The Next Big Opportunity for Creators (And How to Seize It)

Summary

Summary of "The Next Big Opportunity for Creators (And How to Seize It)"

Episode: The Next Big Opportunity for Creators (And How to Seize It)
Release Date: January 9, 2025
Podcast: The GaryVee Audio Experience
Host: Gary Vaynerchuk

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Introduction: Embracing Education and Entertainment

Gary Vaynerchuk opens the episode by reflecting on his journey from launching Wine Library TV on YouTube in 2006 to becoming a prominent entrepreneur and influencer. He emphasizes the importance of balancing education and entertainment in content creation, highlighting how his deep knowledge of wine, combined with his charisma, propelled his early success.

"You build, you learn. You all know. Some of you are way better today than you were just even six weeks ago or six months ago." ([00:00])

The Emerging Opportunity for Creators

Gary identifies a pivotal moment for creators, drawing parallels to when he first predicted the rise of influencers on platforms like YouTube. He argues that creators today are positioned to capitalize on unprecedented opportunities, especially with the advent of affiliate marketing and live shopping.

"This is that moment again. For the people that have figured out affiliate and live shopping, it's a big deal. It's bigger." ([03:30])

Shift from Brand Deals to Affiliate Marketing

A significant portion of the discussion focuses on the transition from traditional brand deals to a cost-per-sale (affiliate) model. Gary explains how this shift allows creators to earn based on actual sales, fostering a merit-based environment where genuine value is rewarded.

"There's an ROI there that you're getting versus a brand deal. There's a contact requirement in a ceiling." ([06:09])

Both Gary and his co-host delve into the benefits of this model. Gary emphasizes that success in affiliate marketing is a direct reflection of a creator’s authenticity and ability to engage their audience effectively.

"Cause you're gonna get your true value. Cause there's no hiding behind it." ([06:26])

Building Authenticity and Trust

Gary underscores the critical role of authenticity in content creation. He shares personal anecdotes from his early days of Wine Library TV, where he candidly reviewed wines, even those he didn’t favor. This commitment to honesty built trust with his audience, a principle he asserts is essential for long-term success.

"Authenticity is everything, bro." ([07:41])

He further elaborates that while consumers can be deceived in the short term, they recognize and reject inauthenticity over time. Thus, maintaining genuine connections is paramount.

"The consumer can be tricked in the short term, but is not stupid." ([08:31])

The Rise of Virtual Influencers

Gary introduces the concept of virtual influencers—AI-generated personalities that can dominate the digital space. He predicts that in the next decade, many of the most famous entities will be virtual, outflanking human influencers by being more scalable and controlled.

"In 10 years, hundreds of the most famous people on earth are gonna be AI people, fake people, owned by people." ([04:15])

He urges creators to adapt by developing skills to manage and create virtual personas, ensuring they remain relevant in an increasingly AI-driven landscape.

Parenting in the Age of Social Media

Shifting gears, Gary addresses questions about parenting in the context of social media. He criticizes modern parenting trends that use technology as a crutch, advocating instead for building genuine self-esteem in children. Gary stresses that authentic parenting involves setting boundaries and being actively involved rather than relying on digital distractions.

"Parenting has become unbelievably ludicrous. You don't like shit. Be a fucking parent." ([16:24])

He advises parents to focus on fostering self-esteem and accountability in their children, ensuring they are resilient against the pressures of social media.

Community vs. Competition in Social Platforms

In a discussion about the nature of TikTok and similar platforms, Gary addresses concerns about community versus competition. He reassures that while the platform fosters competition, it also offers opportunities for everyone to succeed based on their efforts and authenticity.

"You are in control. If it gets too much for you... you're in control." ([20:52])

Gary encourages creators to remain self-aware and prioritize their well-being, suggesting that maintaining control over their content and interactions can mitigate feelings of competition.

Actionable Insights and Final Thoughts

Toward the end of the episode, Gary reiterates the urgency for creators to seize current opportunities and build sustainable, authentic brands. He emphasizes the importance of adaptability, continual learning, and leveraging both traditional and emerging monetization models.

"You need to go hard the next 24 months and separate yourself." ([04:45])

He closes with motivational insights, urging listeners to take decisive action, invest in their personal growth, and remain resilient in the face of an ever-evolving digital landscape.

