Gary Vaynerchuk: Profit from Your Passion

When it comes to the gospel of personal branding, there is perhaps no one so well qualified to preach as Gary Vaynerchuk. He has not only turned his family business into $60 million-a-year wine empire but has cultivated a following of more than 100,000 for his daily video blog, Wine Library TV. A veritable poster child for candor and authenticity, Gary is a living testament to what can be achieved when passion is allowed to flourish in the absence of the limitations of conventional media. Recently Gary joined Fame Foundry’s Jordan Drake to discuss the new rules for success in business, revealing that underneath his charismatic persona lies an unshakeable work ethic, relentless hustle and true dedication to his fans. [powerpress] Best-selling author and video blogger extraordinaire Gary Vaynerchuk could be considered the founding father of modern personal branding. With the launch of Wine Library TV in 2006, he transformed his family’s local wine shop into a national industry leader and himself into a social media celebrity. Through his success, he has learned valuable lessons on social media, passion and transparency, which he shares with readers in his new book Crush It! Why Now is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion.

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Revision3: Shaping Media for a New Generation

As the leading television network for the Internet generation, Revision3 is truly the epitome of a media company that is both a product and servant of the culture of the Web. Today, Revision3 is a full-fledged broadcast operation that offers a line-up of 22 shows, all of which are broadcast around the world in high definition, with content and production quality on par with traditional television networks. However, when Revision3 was founded in 2005, the Internet landscape was very different. Operating in an era when web video was in its infancy and social media was not yet mainstream, founders Kevin Rose, Jay Adelson, Dan Huard, Ron Gorodetzky and David Prager built their business model on the premise that where there is a community of people who share a common passion, there is a demographic waiting to be served – both in terms of content and advertising. With the recent emergence of new technologies for distributing video on the Web, they realized they could not only produce and broadcast great content but find and reach an audience without being tethered to the behemoths of established print, radio and television networks. In this way, Revision3 and its founders were among the pioneers of the modern media era. They represent what is possible when the barriers of traditional media are stripped away and there is no longer a divide between creators and distributors, between host and audience or between companies and customers. Today, with 10 million downloads a month and major sponsors including Ford, Sony, Netflix and Verizon, Revision3 has proven their fundamental premise to be true, and you don’t have to be an aspiring media mogul to follow their lead. Wherever there is a community of people who are passionate about the same thing, there is a demographic – a tribe – ready and waiting to be led. They want to be understood, they want to be informed and they want to be they want to be entertained. The key to success in today’s marketplace is finding your community and tapping into their passion. Create something they love, something that fills a void, something they can depend on and something that becomes ingrained as a habit, and you’ll have a legion of loyal fans and followers. Revision3 founder David Prager and CEO Jim Louderback recently sat down with Fame Foundry’s Jordan Drake to discuss the power of online communities and the future of media in the Digital Age. [powerpress]

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