Category: Blog

  • The Cultural Shifts Marketers Need to Know for Q4

    The Cultural Shifts Marketers Need to Know for Q4

    If you thought Part 1 of the Constellations Live session had your marketing brain buzzing…Part 2 is here to turn the volume up. 🔥

    In Part 2: Legendary Locals, The Elder Edge, and New Collar live session, our favorite chronically online dynamic duo Hayley Grant (Lead Strategist, Vayner Consulting) and Jaimee Estreller (VP, Platforms & Culture) returned to unpack even more cultural constellations…a.k.a the macro trend shifts shaping how people think, buy, and belong right now.

    You can catch the full replay on VaynerMedia’s LinkedIn or YouTube, or keep scrolling for the written takeaways.

    This is your guide to three emerging cultural shifts every marketer should be paying attention to heading into 2026.

    The Rebrand of Work

    The new wave of cultural cachet is found in calloused hands, not corner offices.

    In response to AI anxiety and corporate fatigue, Gen Z and younger millennials are proudly turning toward AI-proof careers and manual trades. This leads us to a new kind of flex happening on TikTok: rough hands > soft hands 👋

    For marketers, think of this as the rare aesthetic of workwear not just as fashion, but as an identity. This is a massive opportunity to celebrate craftsmanship, community, and tangible skill across many industries.

    Age Is the New Flex

    The younger generations are turning their gaze upward and realizing that wisdom is the real influence.

    The Elder Edge celebrates age not as decline, but as credibility. Ever scrolled and seen “granfluencers” breaking stigmas around menopause? Aging is being freshly reclaimed as aspirational, grounded, and incredibly chic.

    In your 2026 brand campaigns, perhaps ditch the obsession with “forever 21,” and build campaigns that honor longevity, mentorship, and shared lived experience.

    Where Hometown Pride Meets Pop Culture

    ‘Local’ is having it’s legendary moment with creators and brands reclaiming place-based storytelling. Small towns, regional aesthetics, and state fair energy (yes, that’s a real thing…1B+ TikTok mentions and counting) are redefining cool.

    Don’t think of this as ‘nostalgia’…that’s an evergreen trend. This is more about a reconnection to authenticity. The local corner store, the family-owned laundromat, the community fair…they all hold cultural capital again.

    In Q4, find the local flavor in your audience’s world. Celebrate the pride & rituals that make a place legendary, not generic.

    TL;DR: Real > Filtered

    From AI-proof jobs to ageless icons to hyperlocal pride, the MAJOR key takeaway is…people are fully rejecting the artificial and sprinting toward the real. 

    The brands that listen, localize, and lead with respect for real culture will be the ones that earn true attention from your audience on social media next year. 

    Watch the full replay on YouTube below or download the full report to dive a little deeper into every trend (and a few we didn’t cover here 👀).

  • The Trends Marketers Need to Know for Q4

    The Trends Marketers Need to Know for Q4

    While some are looking in the rearview mirror or daydreaming about the distant future, Jaimee Estreller (SVP of Platforms & Culture) and Hayley Grant (VP of Strategy) had their eyes on the now during this week’s virtual livestream, Millennials Revenge, Individual Empire, and Funve$tments. Part 1 of this jam packed Constellations session aims to help brand marketers get ahead of underpriced trends and position their brands with more relevant organic content this Q4…and beyond! 🚀

    You can catch the full event video recording on VaynerMedia’s LinkedIn & YouTube channels, or keep scrolling for the TL;DR of what you missed! Be sure to download the full report presentation highlighted during the livestream. It goes even deeper in these core constellations (and more!) 

    The Comeback No One Saw Coming (Except Them!)

    Once roasted for avocado toast, side parts, and general “cringe,” this generation is back and setting the cultural standards again. Think reboots like Dawson’s Creek, the resurgence of bootcut jeans, and viral TikTok remixes bridging generations and Gen Z is cheering them on.

    For brands, the takeaway is don’t ignore millennial influence, please!. Their tastes, behaviors, and cultural signals aren’t just nostalgia and they’re powerful tools for building relevance across industries, from parenting and music to fashion and consumer goods.

    Joy is the New Inve$tment Strategy

    Welcome to the rise of the emotional ROI economy. Consumers are spending not just for utility, but for delight. Have you seen an influx of conversations around blind boxes, charm culture, and small collectibles? This is what we’re talking about! Jaimee and Hayley are calling this one the funve$tment economy which is a strategic approach where people budget for joy, surprise, and small-scale excitement alongside more conventional saving.