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Notable Quotes

• “Consumers can be tricked in the short term, but are not stupid.” – Gary Vaynerchuk ([08:31])

• “In 10 years, hundreds of the most famous people on earth are gonna be AI people, fake people, owned by people.” – Gary Vaynerchuk ([04:15])

• “You need to go hard the next 24 months and separate yourself.” – Gary Vaynerchuk ([04:45])

• “Authenticity is everything, bro.” – Gary Vaynerchuk ([07:41])

• “Parenting has become unbelievably ludicrous. You don't like shit. Be a fucking parent.” – Gary Vaynerchuk ([16:24])

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Conclusion

In "The Next Big Opportunity for Creators (And How to Seize It)," Gary Vaynerchuk provides a compelling roadmap for creators navigating the dynamic landscape of social media. By advocating for authenticity, embracing emerging monetization models like affiliate marketing, and preparing for the rise of virtual influencers, Gary equips listeners with the insights needed to thrive. Additionally, his candid advice on parenting in the digital age underscores the importance of building strong, resilient foundations both personally and professionally. This episode serves as both a motivational call to action and a strategic guide for anyone looking to maximize their impact and success in the creator economy.

Transcript

[A]

This is the GaryVee audio experience. Hey everybody. Before we start today's podcast, I put out a new deck. I know the pyramid deck changed everyone's life. Go to GaryVee.com attention. A free. How many pages does it sid? A free 47 page deck that is free. That will change your business, your life, your brand, your world. Go check it out. Now to the podcast. This is about education and entertainment, right? How good are you at those two things? I popped off in 06 on YouTube because my show was Wine Library TV. I was deeply educated cause I grew up in wine. And at that point I knew every. I mean I really knew everything. You couldn't even imagine I was tasting fucking 500 wines a week for 17 years at that point. Like it was in me. But then I also happened to have charisma and gift of gab and it got better. You go look at those early episodes of Wine Library tv. That's a different version than who I am. You build, you learn. You all know. Some of you are way better today than you were just even six weeks ago or six months ago. When I wrote Crush it, my first book that kind of put me on back in 2009. I wrote it in 2008. It came out in 09. In that book, I said that influence, I didn't use the word influencer. I said people who were on YouTube were gonna make $100,000 a year. And I got shit on by everyone. Like if you literally went to Amazon right now and sorted the reviews of my book by oldest and read the first reviews when it first came out, they're like this fucking snake oil salesman, he's trying to convince you that you're gonna make $100,000 a year on social media. What a fucking asshole. And so I don't think people understand, like this is that moment again. For the people that have figured out affiliate and live shopping, it's a big deal. It's bigger. There's nothing I'm gonna be able to do now. Any of my energy or my articulation, my gift of words that's going to be able to explain to all of you how perfect you have it right now. And what I'm worried about. Cause I was there for all this shit. I was there when Tila Tequila and Dane Cook were fucking dominating my space. I was there with all the early Twitter. I was one of the first that had a million followers on Twitter in the world. I watched the others. I was there. I've been there everywhere. I'm one of the few humans on Earth that has more than 2 million followers on every platform from Snapchat to LinkedIn to YouTube. So I've watched my contemporaries. Some people just live in LinkedIn, some people just live in Snap, some live just in TikTok. I've watched it all. And what I can tell you is gonna happen to a lot of you is you're gonna regret. Let me get very serious with you. Cause I want this for you. A lot of you don't realize how big of a deal this moment is. And so you're not gonna go hard enough. You're gonna take it for granted and you're gonna wake up in 18 months and everyone's gonna do it. And you're gonna cry to me the way so many influencers cry today about, like, where they were six years ago, but where they are now. And they're gonna. And this is my favorite one. You know what all these influencers that had a moment four years ago say to me, dear Gary, I've been shadow banned. And I reply, no, you haven't. You've been outflanked. I don't want you to get. You have such an advantage right now. Like, honestly, all of you should get up right now, like right now, and leave. Literally leave and go live or make content. This is like literally 100% obsession for the next year to distance yourself from. While you're in the lead. Because this is going to be it. It. It's a big deal. So what do I think? I think in the way that everyone underestimated social media. When I started the first influencer agency, Grape Story, with Jerome Jar, who was a Vine star. We signed Logan Paul, we had King Bach. All these people. People were like. Influencer was like, not even on people's like. Like, I used to say that influencers were gonna be more famous than famous people. And again, laughed at. Laughed at. I think a lot of people here are gonna do more revenue than a lot of stores that are littered throughout New York City here. Easy, easy. Humans are stores now at scale. But you need to go hard because the moment closes fast. Cause then everybody figures it out, right? All of Hollywood. Do you know that Hollywood did not go on social media in 06789, 10? They thought it was beneath them. I would beg celebrities, athletes, I'm like, please. This is. They laughed at it. That's why anytime MC Hammer or fucking anybody who went on Twitter or started an account, they would get so much love. Cause they were all making fun of it. And now they got so Many real celebrities are sad cause they're way less famous than influencers. Just like I'm right now yelling and screaming and asking all of you to start your own virtual influencers. Create a human that's not you and build them up. Because what influencers did to famous people, virtual influencers are about to do to influencers over the next decade. In 10 years, hundreds of the most famous people on earth are gonna be AI people, fake people, owned by people. And by the way, and by the way, those motherfuckers are gonna sell shit and outflank you. I need you to listen. I need you to fucking listen. You need to go hard and understand everything. Cause you're gonna have this moment and then you're gonna have to adjust. And you need to become the IP owner of other humans that aren't you. You're gonna need to actually get that skill so that you own the thing. You wanna put yourself out of business versus somebody else putting you out of business. You're gonna have a moment and then shit's gonna keep changing. I need you to go hard at this moment. You have to go hard the next 24 months and separate yourself.

