October 16, 2024 • 7 mins
As marketers, we've been doing it all wrong. Here's how to get it right.
Most brands miss the mark. They chase tactics instead of understanding the customer. Don't be one of them. Gary reveals the ONE thing that will transform your marketing: empathy. It starts with asking, "Will the person on the other side actually like this?" Most brands are struggling to reach customers today. They rely on outdated assumptions and yesterday's tactics instead of focusing on the consumer. This lack of empathy is why so many companies fail. Gary Vaynerchuk, CEO of Vayner Media believes there is not enough emphasis on the actual consumer in marketing. Brands need to start caring and respecting people's time. The question you should always ask is "Will the person on the other side actually like this?" Gary shares strategies for connecting with your audience in an era of short attention spans and information overload. He explains why listening is the number one strategy before you start talking. Social media provides invaluable consumer insights - pay attention to what people are complaining about. Tell compelling stories that come from the heart. Success requires patience and a long-term vision. Build trust and a reputation over years, not days. Ironically, focusing on leaving a legacy versus short-term results will lead to greater profits because you'll build a stronger foundation. Stop chasing tactics. Start with empathy. Let us show you how to transform your marketing by truly caring about your customers.
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Most brands miss the mark. They chase tactics instead of understanding the customer. Don't be one of them. Gary reveals the ONE thing that will transform your marketing: empathy. It starts with asking, "Will the person on the other side actually like this?" Most brands are struggling to reach customers today. They rely on outdated assumptions and yesterday's tactics instead of focusing on the consumer. This lack of empathy is why so many companies fail. Gary Vaynerchuk, CEO of Vayner Media believes there is not enough emphasis on the actual consumer in marketing. Brands need to start caring and respecting people's time. The question you should always ask is "Will the person on the other side actually like this?" Gary shares strategies for connecting with your audience in an era of short attention spans and information overload. He explains why listening is the number one strategy before you start talking. Social media provides invaluable consumer insights - pay attention to what people are complaining about. Tell compelling stories that come from the heart. Success requires patience and a long-term vision. Build trust and a reputation over years, not days. Ironically, focusing on leaving a legacy versus short-term results will lead to greater profits because you'll build a stronger foundation. Stop chasing tactics. Start with empathy. Let us show you how to transform your marketing by truly caring about your customers.
Get the Blog Post
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
There's a reason a lot of people go out of business, and it is almost always directly correlated
(00:05):
to them missing the mark on the customers they're trying to reach.
Most companies, bigger small, are really struggling in assumptions or yesterday tactics to reach
customers.
I believe that there is not enough emphasis put on the actual consumer.
(00:27):
And when it comes to marketing is respecting one's time.
I think we don't respect consumers time.
And if we're going to fill them with messages, wouldn't it be nice for them to enjoy it?
When you come from a lens of caring and empathy, you just tend to make better advertising.
You tend to make better advertising.
(00:49):
I'm Gary Vaynerchuk, CEO of VaynerMedia, VFRIEND's, and my latest book is Day Trading
Attention.
Hi, view myself as an entrepreneur.
I grew up in my dad's liquor store and innovated by having one of the first e-commerce
websites.
(01:10):
I was an early investor in Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr.
And in more recent years have been an author and a speaker, but also running a 2000-person
plus global advertising agency.
And at the end of the day, I could not explain to all of you watching or listening
more how many marketing ideas literally spend no time on will the person on the other side
(01:33):
like this.
It's just this is the way it's always been done.
Or how many do we have to sell?
Sell, sell, sell.
But I did not buy this sneaker because somebody knocked on my door and sold it to me.
Or I landed on a website that explained why I had to own this.
The Super Bowl, I would say, is a place where we do a better job caring.
(01:54):
We try to actually make that 30-second video entertaining.
I think I see it every day in social media.
I see young brands actually make content that people want to watch.
When your lens is caring and empathy to connect with a consumer, you're actually thinking
about that.
Will the person on the other side like this?
For me, that's the million dollar question.
(02:16):
So do you have strategies for how to connect with your audience?
I would say my number one strategy is something I've done my whole life, which is before I
start talking, I listen.
Literally, your biggest advantage is time.
Don't buy into an antiquated process.
(02:37):
You're entering the greatest five-year window of your life.
And obviously it seems like I'm always talking.
Almost everything that comes out of my mouth has been predicated on me doing a lot of hours
of listening.