    Brands can tap into this trend by creating moments of surprise and delight. This can look like limited releases, gamified experiences, and collectible campaigns that resonate with your audience on an emotional level.

    Creators ARE the Strategy

    Creators are no longer just content producers. They’re building entire ecosystems with micro communities, and multimillion-dollar empires. Jaimee and Hayley highlighted how brands are now leveraging creator-led content, tools, and niche communities to amplify reach and engagement and the biggest opportunity lies in recognizing individual perspective as currency.

    For marketers, the lesson is to partner with creators who bring authentic POVs and dedicated fandoms. They’re the ones shaping culture, influencing behavior, and driving attention in ways traditional campaigns can’t do.

    TL;DR: Brands that observe culture, move quickly, and embrace new behaviors will dominate Q4.

    Keen to learn more? Download the full report for even deeper insights or watch the livestream on YouTube to see Jaimee and Hayley in action. We may be biased but their personalities really shine on camera 🤩

  • Day Trading Attention Book Club: Finale Recap

    Day Trading Attention Book Club: Finale Recap

    Welcome to the grand finale of our Day Trading Attention Book Club! This September, we kicked off something brand new LIVE on Linkedin. All month long we went deep with a behind the scenes guide to what is actually working for brands right now.

    If that sounds like something you’d like to see…💝🤲here’s a beautifully packaged deck just for you with all of the insights we presented LIVE!

    If you’re a brand marketer, keep scrolling for the TL;DR, and consider this your cheat sheet for what’s working in the wild world of social media today. 🤳🌎🚀

    Follow Attention (It’s Really That Simple)

    Stop overthinking platforms and trends. Whether it’s long-form video, short-form clips, TikTok, Instagram, or even emerging platforms… the key is following where people are paying attention

    Our SVP, VaynerConsulting, Meredith Montana says, “I feel like a marketer can just feel like, what are we doing? Where are we going? But really, it’s just about understanding where consumer attention is and why that’s happening.”

    For brands, this means don’t get stuck chasing what worked last year. Start by mapping where your audience actually spends time, see what’s resonating, and go from there. 

    And like Gary keeps saying 🥁 …test with your organic content THEN scale what works. 

    Experiment Like a Scientist

    Content is data, and every post is an experiment. Nick, Meredith, and Raghav (yes! The guy who helped write the book!) shared tons of examples of how second chances, third chances, and the tiniest of tweaks can turn an underperforming piece of content into an overperforming one.

    Take Gary’s content strategy… he’ll post the same video with slightly different hooks, captions, or formats to see what resonates. With these subtle changes, we get rapid insights that guide bigger creative bets.

    For brands, that means:

    🔁Don’t be precious about your assets. Repost, remix, and reformat.

    📊Track the data: what hook, caption, or format drives the best engagement?

    🧑‍💻Test across channels. TikTok version vs. Instagram vs. YouTube Shorts? See what sticks and scale.

    Volume + Variety = MASSIVE Opportunity

    Meredith and Raghav stressed that more content means more chances for your team to learn. One shoot can become ten pieces of content and each can be tested in a slightly different way.

    A real world #client 😉 example is Jimmy John’s. A viral pickle sandwich trend started from social chatter and became their top-performing limited-time offer. They even partnered with Snooki for a Halloween “Pickle Witch” campaign, all informed by social insights.

    Our Chief Content Officer, Nick Miaritis, (Omelette King as we like to call him)had a great reminder for brands and creators in session 3: “Make sure the idea engine of what you do is constantly revving and don’t give up too early. I posted fifty or sixty times, getting a few thousand views, and then one post blew up with fifteen million views. That changed my creative life forever. One post can change everything, so keep experimenting.” 🍳😉IYKYK.

    Look at every piece of content not as a one-off, but as a starting point.

    Good Ideas Can Come From Anywhere

    Ideation is a team sport. Meredith explained how the collaborative environment at Vayner leads to unexpected hits. 

    Everyone from junior team members to executives shares creative ideas and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

    Some of the most effective campaigns started from comments, DMs, or small fan interactions.

    Make the Long Game Your Strategy

    Attention is a marathon, not a sprint. Raghav said it best: “Building a brand, or even a personal brand, is about consistent investment over time.”

    For brands, this means:

    🤳Commit to always-on, organic social.

    🧠Keep learning from the content you post.

    🚀Scale what works, and don’t fear volume.

    It’s NOT about chasing virality. You need to be building a system that moves at the speed of attention.

    Made It To the End and Want 5 Actionable Steps for Your Brand?