[B]

I think you' shift in what we're seeing. And it's a lot of brand deals historically. And some people are a little hesitant because they've always gotten brand deals. And as we shift towards a cost per sale model, there's a certain hustle and grit in finding the right products. And the ceiling is much, much higher.

[A]

Right?

[B]

Because a cost per sale model, there's an ROI there that you're getting versus a brand deal. There's a contact requirement in a ceiling. So while those can be good, the shift to the cost per seal model, as many of you here are realizing, can be a great way to run your business and to make incremental revenue.

[A]

Well, it's going to be like it's a game of merit. What's cool about where this is going? First of all, it's gonna be and not. Or you can do both do brand deals and sell shit. I don't fuck. You know, come and do standup here some night. Like fucking do shit. You should do both, comma. What's amazing is for the best in here, the affiliate model's gonna work better. Cause you're gonna get your true value. Cause there's no hiding behind it. When you do your first thing and you sell fucking 18,000 units, like everyone's gonna know. And that's good for you. They're also gonna know if you sell Seven. So it's just gonna create more meritocracy around brand relationships with human beings. And some people don't want that because they've been ripping brands off. And some people are about that. But the people that don't want it, you don't get to decide the market's going to evolve into this. And so you can hold your breath that it doesn't become about merit if you're one of those people. But you will lose, so you might as well get good at it.

[B]

Can you go a little deeper into the role that you think trust and safety and authenticity is going to play over the next five to 10 years.

[A]

As they're creating content, to be frank, back to like shooting it straight. I think a lot of that is just like corporate mumbo bum jumbo. Like, I don't know, like, to me that's like, you're asking me, like, how important will oxygen be going forward, right? Like, trust and authenticity. That's how the world fucking moves. I think I'm aware of why we bring up those words in advertising. Because big brands are very tone deaf to the reality of the new world. So they talk about dumb shit in their boardrooms and it's the fucking mishegoss I have to deal with all the time. But I mean, yeah, that to me is a very, like, funny question. How it runs through my head, which is like, yes, I think it's good to be trustworthy.

[B]

Good to know, love.