Social media's greatest power is the ability to see what people are thinking.
We're living in the golden era of consumer insights because of social media.
And I think the best businesses in the world are fixing something that everyone's complaining
(03:01):
about but hasn't been fixed yet.
Here's a good example.
Drive through fast food.
People value time.
And obviously someone eventually said, you know what?
Instead of making them park and walk in and wait in line and get their burger and fries,
why don't we just let them drive through?
(03:22):
That was a very strong innovation, a good idea.
This is one big game of listening.
Historically, this is what you do through focus groups.
This is what you now can do through social listening at scale.
The question is, what do you then do about it?
10 years of storytelling has evolved tremendously.
(03:42):
We are no longer in tribes sitting around a fire telling a story.
New cycles are now 12 and 24 hours, not 12 and 24 days.
So the speed of keeping attention has changed dramatically.
Also, the ability to storytelling has exploded.
You don't need an editor in chief.
(04:03):
You don't need the local newspaper.
You don't need someone at the TV network saying that you're allowed to be on camera.
And talk to the world.
That's gone.
There's not a person watching this who doesn't have permission now to tell the world their
story as a human or their story about the business or organization, nonprofit or whatever
out of their body they're working with to the world.
(04:25):
On the flip side, it's never been harder.
What pictures, what videos, what animated gifts, what copy, what time do you post?
How long is the video?
Audio, lighting.
I mean, this has become a profoundly complex game.
Here's the good news for everyone who's scared by how hard and fast it is.
A great story will still find its way.
(04:46):
Even if you don't know the best practices of how to post on YouTube or Instagram or TikTok,
you will be stunned how much a story can find its audience if it's just told from the
heart and a pure form.
When I talk about patience, it drives ambitious people crazy.
(05:09):
I have a lot of high energy in your face, loud, new jersey style and when I throw out patience
like, wait a minute, you're going off cue like this doesn't sound like you Gary and I'm
like, that's because you don't realize that patience is not complacency.
Patience is probably one of the most important ingredients in building something meaningful.
(05:31):
One of the reasons most people don't have patience is because of fear.
They fear failing and so they try to go fast because if it's not going well, they can't
deal with the music.
They K.A.
the judgment of the people around them.
If patience is not one of your partners, you're dead, you're too short term, you're going
to deviate from the plan and you're probably going to make a misstep.
(05:55):
You know I always hear people say, "Okay Gary, I'm into patience of building something
meaningful in brand."
I know it's working and look, I think the answer is results.
When I was building my father's wine business, the way I was noticing if we were building brand
was based on the fact that I had to spend less money on advertising every year but was achieving
higher sales every year because after five or six years of good work, I could see that
(06:19):
the word of mouth and the reputation, the brand, was carrying the business.
And so, you know, I think at the end of the day you have to measure brand based on business
results but you've got to lay that out for a long time because when you start thinking
hundred year terms versus hundred day terms, you're playing a totally different game.
When you think long and when you think about leaving a legacy, you tend to ironically make
(06:42):
more money because you're building a stronger foundation.
I ask you to take this video, this energy, and deploy it to not just your content or
your marketing strategies or even your business.
And play to your life.
It will help you be a better father, mother, sister, brother, child, human to make the future
(07:03):
more joyous and a battle.
To learn even more from the world's biggest thinkers, get Big Think Plus for your business.
[MUSIC]
There's a reason a lot of people go out of business, and it is almost always directly correlated
(00:05):
to them missing the mark on the customers they're trying to reach.
Most companies, bigger small, are really struggling in assumptions or yesterday tactics to reach
customers.
I believe that there is not enough emphasis put on the actual consumer.
(00:27):
And when it comes to marketing is respecting one's time.
I think we don't respect consumers time.
And if we're going to fill them with messages, wouldn't it be nice for them to enjoy it?
When you come from a lens of caring and empathy, you just tend to make better advertising.
You tend to make better advertising.
(00:49):
I'm Gary Vaynerchuk, CEO of VaynerMedia, VFRIEND's, and my latest book is Day Trading
Attention.
Hi, view myself as an entrepreneur.
I grew up in my dad's liquor store and innovated by having one of the first e-commerce
websites.
(01:10):
I was an early investor in Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr.
And in more recent years have been an author and a speaker, but also running a 2000-person
plus global advertising agency.