    Write these down! Copy & paste to your SMM in Slack! 👇

    1. Follow Attention: Map where your audience spends time and what content they engage with. Treat it like your compass. 
    2. Test Everything: Just like rewearing your favorite shirt to the office, don’t be afraid to recycle content and make it new. Repurpose, remix, and reformat content across platforms to see what resonates. 
    3. Think in Volume: One content shoot = multiple pieces of creative. Maximize your content by creating variations and testing them across platforms. 
    4. Open Ideation: Encourage ideas from all corners of your team and even from your audience. Some of your biggest wins might come from unexpected places.

    Commit for the Long Game: Attention isn’t instant. It’s earned. Stay consistent, keep experimenting, and invest in learning from every post.

    Are you a marketer who wants to collaborate with us? Our Chief Business Officer, Kaylen McNamara hosts some pretty epic Capes as Consulting sessions  🤝 Connect With Us

    Are you chronically online and want to work for us? 💡 Apply here

  • 4 Stand Out Marketing Truths Heard from Shoptalk 🛍️🗣️

    4 Stand Out Marketing Truths Heard from Shoptalk 🛍️🗣️

    Shoptalk confirmed what we already know: attention thrives where culture lives.

    I just got back to NYC after an energizing few days in Chicago where I attended my first Shoptalk. We hosted brand marketers on a Chez Vayner Chicago River Cruise, listened to brilliant minds from MCo Beauty, Papa Johns, Coach, Fabletics, and SoulCycle on panels, and watched our CEO, Gary Vaynerchuk, drop all the insights in his keynote speech.

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    Chicago river cruise
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    One thing was clear: consumer behavior is evolving faster than ever!

    Here are the 4 biggest takeaways that every marketer needs to have on their radar:

    The Multi-Screen Shopping Sensation Is Here 📱📺

    Ever sit down to watch TV and catch yourself scrolling your phone at the same time? You and a whopping 95% of consumers are multitasking while watching TV, and nearly a third are actively shopping on their phones while doing it.

    During the panel with Wayne Purboo (VP, Amazon Shopping Video, Amazon Ads), Tony Marlow (CMO, LG Ad Solutions), and Jordan Rost (Head of Ad Marketing, Roku), the consensus was clear: brands need to embrace this dual-screen mindset with shoppable TV, interactive overlays, and content that feels less like an interruption and more like an invitation.

    The brands winning right now? They’re creating frictionless experiences that meet consumers exactly where they are and across every screen. 👏

    Community-First Marketing Is the New Flex 🤝

    Consumer favorited brands are the ones engaging with their audiences, vs speaking to them; creating fun and innovative ways to show up in culture and in feed. They understand that marketing isn’t about pushing messages, but rather, creating experiences that people want to be part of.

    Some 👏applaudable👏 examples:

    • Papa Johns gifted free pizza to anyone named Taylor and Travis on engagement day.
    • SharkNinja fans have turned protein ice cream hacks into TikTok communities.
    • MCoBeauty has flipped “dupe culture” into “dupé culture” with smart collabs with folks like Bethenny Frankel and Campbell (“Pookie”) Puckett – who we had the pleasure of hosting at Chez Vayner in Cannes, ICYMI (!)

    Coach has shown up courtside with the WNBA IRL, and in a URL format with digital presences through Coach x Roblox, WNBA 2K, and even on Bitmoji (where you can get your hands on a highly coveted Tabby bag 👜!)

    During the panel, Kimberly Wallengren (VP Marketing, North America, Coach), Kari Cook (VP Strategy & Planning, Americas, MCoBeauty), Jenna Bromberg (CMO, Papa John’s), and Kaitlyn Beauchemin (Global CMO, Ninja, SharkNinja) shared how tapping into community and showing up in fun, unexpected ways, consumers don’t just notice, they actively participate and become brand advocates.

    Organic First…Always ✨

    Our CEO of VaynerMedia, Gary Vaynerchuk, brought the house down and heads nodding with one simple truth in his keynote speech: organic social is your testing ground. 

    Please stop wasting GOOD media dollars on unproven BAD creative ideas. 

    Test with your organic content in the wild first, and then scale what works. 

    Owned → earned → paid. That’s the model.

    The Unsung Heroes: Your Frontline Employees 🛍️

    Turns out, some of the best insights are coming from the sales floor (and communities on organic social, ofc) Retailers like Coach (#Client:)) and Fabletics are tapping frontline employees for feedback that informs their innovation and customer experience strategy.

    As Meera Bhatia (President and COO, Fabletics) and Leigh Manheim (President, North America, Coach) highlighted on the panel, the most valuable data often lives in real conversations.