[A]

It, and then back to like, let me actually bring value instead of being silly about it. And what I like about this model of selling how trustworthy and authentic you are will show up on how well you convert. And let me say this. Cause I've been selling shit my whole life. So this came, you know, since I was six, selling lemonade to this moment. I turned 49 in two weeks. I've been selling shit for 43 years. Let me tell you something that a lot of you, and I know some faces in here because I watch everything. Some of you are fucking up on something and I hope this helps you. The consumer can be tricked in the short term, but is not stupid. So some of you think you're clever and you're only tricking for a very small moment and we will forget about you. The consumer is smart. So for some of you, change your shit up. You're not as clever as you think you are. You're getting away with that. It's early. And better versions of you are gonna come and take your shit if you disrespect the customer. I'm just hoping one of you hears me. You know what I mean? That needs to. It will change everything for you. My journey. Wine Library TV. February 21, 2006. I sent a stock boy in a liquor store to Best Buy to buy a little camera so I could put up my first YouTube video. I sit down and put four wines in front of me, three wines in front of me. I think that I'm doing this. I think I'm doing QVC for wine. That's literally what I was saying. The camera turns on and literally the camera turns on. Literally. It's a blue light right now, but it was a red light. Eric Kastner, my former cto, was behind it. The camera turns on the second before the camera turns on. I think I'm doing qvc. The second the light went on, I decided to become the Wine Spectator. Let me explain that to you. QVC is me selling whatever the fuck we needed to sell at the wine Library. The Wine Spectator was the most trusted wine magazine in America that scored wines. I know some of you buy wine. You see the 91 points, the 92 points when you do that. I realized that if I was gonna sell stuff I didn't believe in. Cause the show format was I was gonna taste wine and tell you, but. But I also know that I think a lot of wines are below average and overpriced. It was stunning. It's one of the signature moments of my life. It's the foundation of what I just told all of you. It changed everything for me. I would literally be on camera reviewing wines that we were selling and telling people it was just, okay, that's weird in this format, right? But you could be reviewing things that you don't think are great, that you don't have affiliates on, not because you're trying to razz it and make your other product better, because you just genuinely don't like the flavor of this toothpaste or this shirt. Authenticity is everything, bro. If you're listening to this before 9:00am Eastern time, which I know a lot of you are, dog walking the gym, just consuming on your travel. I'm live right now. Probably if you're hearing this or shortly. I'm live at 9am I'm live on all my socials. And then the questions themselves. The Tea with Gary Vee show is back. If you're unaware, the questions themselves are on whatnot. So go check that out. We'[e-mail] live for that. I'm excited to be doing tea with GaryVee, I'm doing a lot in 2025. It's my home. I miss it. It was such a big deal in Covid and I hope to see you there.

[B]

I'm going to shut up and turn it over to some questions. How are we on time? Are we okay, cool. If you have a question, raise your hand. I will not be biased. I will try to find you and hand you the mic. We'll take three questions, so just go ahead and raise your hand.

[A]

This young lady over here has one.

[C]

Okay, so first off, I started out as a reseller, so I know that's your heart as well.

[A]

Oh, my God. Going to. Literally going to a garage sale like the second before I walk into that person's yard, that's a level of excitement that I don't know how to replicate.

[C]

Yeah. That's how I started on social media and actually it's kind of watching you. I thought I love estate sales and yard sales in Bristol and that's just started tick tock and do that. And that's what I did. End up with a Patreon way before shop and now this is what I do. And I live stream a lot.

[A]

Good.

[C]

And I love doing it. And so when you're talking all the time about being in front of the people, being in front of people and live streaming and growing a community for you, I do it mostly on TikTok, of course.

[A]

Yep.

[C]

Diversifying, going on to other platforms.

[A]

I'm a fan of.

[C]

It is key.

[A]

Yeah. I'm. Look, listen, notwithstanding our beautiful hosts here, like, you need to hedge. You never know anything. Forget about the ridiculous. TikTok will be here. All that and TikTok's way ahead. Like, let there be no confusion, they're way ahead and they continue to innovate. Watching TikTok navigate the last six, seven years has been a joy. They continue to innovate, they continue to like they're outflanking their competitive set. But I look, I think it is crazy as a business model to ever have all your eggs in one basket. That's just not being smart. So I think you should always constantly dabble. And that's what I think.

[C]

And the flip side of that, the second part is I am one person. I cannot clone myself currently.

[A]

I've heard that is an issue when.

[C]

It comes to time management.

[A]

It's not an issue. It means that you need to stop buying things with your money and hire people. I guess we all know some messed up issue fixed.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, issue fixed.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

Thanks.

