Why Now Is The Time to Crush It! Cash In On Your Passion
by Gary Vaynerchuk
A book review by Mia Lee
Gary Vaynerchuk is an evangelist for combining passion with whatever you choose as your business. I learned about Gary because of one of the tools he preaches about in his book Crush It! The spreading of messages and communicating via social media is a powerful and immediate conduit for building your personal brand. And Facebook is how I found out about Gary.
My friend Tyler responded to a post Gary made on his Facebook page – which prompted me to contact Gary. His publicist sent me a pre-release of his book. After reading Crush It! I’d like to recommend this book for anyone who is an entrepreneur at heart, or who wants to become inspired in today’s new world of marketing, branding and transparency – especially during this time of social media overload. Crush It! is set to go on sale October 13, 2009.
Storytelling is by far the most underrated skill in business. Gary’s story is the ‘epitome’ of the American dream. In 1978 his family arrived in America and couldn’t speak English. By 1985 he was the first kid on the block with a Nintendo and now in 2009 he runs a $60 million dollar business based out of New Jersey.
No matter what you’re doing for a living, what your hobbies are or who you work for, you need to start thinking of your self as a brand. Authenticity is key. Opportunity lies in transparency. Entrepreneurs don’t really have a choice. The lines between public and private life are becoming increasingly blurred. Gone are the days where businesses could con the consumer without repercussions.
It’s a new world. There are huge opportunities that lie ahead for those who want to embrace them. Social media gives entrepreneurs and businesses and unprecedented chance to engage with their customers and communicate their message. Gary recommends a few of the leading social media platforms to get started.
In December, 2008 Gary spent $7,500 to offer free shipping codes for winelibrary.com via three marketing/advertising channels: a billboard ad strategically placed on the New Jersey turnpike which yielded 170 orders; a radio campaign which did about 240 orders and a direct mail campaign which yielded about 300 orders. Then Gary used Twitter, and for free, got 1,700 orders in 48 hours.
As Gary points out, some people are still in disbelief about why people would want to know if I’m on my way to get a pedicure’ or that ‘I’m having fish sticks for dinner.’ Twitter means different things to different people. Remember, you’re not the only one listening. Five reasons Gary thinks Twitter is the most important social media tool available for businesses right now:
- It has incredible endorsement power.
- It’s a press release opportunity.
- It’s a research and development tool that allows you to crowdsource.
- It allows even your most mundane questions to become opportunities for conversation.
- It’s a great vehicle through which to spread your commerce-driven intentions.
And a really important point Gary makes:
‘If you’re not using Twitter because your camp thinks its stupid, you’re going to lose out. It doesn’t matter if you think it’s stupid. It’s free communication.’