    Our POV🔎:

    One scroll through TikTok and you’ll see consumers actively shaping how brands reinvent themselves both digitally / URL, and IRL. It’s a thrilling time to be in marketing, where authenticity meets innovation and community drives growth.

    Want to partner with us? 👉 Drop us a line!

  • Day Trading Attention Book Club: Week 1 Recap

    Day Trading Attention Book Club: Week 1 Recap

    Labor Day’s behind us, the pumpkin spice is flowing, and at Vayner that means it’s Q4 grind time which is basically the first day of school for marketers. To kick things off, our CMO Avery Akkineni and VP of Core Relationships, Nick Dio went live on LinkedIn with the launch of our Day Trading Attention Book Club, a weekly series running all September where we’ll be breaking down the biggest ideas, chapter by chapter, from our favorite CEO, Gary Vaynerchuk’s, latest book.

    If you missed the live session… no worries, there’s no pop quiz 😉 but keep scrolling for your TL;DR.

    What Is Day Trading Attention (Really)?

    Gary’s idea is simple but seismic: attention is today’s most valuable currency in marketing.

    Brands that know how to spot, capture, and leverage attention in real time are the ones who are winning.

    And before we get into all the details, this is not just about platforms or ads… it’s about culture. Whether it’s billion-dollar empires or a really cool guy on a longboard with cranberry juice, the throughline is the same: attention runs the show.

    Chapter 1: The TikTokification of Social Media 📱

    Remember when only TikTok had swipeable short-form video? That feels like ancient history. Now, every platform from YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, to even LinkedIn followed suit. (AND let it be known, Gary wants you to be posting on all of them!)

    The main takeaway from the evolution of these platforms is to note that we’re in the ✨non-follower era.✨ That means your content wins not because you have 10M followers, but because the algorithm sees people engaging with it. Wedding posts, a fall haul, an ootd for school, or your uncle’s viral Facebook rant… the playing field is wide open.

    This is absolutely exciting for brands and creators, but it’s not easy without strategy, so let’s break it all the way down.

    Speed Is the Strategy ⚡️

    If there’s one word that defines Day Trading Attention, it’s speed. 

    Culture moves fast. Remember that trend from… two weeks ago? Exactly. 

    Brands need to move faster. Wait four days for approvals? The moment’s already over. You can’t trend-jack everything, but you can’t afford to miss the right moment either.

    Chapter 2: The Modern Advertising Framework

    The Vayner framework is an integrated flywheel where strategy, creative, and production move together at the speed of culture and feed the creative we’re producing for brands.

    Instead of siloed teams handing off briefs for weeks at a time, insights are flowing in real time and are informing the content that’s relevant today.

    The Rise of the Personal Brand

    Another big theme in today’s social media era is people trust people. Consumers want real product reviews, behind-the-scenes moments, and the messy human stuff…not polished perfection.

    Whether you’re Beyoncé, or a small business owner, building an authentic personal brand is a massive unlock.

    Pro tip: Don’t overthink your credentials. You don’t need a Wharton degree to share your POV. You just need to show up consistently and authentically with your audience.

    Making Content Out of Culture 🎾

    From The Eras tour to the US Open, cultural moments are MASSIVE opportunities for marketers to show up authentically and fast.

    At Vayner, even our client outings double as content engines. Instead of just hosting at the US Open, we captured insights, asked mini mic questions, and turned it into LinkedIn content that reached hundreds of thousands of viewers.

    Don’t just slap on a logo, and call it a day. The real impact comes from being in the mix and gathering insights that will continue creating content and reach long after the event is over.

    Your Homework This Week: Read the Book (Or Join Our Book Club) 🎒

    No pop quizzes, but there is homework 😉

    Join us live every Wednesday this September as we continue to unpack Day Trading Attention, chapter by chapter, hosted by key Vayner Voices.

    Want to catch the live replay from Week 1?  👉  Watch on YouTube

    Want a hard cover copy to bring on your commute? 📚 Grab Gary’s book here

    See you this Wednesday, September 10th, at 11am ET for our next book club session! RSVP here

  • Big News: H&R Block Taps VaynerMedia as Social and Media Agency of Record

    Big News: H&R Block Taps VaynerMedia as Social and Media Agency of Record

    Taxes may only come once a year, but H&R Block is showing up for their consumers 365 days. (Drum roll, please!) That’s why they’ve expanded their partnership with us, naming VaynerMedia as their Social Creative and Media Agency of Record.

