Podcast Summary: Marketing, Patience and Building Brand in 2025 | Do This Not That

The GaryVee Audio Experience – September 22, 2025
Host: Gary Vaynerchuk
Guest: Event Marketing Entrepreneur ("Jay")

Overview

This episode dives deep into the evolving landscape of marketing, with a focus on the rising importance of brand-building over pure sales attribution, the shift from “social media” to “interest media,” and practical strategies for creators and marketers to adapt in 2025. Gary Vaynerchuk offers no-nonsense, actionable advice, highlighting the pitfalls of traditional approaches, the power of authenticity, and how to bridge brand and sales for business growth.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Biggest Mistake in Modern Marketing: Amplifying Weak Content

[01:29–03:27]

• Problem: The guest admits to “boosting” poor-performing event ads with paid spend just to juice numbers or save face.

• Gary’s Take: Amplifying content that failed to perform organically is “the single worst thing on earth” in marketing.

  “You are literally taking money and throwing it into a garbage and then lighting a match and burning it to the ground.”
  – Gary Vaynerchuk [02:24]

• Insight: Recognizing and changing this behavior is foundational.

2. The “Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook” Philosophy

[03:27–05:02]

• Clarified: Gary emphasizes true giving (“jabs”) must be about value, with “right hooks” (asks) only following authentic contribution.

• Key Nuance: You aren’t entitled to conversions just because you’ve delivered value.

  “The entitlement that just because you’ve given a bunch of good content, someone’s gonna buy your…anything…is audacious and manipulative.”
  – Gary Vaynerchuk [04:13]

3. Turning Winning Content into Conversions

[05:17–08:24]

• Challenge: The guest wonders how to convert high-performing “jab” (value-based) content, which doesn’t have immediate calls to action.

• Gary’s Solution: Sample your own “hits” (successful content). Take a winning piece, re-edit it with added personality and a call to action, and amplify that version.

  “You’re sampling your own hit…You’re taking a jab and converting it into a right hook using my old terminology.”
  – Gary Vaynerchuk [07:55]

• Practical Tip: Add your face/commentary to the video, signal the offer, and naturally segue to the ask.

• Result: You maintain what made the content appealing while adding conversion potential.

4. Brand vs. Sales – The Attribution Myth

[08:24–10:48]

• Critique of “Last Touch” Attribution: Assigning sales success to the last step (like an email or Google ad) ignores all brand-building that led up to it.

• Gary’s Insight: Sales tactics are often over-credited because they’re measurable, but true demand comes from brand affinity built over time.

  “Nobody’s buying a Labubu right now and sticking it on their purse because they got cookied. They’re buying it because of brand…the psychology of brand.”
  – Gary Vaynerchuk [10:35]

5. The Overmathification of Marketing

[10:59–12:03]

• Historical View: The pendulum swung too far toward data/attribution (“math”) in marketing, sidelining creative intuition (“art”).

• Gary’s Perspective: Effective marketing blends both math and creativity, adapting in real time to where attention and culture move.

  “We are too in the era of math right now. And the beauty is 50/50.”
  – Gary Vaynerchuk [11:49]

6. Authenticity & the Rise of “Interest Media”

[14:16–15:31]

• Shift: Social platforms prioritize content based on user interest, not follower count.

• Implication: Anyone can build reach if their content is truly authentic to their interests, regardless of starting size.

  “If you love Bon Jovi and you just go fucking ham on Bon Jovi content…the AI is now that I have 800 followers on that third post…a level of opportunity for society, for happiness and commercial success…that people cannot see.”
  – Gary Vaynerchuk [16:15]

• Follower Counts Fade: The role of follower counts is dimming; passion and authenticity dominate.

  “I do believe within a half decade the following count might not even be publicly seen…merit should reign.”
  – Gary Vaynerchuk [17:58]

7. “Best Practices” Are Often Outdated

[18:50–19:31]

• Criticism: By the time “best practices” are mainstream, they may be useless. Strategy is a living, breathing process.
• Gary’s Framework (PACK):
  • Platforms: Where’s the attention?
  • Algorithms: How does the content get prioritized?
  • Culture: Are you plugged into what actually matters to target groups?

8. Pop Culture as the New Strategy

[22:40–24:14]

• Marketing Success: The fastest-growing brands track and move at the speed of culture.

• Prediction: “Brand strategists” are being replaced by “pop culture strategists” – those who are plugged into micro and macro trends across all demographics.

  “Brand strategists are going to get replaced by pop culture strategists…current consumer relevance strategists.”
  – Gary Vaynerchuk [21:55]

9. The Power of Niche & Community

[24:14–25:16]

• Key Point: To win, marketers must understand and respect micro-communities—whether it’s Love Island fans, regional subcultures, or demographic slices.

  “If you don’t know those things right then you don’t know how to market to them.”
  – Gary Vaynerchuk [25:14]

10. Riding Cultural Trends and Micro-Moments

[25:34–28:02]

• Analogy: To capitalize on major trends, you must first play in smaller ones—“catch all the little waves” to eventually surf the big one.

  “How the fuck are you going to catch the big wave if you’re not in the water trying to catch … the little waves?”
  – Gary Vaynerchuk [27:31]

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Not Boosting Bad Content:
  “You are literally taking money and throwing it into a garbage and then lighting a match and burning it to the ground.” [02:24]
• On the Jab/Right Hook Philosophy:
  “The concept of give, give, give is brand. And then you’re gonna convert a certain part of that audience.” [04:13]
• On Brand vs. Attribution:
  “Nobody’s buying a Labubu right now … because they got cookied … They’re buying it because of brand … the psychology of brand.” [10:35]
• On Follower Counts and Opportunity:
  “Good news. You missed nothing.” [18:20]
• On Pop Culture Strategy:
  “Brand strategists are going to get replaced by pop culture strategists. Current consumer relevance strategists.” [21:55]
• On the Need for Cultural Immersion:
  “If you don’t know those things … then you don’t know how to market to them.” [25:14]
• On Trend Surfing:
  “If a brand’s scared…‘we don’t want to waste our time jumping on every trend that lasts an hour’—well, what about when it becomes the trend?” [27:47]

Noteworthy Timestamps

• [01:29] – Guest outlines event marketing challenge: boosting bad content.
• [02:03] – Gary’s blunt response about amplifying losers.
• [04:00] – Explaining “Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook” and the importance of sincere asks.
• [05:35] – Specific consulting advice: remixing hit content with subtle asks.
• [08:24] – Why “last touch” attribution is broken.
• [10:35] – “Psychology of brand” trumps chasing direct sales metrics.
• [14:16] – Social is dead; interest media and algorithmic recommendation reign.
• [16:15] – Opportunity in niche obsession and authentic content.
• [18:50] – Why “best practices” are generally bad for marketing.
• [21:55] – Emergence of the pop culture strategist.
• [25:14] – Cultural literacy as competitive advantage.
• [27:31] – Trend surfing analogy explained.

Conclusion

Gary Vaynerchuk’s unfiltered commentary in this episode serves as both a wake-up call and a practical playbook for modern marketers. Key takeaways include abandoning the amplification of weak content, leveraging what works organically with smarter editing, understanding the deep divide between sales and brand, and getting hyper-attuned to cultural and subcultural movements. The future is less about vanity metrics and formulas — more about cultural fluency, authentic interest, and dynamically remixing what works.

**For marketers, entrepreneurs, and content creators aiming to succeed in 2025 and beyond, “do this, not that” means:

• Prioritize authenticity
• Study and engage with culture
• Remix successful content thoughtfully
• Let brand-building lead the way
• Ride small trends to catch big waves.**