And at the end of the day, I could not explain to all of you watching or listening
more how many marketing ideas literally spend no time on will the person on the other side
(01:33):
like this.
It's just this is the way it's always been done.
Or how many do we have to sell?
Sell, sell, sell.
But I did not buy this sneaker because somebody knocked on my door and sold it to me.
Or I landed on a website that explained why I had to own this.
The Super Bowl, I would say, is a place where we do a better job caring.
(01:54):
We try to actually make that 30-second video entertaining.
I think I see it every day in social media.
I see young brands actually make content that people want to watch.
When your lens is caring and empathy to connect with a consumer, you're actually thinking
about that.
Will the person on the other side like this?
For me, that's the million dollar question.
(02:16):
So do you have strategies for how to connect with your audience?
I would say my number one strategy is something I've done my whole life, which is before I
start talking, I listen.
Literally, your biggest advantage is time.
Don't buy into an antiquated process.
(02:37):
You're entering the greatest five-year window of your life.
And obviously it seems like I'm always talking.
Almost everything that comes out of my mouth has been predicated on me doing a lot of hours
of listening.
Social media's greatest power is the ability to see what people are thinking.
We're living in the golden era of consumer insights because of social media.
And I think the best businesses in the world are fixing something that everyone's complaining
(03:01):
about but hasn't been fixed yet.
Here's a good example.
Drive through fast food.
People value time.
And obviously someone eventually said, you know what?
Instead of making them park and walk in and wait in line and get their burger and fries,
why don't we just let them drive through?
(03:22):
That was a very strong innovation, a good idea.
This is one big game of listening.
Historically, this is what you do through focus groups.
This is what you now can do through social listening at scale.
The question is, what do you then do about it?
10 years of storytelling has evolved tremendously.
(03:42):
We are no longer in tribes sitting around a fire telling a story.
New cycles are now 12 and 24 hours, not 12 and 24 days.
So the speed of keeping attention has changed dramatically.
Also, the ability to storytelling has exploded.
You don't need an editor in chief.
(04:03):
You don't need the local newspaper.
You don't need someone at the TV network saying that you're allowed to be on camera.
And talk to the world.
That's gone.
There's not a person watching this who doesn't have permission now to tell the world their
story as a human or their story about the business or organization, nonprofit or whatever
out of their body they're working with to the world.
(04:25):
On the flip side, it's never been harder.
What pictures, what videos, what animated gifts, what copy, what time do you post?
How long is the video?
Audio, lighting.
I mean, this has become a profoundly complex game.
Here's the good news for everyone who's scared by how hard and fast it is.
A great story will still find its way.
(04:46):
Even if you don't know the best practices of how to post on YouTube or Instagram or TikTok,
you will be stunned how much a story can find its audience if it's just told from the
heart and a pure form.
When I talk about patience, it drives ambitious people crazy.
(05:09):
I have a lot of high energy in your face, loud, new jersey style and when I throw out patience
like, wait a minute, you're going off cue like this doesn't sound like you Gary and I'm
like, that's because you don't realize that patience is not complacency.
Patience is probably one of the most important ingredients in building something meaningful.
(05:31):
One of the reasons most people don't have patience is because of fear.
They fear failing and so they try to go fast because if it's not going well, they can't
deal with the music.
They K.A.
the judgment of the people around them.
If patience is not one of your partners, you're dead, you're too short term, you're going
to deviate from the plan and you're probably going to make a misstep.
(05:55):
You know I always hear people say, "Okay Gary, I'm into patience of building something
meaningful in brand."
I know it's working and look, I think the answer is results.
When I was building my father's wine business, the way I was noticing if we were building brand
was based on the fact that I had to spend less money on advertising every year but was achieving
higher sales every year because after five or six years of good work, I could see that
(06:19):
the word of mouth and the reputation, the brand, was carrying the business.
And so, you know, I think at the end of the day you have to measure brand based on business
results but you've got to lay that out for a long time because when you start thinking
hundred year terms versus hundred day terms, you're playing a totally different game.
When you think long and when you think about leaving a legacy, you tend to ironically make
(06:42):
more money because you're building a stronger foundation.
I ask you to take this video, this energy, and deploy it to not just your content or
your marketing strategies or even your business.
And play to your life.
It will help you be a better father, mother, sister, brother, child, human to make the future
(07:03):
more joyous and a battle.
To learn even more from the world's biggest thinkers, get Big Think Plus for your business.
[MUSIC]
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