    This isn’t just a title swap. It’s part of a bigger transformation led by Chief Marketing & Experience Officer Jill Cress, turning H&R Block from a “see you in April” tax prep brand into one that delivers year-round value. Because being relevant in this industry isn’t just seasonal; it’s about showing up when consumers need you most.

    From Seasonal to Always-On

    For decades, H&R Block has been synonymous with the once-a-year filing rush, and it’s now building upon its legacy of earned consumer trust by moving into everyday online conversations that matter.  For us, it means creating content that earns attention, builds trust, and delivers impact at scale. The brand is rewriting its own playbook and meeting the needs of every generation, every day.

    A Shared Belief in Social-First

    Consumer behavior has shifted. People don’t want brands that pop in once a year; they expect you to show up every. single. day. Period.

    Enter H&R Block. Led by Chief Marketing & Experience Officer Jill Cress’s “fail fast, learn fast” mindset, this partnership is built to move at culture-speed and designed to test, learn, and pivot in real time. No dusty playbooks here.

    And the proof is loud. From AI-powered assistance to social-first storytelling to even gaming integrations, H&R Block isn’t waiting for relevance, they’re creating it.

    “Bringing social creative and media together under one partner isn’t just operationally efficient, it’s a competitive advantage,” says Cress. “VaynerMedia’s integrated approach fuels agility, sharpens our cultural edge, and ensures we’re building stronger connections with more customers, all year long by integrating H&R Block into daily interactions.”

    Year-Round Relevance, Built for Today’s Consumer

    Together, H&R Block and VaynerMedia are proving what happens when social creative and media don’t live in separate lanes: you get a brand that shows up in culture every day of the year, backed by measurable results that matter.

    Our CEO and Chairman of VaynerX, Gary Vaynerchuk, says it best, “When social content is supercharged with strategic media efforts, the results speak for themselves. By championing the integration, Jill is demonstrating H&R Block’s dedication to advancing modern marketing practices. We’re incredibly humbled that the Company has put their trust in us, and we’re eager to deliver impact that exceeds their brand goals.”

    Want to partner with us? Drop us a line!

  • From Influencers to Instant Checkout: Why Live Shopping Is the Next Big Play for Brands

    From Influencers to Instant Checkout: Why Live Shopping Is the Next Big Play for Brands

    This isn’t the influencer marketing you think you know. At VaynerMedia, we’ve been working with creators, affiliates, influencers, and talent for years, but between the rise of affiliates, the explosion of TikTok Shop (they’re pulling in over a BILLION dollars a month in the U.S. alone 👀), and the fact that people can now buy from their feeds in seconds instead of weeks, the game has officially changed. Every swipe is a signal, and every signal can turn into a sale.

    I sat down with our EVP, Commerce, Zubin Mowlavi, in a recent webinar. Zubin is an absolute fountain of knowledge in the commerce space and we dove deep into what’s really happening and why live shopping is shaping up to be one of the biggest brand opportunities we’ve seen in years.

    If you’re ready to put this into action today, keep on scrolling for the highlights.

    The Funnel Flip

    For years, the buyer journey looked like this: discover a product → think about it → see a retargeting ad → maybe get an email…and then eventually hit checkout. That whole process used to take days, or (omg can you believe it)…weeks.

    Social commerce has compressed that into seconds. On TikTok Shop, a product can go from “never heard of it” to “delivered to my doorstep” with one thumb swipe on a video. The funnel hasn’t just changed, it’s been turned completely upside down.

    Affiliates: The Keys To the Future of Live Shopping for Your Brand 🔑

    Affiliates aren’t just sharing links. They’re the people talking to your consumers on a daily basis. Having real conversations, building trust, and sharing insights at a scale brands could never pull off alone.

    Think of affiliates as curating mini storefronts that consumers actually want to shop. Each creator builds their shelf with products they genuinely love, and their audiences discover (and buy) based on that trust.

    The brands leaning into this shift in influencer marketing aren’t just selling more, they’re driving discovery in a way that feels authentic, and earning long-term loyalty.

    The Flywheel Effect

    Winning in live shopping is all about running a tight playbook. 

    Here is a four-step flywheel:

    1. Select partners with real cultural fit and sales history.
    2. Coach them with briefs that feel more like sales tips than brand manuals.
    3. Capture both the metrics and the qualitative insights and discover why something worked, or didn’t.
    4. Scale what’s working and tweak what isn’t.

    It’s fast, scrappy, and built for constant learning. What once took six months to test now happens in a single week.

