Peter! Nice deep dive into Gary's keynote, as well! http://www.marketingideaguy.com/news/01/just-cr



  5. Deana Goldasich on January 7, 2010 at 10:59 am

    If you weren't able to catch it live, check out the video link above (below the post). Thank you Ustream and GoToStreaminar for making it possible to watch from afar!



  6. Kevin D. Lyons on January 7, 2010 at 12:07 pm

    Thanks for the great recap and video! I wanted to see him last night but couldn't make it. Gary was great at FOWA last year.



  7. grailmarie on January 7, 2010 at 3:38 pm

    Outstanding again, Gary! You are Rocking!



  8. chuckpalm on January 8, 2010 at 3:01 pm

    Fabulous post Deana, love what you did here. Great guy, and great content! And we know, it's all about the content!!



  9. grail on January 8, 2010 at 5:13 pm

    I love it! Thanks for sharing the video …I started to watch it and it was so good …I am having problems opening it now? Any suggestions?



  10. Deana Goldasich on January 8, 2010 at 5:29 pm

    Hmmm… I'm having no issue viewing it! I hope you can catch it — it's great!



  11. chuckpalm on January 8, 2010 at 8:01 pm

    Fabulous post Deana, love what you did here. Great guy, and great content! And we know, it's all about the content!!



  12. grail on January 8, 2010 at 10:13 pm

    I love it! Thanks for sharing the video …I started to watch it and it was so good …I am having problems opening it now? Any suggestions?



  13. Deana Goldasich on January 8, 2010 at 10:29 pm

    Hmmm… I'm having no issue viewing it! I hope you can catch it — it's great!