[A]

One of the biggest things that will hold a lot of you back from building, the biggest thing you could build is you view the money right now to buy things instead of to build your business. When I built my daddy's business from ages 22 to 34, I never made more than $80,000 a year. All the money went back into building the business. Wasn't even my fucking business on some immigrant family business shit. So you, like, you could see my tone changed on that. When I hear people like, Gary, I can't fucking scale. I'm like, you better not buy a fucking Lambo. Then. The best way to own like real shit is by not buying dumb shit along the way.

[B]

Cool. Right here and then we'll take two more. So we'll go here and then we'll go. We'll go right there. Make it quick.

[A]

No worries. I'm good, I'm good, I'm good. Hi, how are you? What's your name?

[B]

Kelly.

[A]

Kelly, thank you.

[D]

Mom of two boys that are all in club sports and all that.

[A]

How old?

[D]

Six and nine. Two boys.

[A]

Okay, great. First of all, anyone who has an under 10 year old in your life, I need you to check out something that is like my biggest thing right now. So literally the biggest professional thing I'm doing right now is we just launched the Vee friends cartoon on YouTube kids. It'[e-mail] cartoon please check it out. Or cartoon. Is it cartoons or cartoon cartoons with an S? Cartoons. It's made by the people that made Cocomelon the first four episodes. It's not Coco Melon. And honestly, as a mom, especially of six year old boys or six, nine, you will really get what I'm trying to do. I basically was like, you know, Gary Vee was like 30 and then TikTok came out and Gary Vee became 16. And now I'm trying to bring that real, real energy to like 6, 7, 8, 9. You will see what I'm doing with Vee Friends. I'd love for you to check it out, please.

[D]

I guess that kind of segues into my question because you give a lot of parenting advice on my husband Obsessed.

[A]

Thank you.

[D]

So I'm super curious of how you. I hate the word balance, but how do you balance both lives and also bring your kids along the journey and teach them the safety of social media as well?

[A]

I'm not scared of social at all in the way that people talk about it because I think parenting is collectively using social as an excuse to not parent. If you're like TikTok I mean, a lot of you know this. I've been yelling about TikTok since the get. Since it was fucking musically in America, right? Plenty of people, especially when all the baloney started happening, would roll up at me at like airport or a restaurant and be like, gary, you know, I know I like you, but this fucking TikTok thing, like, it's a real fucking problem. And I swear to God, I would look at them and be like, then take it off your kid's phone. I'm not your fucking kid's parent. If you think like, I don't know, I'm 49. My parents thought like, alcohol was a problem, which meant they didn't want me fucking drinking when I was 14. So they scared the fuck out of me. Like, parenting has become unbelievably ludicrous. You don't like shit. Be a fucking parent. The problem with parenting now is y'all wanna be friends. You've got friends. You can be friendly. But your child is not your. That is not your friend. That is your child. Then slash can befriend. And so if you don't have the fucking backbone cause you're on some soft 2024 shit to be a fucking parent. But social media is life. We act as if. I love how people are like, there's bullying. I'm like, I grew up in Jersey in the 80s. Like, bullying. There's nobody who didn't deal with it. Bullying was like, we didn't even know it was bullying. It was just like living. Yeah, yeah. So look, here's what I think about it. 1. The ultimate anecdote to what people are scared about is self esteem. Our number one job as parents is to build actual self esteem in our kids. If your child and you know this, you're all living life. You've had friends in college, high school. Like, you've lived, we've all lived a little something. Whether you're that person or you know, people, you know, when somebody's got real, real self esteem, they're not fucking falling for any dumb shit. So first we have to establish self esteem. And then second, if you're really scared of something and you're allowed, every parent's allowed to think what's bad and what's not good. Some parents don't let their kids listen to me. Cause I curse, okay? Like, that makes me sad. That's why I made vee friends, you know, like, really, I want to make a positive impact. I get a real high on it. Like, I get that. Like, if in Your family. If you're being raised by your Southern grandma who went to church every weekend, like, cursing's bad. Like, I respect the shit out of that. So you're allowed. But then you need to be in control and be accountable. Not only just block my TikTok, go check the next day if I'm still blocked. Like, I don't get this lack of accountability. Be fucking parents. Yeah. Build self esteem. And then whatever scares you, monitor it. Problem is, parents wanna be kids and do all sorts of other shit besides parenting. And so they didn't have time, so they throw the fucking iPad and the phone to be their fucking partner in parenting. Well, guess what? If you have a partner, you have a partner. But you're in control. The phone's not alive. You can throw that shit in the fucking water. Yeah. Love that.