    Rethinking Brand KPIs

    ROAS and CAC aren’t going away, but social commerce comes with its own scoreboard. We’re talking about:

    • Affiliate conversion rate (how many say “yes” to your outreach)
    • Revenue per video (because every TikTok video has a dollar sign attached)
    • Creator lifetime value (not just one post, but the ripple effect over time)

    Small signals add up quickly and they can reshape your entire business growth model if you’re tracking the right ones.

    Rewarding Creators the Right Way

    In 2025, brands should be thinking about affiliates like they’re your business partners. That means thinking beyond flat commissions. Some brands are experimenting with performance-based equity, while others are giving affiliates deeper data access to help them sell better with their niche, trusted audiences.

    The point is when you treat affiliates like co-strategists of the brand, the loyalty (and sales) are MASSIVE opportunities.

    You Got the TL;DR. Now Where Do You Start?

    Keep it simple:

    • Identify 15 affiliates who fit your brand and already drive results.
    • Test 5–7 products or bundles before trying to sell your entire catalog.
    • Hold weekly insight standups to capture what’s working and why.

    Remember, every swipe can be a signal. Every signal can be a sale. And the brands that lean into this shift now will be the ones setting the pace for 2026.

    👇 Want the full playbook from our team? Catch the live replay on our YouTube.

    👉Want to partner with us? Drop us a line!

  • An Update on the Underpriced Attention: The FYP Gets Social Proofed

    An Update on the Underpriced Attention: The FYP Gets Social Proofed

    Your brand strategy probably needs to change and Instagram just dropped THREE NEW features to prove it. We’re officially in the non-follower era, where the majority of views come from people who don’t follow you, and Instagram’s newest features, Reposts, Friends Map, and Friends Feed, are built for that reality.

    This isn’t just a platform update; it’s a wake-up call to rethink how you create, distribute, and measure your content. Brands that adapt quickly will earn outsized reach and engagement while everyone else plays catch-up.

    To help you move fast, the PAC (Platforms, Algorithms, and Culture) team, EVP, Peter Chun, and I broke down exactly what these changes mean, why they’re a massive opportunity, and how to take advantage right now.

    You can watch the full session here or keep scrolling for the TL;DR.

    The New Era of Social

    Let’s be real, social media is a landscape that changes faster than the seasons and we’ve been tracking the shift. On many of our top-performing Instagram Reels, between 99.2%-100% of views are coming from people who don’t follow the accounts. Instagram’s latest features aren’t just updates; they’re built to fuel this trend.

    This is the “non-follower era,” and it demands a different creative approach. Instead of producing content only for your loyal audience, you need to create posts as if it’s someone’s very first impression of your brand.

    The “P” and “A” of PAC: Platforms and Algorithms

    Let’s talk about the big picture: our PAC framework is built on three pillars, but right now, Platforms and Algorithms are the ones that matter most.

    The platforms are constantly releasing new features, and they all seem to slowly evolve from one platform to the next. The key is to adopt these new features early. Why? Because the platform wants to see how they perform, so they’re likely to give your content a boost. Brands need to think like creators and jump on these opportunities.

    The algorithms are all about primary metrics and understanding user behavior. Your content’s success isn’t just about views; it’s about what people do after they see your content. We’re talking about shares, comments, and, now, reposts. This is the power of what our team calls “underpriced attention.”

    Instagram Reposts: DM’s with a Megaphone 🙂 

    The headline feature everyone is talking about is the new repost button, which functions similarly to the retweet on X, or the repost on TikTok. It’s a game-changer because it builds off the behavior of sending DMs and makes it public; it’s your DMs with a megaphone. When a follower reposts your content, their followers will see it in their feed. This gives your content a massive organic reach that would have been impossible before.

    So, how can you use this?

    • Repost your top performers: Give your best content a second life by reposting it with a new note or a fresh perspective.
    • Give love to sub-brands or clients: If you’re an agency or a larger company, reposting content from other brands you work with or that you admire is a great way to show off what you’re doing and build community.
    • Connect with your community: Repost a fan’s post featuring your product. It’s a powerful way to show your brand’s empathy and connectivity, and it can completely change how people perceive you.

    Friends Map and Friends Feed: A New Way to Connect

    These two new features are all about seeing what your connections are doing.

    The ‘Friends Map’ lets you see content that has been tagged with a specific location from people you follow. The key takeaway for brands is simple: use location tags. If you’re a restaurant, a retail store, or even a brand hosting an event, a location tag is a new way to get discovered.

    The ‘Friends Feed’ is a curated feed of public Reels that your friends have liked, commented on, or shared. For brands, this is about understanding the mindset of the “group chat.” Create content that is relevant and so “on-the-nose” that people will want to tag their friends in it. The more conversation you can drive, the more organic distribution you’ll get.

    *We recommend that brands keep their locations private unless there’s an intentional reason to be discovered. We’ll be keeping close tabs on how use cases for this feature evolves.*

    If you’ve made it this far…

    The non-follower era is here to stay. While followers are still important, the new Instagram features are a clear signal that the platform is prioritizing discovery and shareability. The best thing you can do? Move fast. Experiment. Don’t be precious.

    As a brand or marketer, you have a massive opportunity to use these new features to reach new audiences and drive real value. Now get out there and start posting (and reposting!).

    Curious for more?

    Watch Peter, and I break it all down, live, on Linkedin and Youtube.

    And if staying ahead of the industry curve is your thing (it should be), hit follow on LinkedIn. We’re sharing insights, trends, and bold hot takes weekly. 

    Wanna chat? Drop us a line here

  • The Chat Effect: Impact of Conversational AI on Search Marketing

    The Chat Effect: Impact of Conversational AI on Search Marketing

    This week, our Head of Investment Jon Morgenstern and EVP of Media Benjamin Allison discussed The Chat Effect, a live deep dive on how advanced conversational AI is increasingly disrupting the fundamental architecture that, for over two decades, has underpinned user search behavior on the internet. This consumer shift in-kind is creating new, novel priorities within both traditional SEO & SEM practices that marketers must understand and begin adapting to sooner vs. later as we close out the back half of 2025.

    No differently than the years-long window of “Digital Transformation” marketers have been living through, this emergent “AI Transformation” era we expect will also take several years to manifest to its full potential. That said, there are multiple concrete steps brands can and should be taking today to gain an early foothold and advantage in the current AI search landscape, which Jon, Ben and Avery focus primarily on in the stream.

    You can catch the full event video recording on VaynerMedia’s LinkedIn & YouTube channels, or keep scrolling for the tl;dr. Be sure to download the full report presentation that was highlighted during the live-stream as well, as it goes into even more depth on the core topics discussed and more, and was designed with pragmatism for brand marketing leaders in mind.

    AI Search Continues to Scale & Grow Share

    Platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini are enhancing and evolving the search experience as we know it, moving from more front-and-center clickable links and last-click attribution to synthesized contextual answers, accelerating the rise of zero-click search consumption and other novel measurement challenges for a historically web traffic-centric (and dependent) ecosystem, pushing legacy metrics like CTR towards obsolescence while augmenting the importance of experimenting with new AI-forward metrics such as Share of Model among others.

    In 2025, we estimate that AI search already accounts for roughly 7.6% of global queries. By 2027, we expect that to more than triple. Among others, a core question is the speed and magnitude by which Google disrupts itself, and proliferates its balance of AI Overviews within traditional search vs. AI Mode vs. other Gemini-powered features and interfaces to come.

    This shift is impacting everything from how websites are crawled/indexed to how and where ads are served to how success is measured. Zero-click behavior is rising, organic search traffic is declining, and visibility is being redefined, with different query categories being asymmetrically disrupted now vs. tomorrow, and an ever-growing critical need to orient around traffic value over volume.

    Winning in the New World of Search

    We believe we’re in a fourth era of digital disruption, after the rise of the web, search, and social; the era of AI-powered search, discovery and agentic automation. Brands should be preparing and understanding the substantial magnitude of disruption that’s already begun to play out, and act with agility and urgency, starting by starting.

    Here’s how we’re advising partners to adapt:

    1. Make your content LLM-friendly.

    AI doesn’t just crawl websites; it reads, quotes, and summarizes. Brands should optimize for scannability and structure across websites, social posts, video captions, and FAQ pages.

    2. Get your product data optimized & in the right feeds.

    Integrate with nascent ChatGPT Shopping offering and join Perplexity’s Merchant Program. Visibility in AI commerce starts with showing up, and the rules of the game are still new. Ensure metadata attributes and richness of descriptions + other core fields are strong, accurate & as near-real-time as possible.

    3. Start testing AI-powered ads.

    Google’s opened up ad placements within AIO & AI Mode for specific campaign types and Copilot (Microsoft) is also exploring new ad formats/placements. Ads can serve within AIO & AI Mode user experiences as of May of this year, with specific criteria required within certain campaign types (i.e. broad match keyword type only, AI-powered campaign objectives, etc.) that should be internalized by performance teams and explored accordingly (trust, but verify mentality).

    4. Evolve how you measure success.

    Organic search referral volume is generally down, a trend which we expect to continue across more and more sectors at growing significance. Impressions, “share of model,” and prompt visibility are what will matter incrementally more, including tracking over time across prompts and attributing post-view impact as best as current/future systems will allow (a whole separate discussion and tool set to discuss).