[D]

Thank you.

[A]

Got it.

[E]

Good.

[C]

Final.

[E]

One of my concerns is I've been on TikTok for a while now.

[A]

Okay.

[E]

And even a year ago or two years ago, I think we might all remember the trend of there's room for everybody here on TikTok. You can just scroll forever.

[A]

You can watch videos forever.

[E]

There's a place for everyone. And now that I've transitioned more over to the TikTok shop.

[A]

Yeah.

[E]

Somebody's gonna buy my dragon egg or they're gonna buy her dragon egg.

[A]

Yeah.

[E]

I feel like it's more of a competition.

[A]

It is a competition.

[E]

Guilt about that.

[A]

I don't feel right about that. This is Ursula, first of all. You're fucking the best for putting it this way. Why? Why do you feel that?

[E]

Because I do really feel TikTok is community. That's why I joined it. I joined it to be part of a community and have a TikTok family. And now I feel like they're my co workers and we're all on the sales team.

[A]

Do you feel. Do you feel like they're co workers or do you feel like they're competitors because the way you framed it up was more competitive? Okay.

[C]

I keep.

[E]

I'm visiting.

[A]

I'm.

[E]

I'm watching other people that made new friends face to face is great. But at the end of the month, one person gets the bonus.

[A]

Not true. Not true. Because. Because every person gets. Yeah. If. If to your point, if TikTok Shop was an affiliate was built, that whoever was best at the month took everybody else's money and got it all, then you would be right. But one person doesn't get the bonus at the end of the month. Everybody gets the bonus that they earned at the end of the month. And Ursula, I will say this. I am wildly empathetic. When people that grew up that weren't sales oriented weren't like, it's a transition. To your point. Community and selling stuff in an open marketplace, those are very different energies. The cool part is you're allowed to check out. So, for example, back to accountability. Let's say you DM'd me after this and we're like, hey, I want to follow up on that. Let's say we went back and forth on a flight. We were talking. I would say, look, Ursula, good news. Like, if this bothers you and doesn't make you happy, don't settle. Go back to community.

[E]

I'm just gonna say it. I feel like that's been taken away from me.

[B]

Why?

[E]

Because now the views that I get have links on them. And then my good old.

[A]

But you. But you're allowed to. You're allowed, but entertaining. But stop doing that. Then don't sell. Right?

[E]

But I like selling.

[A]

Ah. Ah. It wasn't taken away from you. You took it away from you. I don't have affiliate you. This is a very big theme that I want. This is going to make people happier. What I'm saying, you are in control. It wasn't taken away from you. You took it away from you. You clicked affiliate. Accountability is a beautiful energy. Do you know why I'm so happy? Because I think everything is my fault. You got this. And by the way, I think your spirit on this is beautiful. Can you tell her I got goosebumps? Because I think you're coming from a good place. But I just want you to know how in control you are. If it gets too much for you. Listen, I was born hunter seller. Not everybody is. And that doesn't mean I'm better or worse, I promise you. Especially for the ones in this room that are on the journey of going from little money to a lot of money. You're gonna learn when you get there. Money ain't the thing. I know people say, cool, let me find out. Cool, find out. Go find out. You'll learn. But good news, you're in control. You can go back to that Ursula and that TikTok relationship, turn off affiliate, and if not, learn how to put things in compartments. I think one of the things that works for me is I love being selfless as much as I like being selfish. I wanna take care of me and my family, you know? But I also love doing the things I do, you know, Like, I love saying yes to things that I don't get paid for. Like, I'll do shit. On karma, on love. And a lot of you that follow me, you know how much I give away my best advice for free. I'm not sending you to some. Now pay me 99 bucks. You guys know, you know, that's what helps me feel okay when I sell something. Cause I sell things I believe in. Why do I want all of you to buy veefriends trading cards on ebay? Because I think I'm gonna build the next Pokemon in the next 40 years, and I think they'll go up in value. And I think it's gonna teach yourself and kids good values. I feel good about that. I'm proud as fuck of what I sell. Everything. And so that is a great way to end. Don't sell shit on this incredible platform that you don't like.