    TL;DR: Start Now

    AI search isn’t coming. It’s here. And the brands that are already experimenting, across content, media, and measurement, are going to be the ones who win the next wave of discovery.

    Curious for more?
    We barely scratched the surface here. For the full download on how AI is rewriting the rules of search, grab the full report. Hear Jon and Ben break it all down, live, on YouTube.

    The Chat Effect: Impact of Conversational AI on Search MarketingPlay Video

    And if staying ahead of the industry curve is your thing (it should be), hit follow on LinkedIn. We’re sharing insights, trends, and bold takes weekly. You’ll want in.

  • Dew Drip: Where Outdoor Utility Meets Cultural Relevance

    Dew Drip: Where Outdoor Utility Meets Cultural Relevance

    Mountain Dew is no stranger to showing up in unexpected places, but this time, we took things off the shelves and into the outdoors with Dew Drip, a limited-edition fashion capsule co-created with Australian technical apparel label PYRA.

    This collaboration marked a bold shift into the Gorpcore space, merging Mountain Dew’s unapologetic energy with PYRA’s performance-driven streetwear. It was a natural fit grounded in shared values around movement, nature, and disruption.

    Starting with the Right Question

    The creative spark began with a single provocation: What happens when a loud, flavour-packed beverage brand meets a fashion trend known for its restraint and utility?

    Before Dew Drip ever hit the drawing board, we tested the waters with the Mountain Dew community, with one rogue pair of jorts. The response was instant. The fans went wild. That scrappy, real-world signal proved two things: there was an appetite for Dew in the fashion space, and real space for its bold energy in the rising Gorpcore movement.

    Gorpcore has grown from a niche aesthetic to a staple of modern streetwear. As it became more popular, it also became more muted. We saw a clear opportunity to break through that sameness by bringing in Mountain Dew’s signature chaos, colour, and personality. The goal was to stand out in a space that tends to blend in.

    Building a Culturally Relevant Brand World

    We knew the voice of this campaign needed to feel distinctly Dew. It had to be bold, irreverent, culturally tapped-in, and rooted in adventure. This tone shaped everything from the apparel design, like the antimicrobial balaclavas and volt green camo puffers, to the content and copy, which leaned into Aussie humour and self-awareness.

    We also knew that if Mountain Dew was going to enter the fashion space, it had to feel credible. That meant creating a collection that didn’t just look good in a photoshoot but was actually built to move. PYRA was the right partner to deliver on that promise.

    Strategy that Moves With Culture

    From the start, this wasn’t just about selling a product. It was about inserting Mountain Dew into culture in a way that made sense for the brand and for the audience. The media strategy was built entirely for social, with rollouts across TikTok, Instagram, and Meta. We activated influencer talent who could connect with outdoor enthusiasts and streetwear fans alike.

    To ensure the campaign stayed relevant, our strategy team ran a cultural audit leading into launch, reaffirming that Gorpcore was not only still trending but growing. The timing was right, and so was the tone.

    A Creative Process Driven by Collaboration

    The path from idea to execution was deeply collaborative. Our team at VaynerMedia Australia led everything from the initial insight to the final rollout, including involvement in the product design alongside PYRA. One standout moment came when our Senior Art Director, Lehi Curtis, created a mashup logo that perfectly captured the spirit of the collaboration. That design became a visual anchor for the entire collection.

    Throughout the shoot, we saw the campaign come to life in unexpected ways, whether it was watching our talent explore the great outdoors or seeing how naturally the gear blended fashion and function.

    A Strong Start With Room to Grow

    In the first week alone, the campaign reached 2.7 million people on Meta and 1.7 million on TikTok. We drove nearly 10,000 clicks to the site and are already pacing at nearly half of our primary reach goal. Engagement rates are strong, and early community response suggests this is more than a one-off; it’s a blueprint for how Mountain Dew can continue to show up in fashion.

    Looking Ahead

    One of the biggest takeaways from this work is that authenticity matters. Whether we’re creating for gamers, outdoor adventurers, or fashion-forward Gen Z audiences, Mountain Dew finds success when it shows up in spaces where it feels at home, even if it’s in unexpected ways.

    With Dew Drip, we didn’t just design apparel. We built something that captured the energy of the brand, connected with culture, and gave people a reason to look twice. 

    If you’re a brand looking to break into culture in bold, unexpected, and strategic ways, let’s talk. VaynerMedia is built to help you show up where it matters most, and in ways that only you can.